bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Introduction to Healthcare for Chinese-speaking Interpreters and Translators
Authors: Crezee Ineke H.M. , Ng Eva N.S.
Published: August 2016

This book is based on the very popular international publication (Crezee, 2013) and has been supplemented with Chinese glossaries. Just like the 2013 textbook, this practical resource will allow interpreters and translators to quickly read up on healthcare settings, familiarizing themselves with anatomy, physiology, medical terminology and frequently encountered conditions, diagnostic tests and treatment options.
It is an exceptionally useful and easily accessible handbook, in particular for English-speaking patients, Chinese-speaking doctors, and first language Chinese-speaking students in healthcare related programs.
This book includes special comments on the medical system in some English- and Chinese-speaking countries and gives concrete examples of patient expectations for hospital stays or physician visits. Also included is information regarding the establishment of some health interpreting services, the nature of Chinese medical terminology and specific culture-related concepts to be aware of.
Analysis of the therapeutic change process in the context of a child group psychoanalytic psychotherapy: a single case study / Análisis del proceso de cambio terapéutico en el contexto de una psicoterapia psicoanalítica grupal de niños: un estudio de caso único
Authors: Ramos Laura , Freidin Fabiana , Sacco Virginia , Aguiriano Vanina , Padawer María , Bardi Daniela , Luzzi Ana María
Published: August 2016

A single case study for a psychoanalytic psychotherapy process in a girl and her mother is presented from the perspective of the Object Relations Theory framework. Of interest are the empirical findings of therapeutic change and the effectiveness of the tool using a method created by a team of researchers from a university chair. A qualitative and quantitative analysis of textual observational records of sessions was conducted using codes constructed ad hoc from specific manuals for children and adults. The results of the application of the method are contrasted with results from psychological assessment techniques. Therapeutic change indicators are linked to progress in the processes of symbolization; therapeutic efficacy is recorded when the psychotherapist’s interventions favour symbolization and mentalization processes.
Atypical parkinsonism–associated retromer mutant alters endosomal sorting of specific cargo proteins
Authors: McMillan Kirsty J. , Gallon Matthew , Jellett Adam P. , Clairfeuille Thomas , Tilley Frances C. , McGough Ian , Danson Chris M. , Heesom Kate J. , Wilkinson Kevin A. , Collins Brett M. , Cullen Peter J.
Published: August 2016

The retromer complex acts as a scaffold for endosomal protein complexes that sort integral membrane proteins to various cellular destinations. The retromer complex is a heterotrimer of VPS29, VPS35, and VPS26. Two of these paralogues, VPS26A and VPS26B, are expressed in humans. Retromer dysfunction is associated with neurodegenerative disease, and recently, three VPS26A mutations (p.K93E, p.M112V, and p.K297X) were discovered to be associated with atypical parkinsonism. Here, we apply quantitative proteomics to provide a detailed description of the retromer interactome. By establishing a comparative proteomic methodology, we identify how this interactome is perturbed in atypical parkinsonism-associated VPS26A mutants. In particular, we describe a selective defect in the association of VPS26A (p.K297X) with the SNX27 cargo adaptor. By showing how a retromer mutant leads to altered endosomal sorting of specific PDZ ligand–containing cargo proteins, we reveal a new mechanism for perturbed endosomal cargo sorting in atypical parkinsonism.
ER–Mitochondria contact sites: A new regulator of cellular calcium flux comes into play
Authors: Krols Michiel , Bultynck Geert , Janssens Sophie
Published: August 2016

Endoplasmic reticulum (ER)–mitochondria membrane contacts are hotspots for calcium signaling. In this issue, Raturi et al. (2016. J. Cell Biol. http://dx.doi.org/10.1083/jcb.201512077) show that the thioredoxin TMX1 inhibits the calcium pump SERCA2b at ER–mitochondria contact sites, thereby affecting ER–mitochondrial calcium transfer and mitochondrial bioenergetics.
Nox2-derived oxidative stress results in inefficacy of antibiotics against post-influenza S. aureus pneumonia
Authors: Sun Keer , Yajjala Vijaya Kumar , Bauer Christopher , Talmon Geoffrey A. , Fischer Karl J. , Kielian Tammy , Metzger Dennis W.
Published: August 2016

