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Article
Publication date: 16 April 2024

Claire Bates and Rose Matthews

The purpose of this study is to explore the support needs surrounding intimate relationships and sexuality of autistic adults accessing funded social care in England.

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to explore the support needs surrounding intimate relationships and sexuality of autistic adults accessing funded social care in England.

Design/methodology/approach

Semi-structured interviews with 15 autistic adults who were accessing funded social care examined their support needs surrounding intimate relationships and sexuality, with subsequent data analysis using reflexive thematic analysis.

Findings

Four themes were generated: Help at hand, but not too close for comfort, No “cookie-cutter rules”: personalised, inclusive approaches, Playing it safe, not leaving it too late, and Autism-informed education and support.

Practical implications

The authors produced an online learning module for social care staff in England on best practice in supporting autistic adults without learning disabilities with relationships and sexuality.

Originality/value

To the best of the authors' knowledge, there has been no other UK-based research published to date on the social care support needs of autistic adults without learning disabilities surrounding relationships, gender and sexuality.

Details

Advances in Autism, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2056-3868

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 5 March 2024

Thanduxolo Elford Fana and Jane Goudge

In this paper, the authors examine the strategies used to reduce labour costs in three public hospitals in South Africa, which were effective and why. In the democratic era, after…

Abstract

Purpose

In this paper, the authors examine the strategies used to reduce labour costs in three public hospitals in South Africa, which were effective and why. In the democratic era, after the revelations of large-scale corruption, the authors ask whether their case studies provide lessons for how public service institutions might re-make themselves, under circumstances of austerity.

Design/methodology/approach

A comparative qualitative case study approach, collecting data using a combination of interviews with managers, focus group discussions and interviews with shop stewards and staff was used.

Findings

Management in two hospitals relied on their financial power, divisions between unions and employees' loyalty. They lacked the insight to manage different actors, and their efforts to outsource services and draw on the Extended Public Works Program failed. They failed to support staff when working beyond their scope of practice, reducing employees' willingness to take on extra responsibilities. In the remaining hospital, while previous management had been removed due to protests by the unions, the new CEO provided stability and union–management relations were collaborative. Her legitimate power enabled unions and management to agree on appropriate cost cutting strategies.

Originality/value

Finding an appropriate balance between the new reality of reduced financial resources and the needs of staff and patients, requires competent unions and management, transparency and trust to develop legitimate power; managing in an authoritarian manner, without legitimate power, reduces organisational capacity. Ensuring a fair and orderly process to replace ineffective management is key, while South Africa grows cohorts of competent managers and builds managerial experience.

Details

Journal of Health Organization and Management, vol. 38 no. 9
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1477-7266

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 20 March 2024

Eric Urbaniak, Rebecca Uzarski and Salma Haidar

This research paper aims to evaluate the sustainability knowledge and background of students, staff and faculty regarding current university sustainability practices and…

Abstract

Purpose

This research paper aims to evaluate the sustainability knowledge and background of students, staff and faculty regarding current university sustainability practices and individual behaviors at Central Michigan University (CMU); to compare sustainability background and knowledge based on academic discipline of enrollment or employment; and to assess sustainability awareness and interest of the campus community to guide future sustainability initiatives and resources at CMU.

Design/methodology/approach

An electronic cross-sectional survey was used to collect anonymous responses through Qualtrics, and then results were analyzed through SPSS. Analyses were performed based on the academic structures at CMU.

Findings

This research has found that students in STEM fields are more inclined to have pro-sustainability attitudes, knowledge and behaviors, compared to those studying the arts and business. Additionally, results indicate that there is a significant difference in knowledge between the students, and the staff and faculty respondents regarding sustainability knowledge and application, with the staff and faculty consistently demonstrating more pro-sustainability knowledge and behavior.

Originality/value

While research has previously been conducted on sustainability attitudes and behaviors, this research is unique because it ties sustainability knowledge to academic discipline. Additionally, it serves to gauge which sustainability programs and topics members of the campus community are most interested in, and which areas they are most willing to support.

