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1 – 10 of 584Anne L. Buchanan and Jean‐Pierre V.M. Hérubel
Because the degree of interdisciplinarity can be analyzed through citation analysis, the Journal of Historical Geography is examined for interdisciplinarity, that is, the usage of…
Abstract
Because the degree of interdisciplinarity can be analyzed through citation analysis, the Journal of Historical Geography is examined for interdisciplinarity, that is, the usage of other humanities and social sciences disciplines. Findings indicate historical geography is a hybrid subfield of geography, and it is distinctively interdisciplinary and actively synthetic. Its continued vitality as the intellectual interface between the disciplines of history and geography is tied to its ability to harness other vital disciplines and subdisciplines.
Exposing the hidden lives of female public relations (PR) practitioners requires deep connection with those lives. Stories need to be uncovered, interrogated, and ultimately told…
Abstract
Exposing the hidden lives of female public relations (PR) practitioners requires deep connection with those lives. Stories need to be uncovered, interrogated, and ultimately told, to shine a light on the lived experiences of those working in PR. The methods used to collect these stories require deep immersion in the field and the ethnographic method is ideal for this. Ethnographic research methods have long been utilised to gain insights into the lived experiences of individuals and communities. This chapter provides an understanding of the strengths and limitations of ethnographic research methods in capturing the nuances of women's experiences of working in PR.
Organisational ethnography is an established field in business studies and has been used to investigate disciplines cognate to PR, including advertising and media, but, to date, has failed to be fully explored in PR research. This chapter examines the potential for ethnography to open new areas of PR theory and considers its potential as a means of bridging the gap between PR theory and practice.
Ethnography is not without its limitations; key concerns surround objectivity, the role of the researcher, and that of the participant, and ethics. Nonetheless, this method would appear to offer huge potential for the study of PR practices; the diverse nature of the sector makes it a rich area to study.
This chapter explores the potential of this method to offer an opportunity to investigate areas such as working practices, ethics in practice, power, gender, diversity, and culture.
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Simon Robinson and Paul Dowson
The purpose of this paper is to examine the meaning of responsibility and how it might be integrated into the business school and university curriculum.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the meaning of responsibility and how it might be integrated into the business school and university curriculum.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper analyses responsibility in terms of interactive modes, involving imputability (critical agency connecting culture and meaning, through reflection on purpose, values and practice), accountability (involving capacity to give an account and to handle plural accountability), and moral liability (involving responsibility for people, environment and practice, requiring shared and negotiated responsibility). This is related to employability and integrity, and then to practice in the curriculum.
Findings
The paper argues that the theory and practice of responsibility is able to integrate cognate concepts, different disciplines, different skills and dispositions and plural roles. The paper then argues that responsibility is most effectively engaged through a pedagogy of reflective practice and critical conversation, focused in personal, professional, civil, corporate and global responsibility, and provides a practical example.
Originality/value
The paper is original in the breadth of its view of responsibility, the stress on responsibility as focused in plurality and identity, and in the attempt to develop an integrated approach to teaching that focuses on responsibility.
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The ideas and techniques of physics have been systematically applied to the study of living matter since the 1950s and 1960s. As a result a rapid and large increase has taken…
Abstract
The ideas and techniques of physics have been systematically applied to the study of living matter since the 1950s and 1960s. As a result a rapid and large increase has taken place in the research activity in this field and biophysics and molecular biology have emerged as important areas of study. The consequent enormous growth of literature in the field has created great difficulties in tracking out the significant literature of the subject. To cope with this unprecedented growth of literature, a ranking list of periodicals in this field has been prepared on the basis of citations in the Annual review of biochemistry for 1968,1969, and 1970. This list is expected to reflect the impact of literature on the progress of biochemical knowledge more accurately than the list prepared by Henkle in 1938. The present list brings out the predominant position of biochemical research in the total scientific effort today, and the increasing bias of cognate disciplines towards biochemical methodologies. A method of analysis of the number of citations in relation to size of the journal concerned and average length of the papers published has been developed and applied in this study. The analysis yields three parameters which should be useful in assessing the actual scientific interest of a journal in relation to the number of papers published, compactness of the information content, and the scientific value of the papers in relation to compactness of presentation.
It is proposed that university education for library and information professionals has become less autonomous in character and more systematised. A triangular model which…
Abstract
It is proposed that university education for library and information professionals has become less autonomous in character and more systematised. A triangular model which describes a dynamic tension between professors, students and the state is developed by further analysis of the state and higher education: the public sector context, the teaching and learning environment in universities, students and the market and the impact of cognate disciplines. It is concluded that despite the pressures within the higher education system, academics have had an important role in developing the information and library studies field and will continue to be significant.
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The purpose of this paper is to examine the reasons for the gradual extinction of reading scholarship in Library and Information Science (LIS) departments and to identify three…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the reasons for the gradual extinction of reading scholarship in Library and Information Science (LIS) departments and to identify three problematic areas accounting for its dropping prestige: paradigmatic conflicts, the influence of the corporate university and low awareness of the potential of reading research. It also proposes possible solutions to each problem.
Design/methodology/approach
Close reading and analysis of an extensive selection of sources with novel conceptualization and critical perspectives.