Clinical post-influenza Staphylococcus aureus pneumonia is characterized by extensive lung inflammation associated with severe morbidity and mortality even after appropriate antibiotic treatment. In this study, we show that antibiotics rescue nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH) oxidase 2 (Nox2)–deficient mice but fail to fully protect WT animals from influenza and S. aureus coinfection. Further experiments indicate that the inefficacy of antibiotics against coinfection is attributable to oxidative stress–associated inflammatory lung injury. However, Nox2-induced lung damage during coinfection was not associated with aggravated inflammatory cytokine response or cell infiltration but rather caused by reduced survival of myeloid cells. Specifically, oxidative stress increased necrotic death of inflammatory cells, thereby resulting in lethal damage to surrounding tissue. Collectively, our results demonstrate that influenza infection disrupts the delicate balance between Nox2-dependent antibacterial immunity and inflammation. This disruption leads to not only increased susceptibility to S. aureus infection, but also extensive lung damage. Importantly, we show that combination treatment of antibiotic and NADPH oxidase inhibitor significantly improved animal survival from coinfection. These findings suggest that treatment strategies that target both bacteria and oxidative stress will significantly benefit patients with influenza-complicated S. aureus pneumonia.
Staphylococcus aureus vaccines: Deviating from the carol
Authors: Missiakas Dominique , Schneewind Olaf
Published: August 2016

Staphylococcus aureus, a commensal of the human nasopharynx and skin, also causes invasive disease, most frequently skin and soft tissue infections. Invasive disease caused by drug-resistant strains, designated MRSA (methicillin-resistant S. aureus), is associated with failure of antibiotic therapy and elevated mortality. Here we review polysaccharide-conjugate and subunit vaccines that were designed to prevent S. aureus infection in patients at risk of bacteremia or surgical wound infection but failed to reach their clinical endpoints. We also discuss vaccines with ongoing trials for combinations of polysaccharide-conjugates and subunits. S. aureus colonization and invasive disease are not associated with the development of protective immune responses, which is attributable to a large spectrum of immune evasion factors. Two evasive strategies, assembly of protective fibrin shields via coagulases and protein A–mediated B cell superantigen activity, are discussed as possible vaccine targets. Although correlates for protective immunity are not yet known, opsonophagocytic killing of staphylococci by phagocytic cells offers opportunities to establish such criteria.
Cell biology of fat storage
Authors: Cohen Paul , Spiegelman Bruce M.
Published: August 2016

The worldwide epidemic of obesity and type 2 diabetes has greatly increased interest in the biology and physiology of adipose tissues. Adipose (fat) cells are specialized for the storage of energy in the form of triglycerides, but research in the last few decades has shown that fat cells also play a critical role in sensing and responding to changes in systemic energy balance. White fat cells secrete important hormone-like molecules such as leptin, adiponectin, and adipsin to influence processes such as food intake, insulin sensitivity, and insulin secretion. Brown fat, on the other hand, dissipates chemical energy in the form of heat, thereby defending against hypothermia, obesity, and diabetes. It is now appreciated that there are two distinct types of thermogenic fat cells, termed brown and beige adipocytes. In addition to these distinct properties of fat cells, adipocytes exist within adipose tissue, where they are in dynamic communication with immune cells and closely influenced by innervation and blood supply. This review is intended to serve as an introduction to adipose cell biology and to familiarize the reader with how these cell types play a role in metabolic disease and, perhaps, as targets for therapeutic development.
How do Research Faculty in the Biosciences Evaluate Paper Authorship Criteria?
Authors: Kassis Timothy
Published: August 2016

Authorship of peer-reviewed journal articles and abstracts has become the primary currency and reward unit in academia. Such a reward is crucial for students and postdocs who are often under-compensated and thus highly value authorship as an incentive. While numerous scientific and publishing organizations have written guidelines for determining author qualifications and author order, there remains much ambiguity when it comes to how these criteria are weighed by research faculty. Here, we sought to provide some initial insight on how faculty view the relative importance of 11 criteria for scientific authorship. We distributed an online survey to 564 biomedical engineering, biology, and bioengineering faculty members at 10 research institutions across the United States. The response rate was approximately 18%, resulting in a final sample of 102 respondents. Results revealed a consensus on some criteria, such as time spent conducting experiments, but there was a lack of agreement regarding the role of funding procurement. This study provides quantitative assessments of how faculty members in the biosciences evaluate authorship criteria. We discuss the implications of these findings for researchers, especially new graduate students, to help navigate the discrepancy between official policies for authorship and the contributions that faculty truly value.
A unifying comparative phylogenetic framework including traits coevolving across interacting lineages
Authors: Manceau Marc , Lambert Amaury , Morlon Hélène
Published: August 2016