Details

International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education, vol. 25 no. 9
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1467-6370

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 21 February 2024

Tina Bedenik, Claudine Kearney and Éidín Ní Shé

In this viewpoint article, the authors recognize the increased focus in health systems on co-design for innovation and change. This article explores the role of leaders and…

Abstract

Purpose

In this viewpoint article, the authors recognize the increased focus in health systems on co-design for innovation and change. This article explores the role of leaders and mangers in developing and enhancing a culture of trust in their organizations to enable co-design, with the potential to drive innovation and change in healthcare.

Design/methodology/approach

Using social science analyses, the authors argue that current co-design literature has limited focus on interactions between senior leaders and managers, and healthcare staff and service users in supporting co-designed innovation and change. The authors draw on social and health science studies of trust to highlight how the value-based co-design process needs to be supported and enhanced. We outline what co-design innovation and change involve in a health system, conceptualize trust and reflect on its importance within the health system, and finally note the role of senior leaders and managers in supporting trust and responsiveness for co-designed innovation and change.

Findings

Healthcare needs leaders and managers to embrace co-design that drives innovation now and in the future through people – leading to better healthcare for society at large. As authors we argue that it is now the time to shift our focus on the role of senior managers and leaders to embed co-design into health and social care structures, through creating and nurturing a culture of trust.

Originality/value

Building public trust in the health system and interpersonal trust within the health system is an ongoing process that relies upon personal behavior of managers and senior leaders, organizational practices within the system, as well as political processes that underpin these practices. By implementing managerial, leadership and individual practices on all levels, senior managers and leaders provide a mechanism to increase both trust and responsiveness for co-design that supports innovation and change in the health system.

Details

Journal of Health Organization and Management, vol. 38 no. 9
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1477-7266

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 18 April 2024

Ibraheem Abdulaziz Almuaqel

The study aims to qualitatively analyze how faculty can mobilize the intellectual capital of higher education institutions (HEIs), comprising human, structural and relational…

Abstract

Purpose

The study aims to qualitatively analyze how faculty can mobilize the intellectual capital of higher education institutions (HEIs), comprising human, structural and relational capital to enable the education and learning of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Design/methodology/approach

Drawing upon the extant literature, the researcher conducted a qualitative study through written, in-depth interviews with a sample of 40 academic staff/faculty members having prior experience in teaching individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The data was collected through a set of questions formulated as key questions, to be asked to all participants for their responses.

Findings

Results of the analysis demonstrated that intellectual capital’s contribution to higher education of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities can be best understood in terms of its three components/dimensions. Accordingly, three main themes, with each comprising two sub-themes were uncovered. The first theme, leveraging human capital comprised: faculty acumen and faculty training as sub-themes; the second theme, resourcing structural capital comprised: tangible and intangible structural capital as sub-themes; and the third theme, nurturing relational capital comprised: in-class engagement and the second is ex-class connection as sub-themes.

Originality/value

The paper collects data from 40 faculty having prior experience in teaching individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities to explore and reveal a completely new perspective of looking at intellectual capital as a means of providing accessible and inclusive higher education to differently-abled students, making them a part of the mainstream.

Details

Journal of Intellectual Capital, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1469-1930

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 3 May 2023

Denise Jackson and Christina Allen

Technology is widely recognised to be revolutionising the accounting profession, allowing accountants to focus on professional skills and technical knowledge that deliver value…

Abstract

Purpose

Technology is widely recognised to be revolutionising the accounting profession, allowing accountants to focus on professional skills and technical knowledge that deliver value for organisational success. Despite the known benefits, it is reported that accountants are not fully leveraging the potential value of certain technologies. To understand why, this study aims to draw on the technology adoption model (TAM) and investigates accounting professionals’ perceptions towards technology, and how these may influence adoption at work.