Findings
The information science paradigm, which has dominated LIS, is not sufficient to accommodate reading research. The information science model has a detrimentally restrictive effect on reading scholarship. Library science, which should be considered an autonomous discipline rather than an appendix of information science, is more conducive to the study of reading. Non-specialization-based academic hiring to increase values-based diversity in LIS through a larger influx of reading scholars is advocated.
Originality/value
Reading scholarship, unduly deemed “old-fashioned”, or euphemistically “traditional”, is one of the most potent areas of academic inquiry, to which LIS scholars are perfectly positioned to make a unique contribution. Reading research in LIS has great merit irrespective of its connection to information and technology; a set of evaluative questions to determine the quality of reading scholarship is introduced. Using a case study, the paper illustrates the potential of reading research for interdisciplinary connections, community partnerships and the enrichment of LIS education and professional practices. An honest look at one of the most exciting academic fields, regrettably neglected by LIS.
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Reliable, specific, comprehensive and frank data about the fate of PR graduates is hard to find. The problem is compounded by the CAM professional qualifications, since CAM people…
Abstract
Reliable, specific, comprehensive and frank data about the fate of PR graduates is hard to find. The problem is compounded by the CAM professional qualifications, since CAM people are often lumped together with ‘academic’ PR graduates in research into careers. The problem is further compounded by media studies, which overlap, and often encompass, PR studies. The PRCA has obtained data from members which show an apparent reticence to provide the actual number of ‘pure’ PR graduates employed. The sparse data gathered to date do suggest that media and communications graduates are more successful in being employed than are ‘pure’ PR graduates. It is difficult to define what a pure PR degree is since, very often, despite the degree title, only a small component covers pure PR training. Many consultancies employ on an ad hoc basis, and few PR graduates are likely to be ready to take on immediate responsibility, unless they have had a fulfilling sandwich year. Moreover, there is stiff competition from graduates of cognate disciplines such as history, English and philosophy, who can be adept in communicating clearly and succinctly, especially on paper, unlike some PR graduates. Even this initial research, thanks to the PRCA's responding with alacrity to this author's request, shows that far more needs to be done, especially regarding the numbers of pure PR graduates employed. Some educational institutions are responsible for this studiedly lackadaisical lack of precision, preferring to hype all the way to the bank. The question arises as to whether comprehensive research already exists, but is too embarrassing to be shown the light of day.
The paper ethnographically explores modes of urban resistance emerging in tandem with climate change mitigation programs in Copenhagen.
Abstract
Purpose
The paper ethnographically explores modes of urban resistance emerging in tandem with climate change mitigation programs in Copenhagen.
Design/methodology/approach
Building on 11 months of fieldwork with a Danish construction enterprise, the paper examines the politics of urban climate change mitigation programs through the lens of a group of builders' struggles to rethink and resolve dilemmas related to environmental concerns in construction and urban development.
Findings
Based on an analysis of a specific construction project connected to a larger urban climate change mitigation program in Copenhagen, the paper shows how the builders deliberately move between different perspectives and positions as they navigate the shifting power relations of urban planning. The paper argues that this form of crafty resistance enables the builders to maneuver the political landscape of urban planning as they seek to appropriate the role of “urban planners” themselves.
Originality/value
Taking up recent discussions of “resistance” in anthropology and cognate disciplines (e.g. Theodossopoulos, 2014; Bhungalia, 2020; Prasse-Freeman, 2020), the paper contributes an ethnographic analysis of struggles between diverging and, at times, competing modes of engagement in urban climate change mitigation programs and thus sheds light on how professional actors negotiate the ambiguity of “sustainability” in urban planning.
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The purpose of this paper is to examine political marketing with regard to its different conceptualisations and dimensions, and to suggest cognate areas for empirical research…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine political marketing with regard to its different conceptualisations and dimensions, and to suggest cognate areas for empirical research efforts, especially in Sub‐Saharan Africa.
Design/methodology/approach
Perspectives from relevant extant literature on meaning and dimensions of political marketing are examined, and empirical examination of these perspectives in developing countries suggested.
Findings
It was found that political marketing has many conceptualisations and dimensions, and its practice may be coloured by environmental issues, especially in developing economies with weak democratic infrastructure.
Research limitations/implications
Empirical investigations of political marketing in developing economies, as suggested in this paper, may be constrained by secrecy, lack of secondary data, and aparty on the part of relevant party executives, among others.
Practical implications
Party executives will benefit from the conceptualisations and dimensions documented in this paper. In addition, researchers and students in the areas of marketing and political science will find the research agenda a fertile ground for empirical research effort.
Originality/value
This paper should be of value to political party executives, electoral commissions, educators and students of marketing and political science, in addition to government executives interested in relating beneficially with their citizens and other relevant stakeholders.
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Maps the progress with the introduction of quality (academic) auditand quality assessment in higher education in the UK and discussesissues that have emerged. A future scenario is…
Abstract
Maps the progress with the introduction of quality (academic) audit and quality assessment in higher education in the UK and discusses issues that have emerged. A future scenario is suggested that would simplify the structures and give greater responsibility for the quality assurance to institutions of higher education.
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