Models of phenotypic evolution fit to phylogenetic comparative data are widely used to make inferences regarding the tempo and mode of trait evolution. A wide range of models is already available for this type of analysis, and the field is still under active development. One of the most needed developments concerns models that better account for the effect of within- and between-clade interspecific interactions on trait evolution, that can result from processes as diverse as competition, predation, parasitism, or mutualism. Here, we begin by developing a very general comparative phylogenetic framework for (multi)-trait evolution that can be applied to both ultrametric and non-ultrametric trees. This framework not only encapsulates all previous classical models of univariate and multivariate phenotypic evolution, but also paves the way for the consideration of a much broader series of models in which lineages co-evolve, meaning that trait changes in one lineage are influenced by the value of traits in other, interacting lineages. Next, we provide a standard way for deriving the probabilistic distribution of traits at tip branches under our framework. We show that a multivariate normal distribution remains the expected distribution for a broad class of models accounting for interspecific interactions. Our derivations allow us to fit various models efficiently, and in particular greatly reduce the computation time needed to fit the recently proposed phenotype matching model. Finally, we illustrate the utility of our framework by developing a toy model for mutualistic coevolution. Our framework should foster a new era in the study of coevolution from comparative data.
#Donate: the role of social media in academic library fundraising
Authors: Garczynski Joyce
Published: August 2016

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to examine the extent to which academic libraries are using social media to fundraise, what tactics they are using to fundraise on social media and how academic libraries’ social networks are responding to their fund-raising efforts.

Design/methodology/approach

This research is a content analysis of 276 posts from 2015 on the Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts of 16 academic libraries.

Findings

This study found that academic libraries are just beginning to use social media for fund-raising with many adopting non-profit best practices that brought significantly more likes and shares/retweets to their accounts.

Originality/value

This research is one of the few systematic examinations of how libraries use social media to discuss fund-raising, and the findings suggest tactics for libraries to adopt in their fund-raising posts to generate more likes and shares/retweets.
Helping managers to more effectively delegate authority
Authors: Lyons Paul R.
Published: August 2016

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide human resources (HR) practitioners with some information and tools to assist managers become more effective delegators of authority. Included is information that might be used in a training session for managers.

Design/methodology/approach

Drawn from research and opinion is information that serves to help managers form solid partnerships with employees in sharing of some tasks and responsibilities. Several findings from research aim to illuminate key prescriptions for effective delegation. A survey instrument is provided to assist managers assess their own preferences in delegation practices.

Findings

Findings clear the fact that delegation can be deliberately planned and executed. There are several areas that can be assessed to ultimately guide a manager in effective delegation.

Originality/value

The originality of this paper lies in its potential to: a) assist and guide a manager as he/she goes about establishing an effective delegation; and b) the arrangement of the content of the paper to enable HR practitioners to use the material as a training module for managers.
Feedback fears for the “Me, Me, Me” generation
Authors: Beal Brian
Published: August 2016

Purpose

Demographic data indicate that the millennial generation is entering the workforce and will become an increasingly significant component of the workforce in the near future. The Millennial generation appears to have significant differences in values, attitudes and expectations regarding work than prior generations. The paper seeks to draw attention to one specific area of management practice - delivering negative feedback - and explore how the knowledge may be changing as a new generation of workers enter the workplace.

Design/methodology/approach

The literature on the millennial generation was reviewed and research undertaken on giving negative feedback to identify issues that are significant with respect to the manner in which managers give negative information to this new generation of workers.

Findings

To be effective, negative feedback to millennials needs to be consistent and ongoing. The feedback must be perceived by millennials as benefiting them now or in the future. Managers must be assertive enough to make sure the employee understands the concerns, but sensitive to the fact that many millennials have difficulty accepting such feedback.