Design/methodology/approach

The study gathered online survey data from 585 accounting managers from organisations of varying sizes and in different sectors in Australia and parts of Southeast Asia. Qualitative data were thematically analysed, and quantitative data were analysed using both descriptive and multivariate techniques.

Findings

The study highlighted the pivotal role of staff perceptions on the importance and ease of using technology on the uptake and successful usage. Findings emphasised important opportunities for organisations to educate accounting staff on the value of technology and optimise their confidence and skills through training and support initiatives, particularly smaller businesses. Marked differences in the orientation towards technology among Australian and Southeast Asian participants illuminate how national work culture and practice can influence technology adoption.

Originality/value

The study makes a practical contribution by advancing the understanding of the relative importance and value of certain technologies in different regions and organisation types in the accounting profession. It extends the theoretical understanding of the role of TAM’s core elements to the accounting context, exploring staff’s notions of perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use from the manager’s perspective.

Details

Journal of Accounting & Organizational Change, vol. 20 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1832-5912

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 16 April 2024

Adam Clifford and Deena Camps

A region’s transforming care partnership identified that autistic adults without an intellectual disability (ID) may be falling through gaps in services when presenting with a…

Abstract

Purpose

A region’s transforming care partnership identified that autistic adults without an intellectual disability (ID) may be falling through gaps in services when presenting with a significant emotional and/or behavioural need in the absence of a mental health diagnosis. The region’s intensive support teams (ISTs) for adults with ID therefore piloted a short-term “behavioural support service” for this population. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate this pilot.

Design/methodology/approach

This study represents a mixed-methods service evaluation over a four year pilot period. The quantitative component examined referral rates and demographic data of accepted and declined referrals; and length of referral episodes and Health of The Nation Outcomes Scores (HoNOS) for accepted referrals. The qualitative component used thematic analysis to identify key themes relating to reasons for referral, clinical/therapeutic needs, and the models of support that most informed assessments and interventions at individual and systems levels.

Findings

The ISTs accepted 30 referrals and declined 53. Most accepted referrals were male (83%), and under 24 years old (57%). Average HoNOS scores were above the thresholds generally associated with hospital admission. Key qualitative themes were: transitional support; sexual risks/vulnerabilities; physical aggression; domestic violence; and attachment, trauma and personality difficulties. Support mostly followed psychotherapeutic modalities couched in trauma, attachment and second- and third-wave cognitive behavioural therapies. Positive Behaviour Support (PBS) did not emerge as a model of preference for service users or professionals.

Originality/value

This project represents one of the first of this type for autistic adults without an ID in the UK. It provides recommendations for future service development and research, with implications for Transforming Care policy and guidance.

Details

Advances in Autism, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2056-3868

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 5 December 2023

Maeve Wall, S. Shiver, Sonny Partola, Nicole Wilson Steffes and Rosie Ojeda

The authors suggest strategies for addressing and combating these attempts at racelighting.

Abstract

Purpose

The authors suggest strategies for addressing and combating these attempts at racelighting.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors of this article– five anti-racist educators working in various educational settings in SLC– employ the Critical Race Theory counter-story methodology (Delgado and Stefancic, 1993) to confront resistance to educational equity in Utah. They do so by first providing a historical context of race and education in Utah before presenting four short counterstories addressing the racelighting efforts of students, fellow educators and administrators when confronted with the complexities of racial injustice.

Findings

These counterstories are particularly important in light of the recent increase in color-evasive and whitewashed messaging used to attack CRT and to deny the existence of racism in the SLC school system in K-post-secondary education, and in the U.S. as a whole.

Originality/value

These stories are set in a unique environment, yet they hold national relevance. The racial and religious demographics in Utah shed light on the foundational ethos of the country – white, Christian supremacy. They reveal what is at stake in defending it and some of the key mechanisms of that defense.