Originality/value

To date, there has been little attempt by management researchers to address the organizational implications of the generational shift that is occurring.
Controlling the boundaries: how to minimize the negative impact of working outside regular hours
Authors: Cole Graham
Published: August 2016

Purpose

This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies.

Design/methodology/approach

This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context.

Findings

Heightened competition has become the norm for most organizations operating in the current business climate. Globalization is often cited as a key reason for this. The seemingly incessant emergence of new technologies is another. In the face of such developments, markets evolve accordingly. With firms facing increasingly tougher challenges, the spotlight on employees has intensified. The extent of technological advances means that work is no longer wholly defined by conventional boundaries of space and time. For many people, normal working hours have become something of an anachronism. The advent of the smartphone is especially significant in this respect. An increasing number of employees are now using these and other similar devices to routinely perform workplace duties in their own time.

Practical implications

The paper provides strategic insights and practical thinking that have influenced some of the world's leading organizations.

Originality/value

The briefing saves busy executives and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.
Talent development for top leaders: three HR initiatives for competitive advantage
Authors: Mayfield Milton , Mayfield Jacqueline , Wheeler Cassandra
Published: August 2016

Purpose

This paper provides guidelines for how leaders can use human resource department capabilities to improve organizational performance and related outcomes.

Design/methodology/approach

To develop these guidelines, existing best practices were examined and distilled into concise recommendations for organizational leaders.

Findings

Examination of best practices indicated three human resource areas for quality improvement in organizational outcomes: talent inventories, workforce planning and training/development processes.

Originality/value

This paper draws together multiple sources to provide ways for top leaders to better utilize existing human resource practices for improved workplace outcomes and strategic enhancements.
Harnessing the power of the job description
Authors: Leon Rohr Samuel
Published: August 2016

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to show managers can effectively utilize a job description throughout an employee's tenure. Typically, a job description is used in the hiring process. However, a job description can be utilized in recruiting and selection, compensation, evaluation, training and development, health and safety, and succession planning.

Design/methodology/approach

The author approached the use of a job description from a manager’s perspective. Using both existing literature and conceptual usage of a job description, the author provides a potential use of a job description to improve the human resource competitiveness of an organization.

Findings

If utilized throughout the life of employment, a job description is a powerful tool that can aid managers. Managers have a road map that can help them with their duties of planning, leading, organizing, controlling and staffing. With a road map, the complexities of management become easier.

Research Limitations/implications

The limitations involve actual data that prove the effectiveness of the job description. Most of the information provided in the article is theoretical but potentially provides practical information for practitioners.

Practical implications

The article provides a practical application of the use of a job description. The information provided can be utilized immediately by practitioners. Specifically, inexperienced managers can use the job description as a road map for supervising an employee through the employment relationship.

Social implications

Unfortunately, there are very little social implications. However, whenever organizations can improve their relationships with their employees, society will surely benefit.

Originality/value

The article presented involves pieces of previous works, but to date, the author could not find another example of the total use of the job description through the employment relationship. Therefore, it appears to be very original in application.
On the value relevance of analyst opinions and institutional shareholdings in China
Authors: Huang Wei , Boateng Agyenim
Published: August 2016

Purpose

This paper aims to examine the relevance of stock analysts’ opinions and institutional investors’ shareholding to the value of Chinese firms.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors use both internal and external corporate governance mechanism to investigate value relevance of analyst opinion and institutional shareholding to Chinese firms.

Findings

The authors find that Tobin’s Q is positively related to analysts’ consensus forecast optimism and institutional investors’ shareholding but negatively related to analyst forecast dispersions. Further analysis using subsamples of partially state-owned enterprises and non-state-owned firms indicate that institutional investors have significant impact on firm value for all firms irrespective of the ownership type, whereas analyst forecasts opinions appear to have significant effects on partially state-owned firms but insignificant effects on non-state-owned firms. The results also show that internal governance appears to be an important pre-requisite that affects analysts’ forecast opinions and that good internal governance reinforces external governance mechanism to create firm value.

Originality/value

Studies analysing the effects of both internal and external mechanisms on firm value in emerging economies are scant. This study attempts to extend and contribute to this line of research by investigating the relevance of institutional investors and stock analysts’ opinion to firm valuation.
The association between abnormal audit fees and audit quality after IFRS adoption
Authors: Jung Soo-Jung , Kim Bum-Joon , Chung Ju-Ryum
Published: August 2016

Purpose

This paper aims to examine how the relationship between abnormal audit fees and audit quality changed after adoption of the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) in Korea.

Design/methodology/approach

Using empirical data collected over the period from 2008 to 2013, this study analyzes the association between abnormally high/low audit fee and audit quality. This study uses linear regression to test the hypothetical relation using discretionary accrual as a proxy for audit quality.

Findings

This study finds that there exists no significant relationship between abnormally high audit fees and audit quality measured by the magnitude of discretionary accruals in the pre-IFRS adoption period. However, the relationship between abnormally high audit fees and the magnitude of discretionary accruals turns to be positive in the post-IFRS adoption period. These finding suggests that the IFRS enables some clients to engage more discretion in the choice of discretionary accruals and auditors charge higher audit fees in return for allowing the discretion for such clients.

Practical implications

This study provides insight to regulators of the need to review carefully the financial statements of firms with abnormally high audit fees, and to investors to be more cautious when using financial information about these firms.

Originality/value

To the best of authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to assess IFRS impact on audit fee-quality relation. Also, unique Korean audit market with intensifying competition and discounting audit fee provides interesting setting to review the impact of abnormal audit fee on audit quality.
Coproduction as a structural transformation of the public sector
Authors: Meijer Albert
Published: August 2016

Purpose

Coproduction fundamentally changes the roles of citizens and governments. The purpose of this paper is to enhance the theoretical understanding of the transformative changes in the structural order of the public domain that result from the coproduction of public services.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper builds upon both the literature on coproduction of public services, new public governance and on social contracts between citizens and the state to identify the nature, drivers and implications of the transformation. The argument is illustrated with examples from crime control and healthcare.

Findings

The analysis identified an institutional misfit and highlights four key issues that are key to the understanding of the structural transformation of public services: compensation for time and knowledge resources, responses to new forms of (in)equality, risk of conflicts between citizens and re-organizing accountability.

Research limitations/implications

The analysis highlights the need for further research into the implications of coproduction for government legitimacy, transfer of power, financial implications, representativeness and consequences for non-coproducing citizens.

Originality/value

This paper links instrumental debates about the coproduction of public services to fundamental debates about the relations between government and citizens and identifies substantial issues that are raised by this structural transformation in the public domain and that require new responses.
Autonomy of public agencies in Pakistan: does structure matter?
Authors: Zahra Abiha , Jadoon Muhammad Zafar Iqbal
Published: August 2016

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between structural arrangements of public agencies of Pakistan and their autonomy.

Design/methodology/approach

Data were collected through a questionnaire using the key informant approach from 70 public agencies of Pakistan. Hypotheses were drawn from the structural instrumental perspective to examine the relation between structure and autonomy. In order to test the hypotheses, multivariate regression analysis was performed on the data.

Findings

The research highlights that out of the three major structural dimensions, horizontal specialization, vertical specialization and governing board, only governing board is seen to affect the human resource management dimension of autonomy while vertical specialization is related to financial management autonomy. None of the three hypotheses were completely supported. The divergence of the results from the structural instrumental perspective points to other factors related to agencies including administrative culture and context of state that matter in delegation of autonomy to the agencies by the government.

Originality/value

This paper contributes to an on-going debate on globalization of public management reforms with emphasis on structural instrumental explanation of the agencification in developing countries.
Political governance and (account)ability of private universities in developing countries
Authors: Nurunnabi Mohammad
Published: August 2016

Purpose

Due to scarcity of research in governance and accountability in private higher education in developing countries, the purpose of this paper is to explore the tensions surrounding good governance in legitimizing accountability in private universities in developing countries with reference to Bangladesh.

Design/methodology/approach

Mixed methods are employed: a quantitative survey of 1,576 students from all 79 private universities; qualitative interviews with 23 stakeholders; and policy documents including the Private University Acts, the World Bank Report and newspapers (1992-2015) were evaluated. The objectives of these mixed methods in this study are juxtaposed and generate complementary insights that together create a bigger picture surrounding governance and accountability issues.