Details

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: An International Journal, vol. 43 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2040-7149

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 14 November 2023

Bernice Skytt, Hans Högberg and Maria Engström

The Purpose of the study was to investigate the construct validity and internal consistency of the LaMI among staff in the context of elderly care in Sweden.

Abstract

Purpose

The Purpose of the study was to investigate the construct validity and internal consistency of the LaMI among staff in the context of elderly care in Sweden.

Design/methodology/approach

Questionnaire data from a longitudinal study of staff working in elderly care were used. Data were collected using the Leadership and Management Inventory. First data collection was for explorative factor analysis (n = 1,149), and the second collection, one year later, was for confirmatory factor analysis (n = 1,061).

Findings

The explorative factor analysis resulted in a two-factor solution that explained 70.2% of the total variance. Different models were tested in the confirmatory factor analysis. The final model, a two-factor solution where three items were omitted, showed acceptable results.

Originality/value

The instrument measures both leadership and management performance and can be used to continually measure managers’ performances as perceived by staff to identify areas for development.

Details

Leadership in Health Services, vol. 37 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1751-1879

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 19 April 2024

Zelalem Zekarias Oliso, Demoze Degefa Alemu and Jonathan David Jansen

The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of educational service quality (ESQ) on student academic performance via the mediating role of student satisfaction.

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of educational service quality (ESQ) on student academic performance via the mediating role of student satisfaction.

Design/methodology/approach

To serve the study’s purpose, the study adopted a quantitative research approach. Three public universities representing 30% of the ten public universities located in the Southern part of Ethiopia participated in the study. Questionnaires were the main tools for gathering data. The adapted questionnaire, consisting of 116 items was administered to 400 randomly selected regular undergraduate graduating class students. The quantitative data collected via questionnaire were analyzed using descriptive and advanced inferential statistics.

Findings

The quantitative findings revealed that there is a statistically positive association between overall education service quality and students’ satisfaction (r = 0.712). The findings proved that the facets of education service quality accounted for 71.2% of the variations in students’ satisfaction in the universities. The quantitative findings further showed that the education service quality has a statistically indirect effect on students’ academic performance via the mediating role of students’ satisfaction (test statistic = 31.5311573, std. error = 0.00122536 and p-value = 0). The findings further confirmed that the overall education service quality accounted for 12.7% of the variations in students’ academic performance via student satisfaction in the universities.

Research limitations/implications

The present study was conducted in public universities located in the Southern part of Ethiopia. The findings and conclusions of the study may not be generalizable to all Ethiopian public universities. Future researchers and scholars should conduct their study in all Ethiopian public universities by taking a representative sample from the Ethiopian public universities.

Practical implications

The present finding suggests that an improvement in ESQ leads to students’ satisfaction and that could contribute to boosting their academic performance. The findings of the present may help the practitioners who measure higher education service quality by providing how the provision of ESQ indirectly influences the student’s academic performance in the universities.

Social implications

The findings of this study confirmed that the facets of ESQ are associated with students’ satisfaction and this, in turn, indirectly influences their academic performance. Student academic performance is one of the key indicators of quality education, and it has its influences on the social, political and economic development of a country. The findings of the present research provide valuable insights to higher education management bodies, higher quality assurance agencies and the Federal Ministry of Education to learn the indirect effect of ESQ on students’ academic performance and take necessary measures to improve the Ethiopian higher education quality.

Originality/value

The contributions of ESQ in the higher education sector are enormous. However, the existing service quality literature in higher education mainly focuses on the interrelation among service quality, student satisfaction, loyalty and behavioral intentions. Little is known about the indirect influence of ESQ on student academic performance (one of the key indicators of quality education), principally in Ethiopian higher education, the place of current research. The present study showed the indirect impact of ESQ on student academic performance in Ethiopian public universities. The study, therefore, suggests that university management bodies should actively monitor the quality of their services and commit themselves to boosting students’ learning outcomes.

Details

Journal of International Education in Business, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2046-469X

Keywords

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