Findings

Using Clark's (1983) triangle model (i.e. state control, academic oligarchy, and market forces together with the external influence of donors and boards of trustees as internal governance) and new institutional theory (DiMaggio and Powell, 1983), the major contributions of this study are explaining the root causes of the poor governance of private universities through three related factors: the substantial political power and autonomy held by boards of trustees; a lack of enforcement of Private University Act; and a lack of coordination among stakeholders. The coercive power of the state becomes powerless since the board of trustees ultimately enjoys political power and “does whatever it can.” The lack of coordination of the academic oligarchy (e.g. professors and academics) and market forces (represented by students) by the board of trustees creates a paradox of governance and hence a decoupling of formal policies and actual practice.

Practical implications

The findings have major policy implications for local and international policymakers for improving good governance in private universities in developing countries.

Originality/value

The novelty of the study's findings represents an initial effort to understand the complex and persistent phenomenon of prolonged poor governance of private universities in developing countries, which is largely neglected in the literature. This will undoubtedly contribute to literature and policy implications.
Procurement contract management in the local government authorities (LGAs) in Tanzania
Authors: Rasheli Geraldine Arbogast
Published: August 2016

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the transaction costs involved in managing procurement contracts in the public sector, particularly at the lower and higher level of local governments from the clients’ perspective.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper uses new institutional economics, specifically the transaction cost approach. A multiple case study design was used, in which five local government authorities (LGAs) were selected from the Kigoma and Tanga regions of Tanzania. Interviews with heads of procurement management units, focus groups and secondary sources were used to collect information for lower level LGAs.

Findings

Very high information, negotiation and monitoring transaction costs were revealed at the post-contractual stage for higher levels of local government in all cases. Transaction costs were associated with institutional problems, lack of financial resources and attitudes towards accountability, transparency and competition. It was also found that lower levels of local government are faced with very high transaction costs for all procurement stages due to a lack of procurement contract management capacity among ward and village procurement project committees, low levels of support from higher level LGAs, a lack of simple Swahili-standardised documents and guidelines for lower level procurement contract management which reflect current legal issues and the lack of a legal framework for procurement at the lower level of local government. These costs are associated with poor accountability and a lack of competition, transparency and efficiency throughout public procurement chains.

Research limitations/implications

There is no estimate for quantitative approaches, because it is was difficult to measure transaction costs associated with accountability, transparency and efficiency.

Originality/value

The paper contributes knowledge on qualitative levels of transaction costs for procurement contract management for both higher and lower levels of LGAs from the clients’ viewpoint.
The agreeable bureaucrat: personality and PSM
Authors: Hamidullah Madinah F. , Van Ryzin Gregg G. , Li Huafang
Published: August 2016

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the extent to which public service motivation (PSM) can be explained by the big five personality factors.

Design/methodology/approach

Original data are gathered from two online surveys of public service professionals from across the USA. The two surveys employ the same measures of personality traits but different measures of PSM. This was done to test the generalizability of the findings across different operationalization of PSM.

Findings

The big five personality factors explain a large share of the variance in PSM, above and beyond basic demographic factors (sex, age and race). Agreeableness has the most consistent association with PSM. Extroversion, conscientiousness, and openness to experience also display positive associations with at least some measures and dimensions of PSM.

Research limitations/implications

The two surveys involved somewhat small, non-probability samples of public service professionals. Additional research is needed to confirm the generalizability of these findings.

Originality/value

This study contributes to both the theoretical and empirical understanding of the origins of PSM.
An evaluation of adult safeguarding outcomes’ focused recording in the context of Making Safeguarding Personal
Authors: Gough Matthew
Published: August 2016

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the impact in one local authority of Making Safeguarding Personal (MSP) upon the recording of outcomes in safeguarding interventions. To determine to what extent person centred outcomes were in evidence.

Design/methodology/approach

– Analysis of data provided by the local authority across adult safeguarding teams informed by a critical theory approach.

Findings

– There is a need for cultural and system change to fully embed MSP principles within local authority safeguarding. This case study identified that practitioner recording was inconsistent with the need for greater recognition of person centred approaches within adult safeguarding. Views of the service user are constructed and moderated by the assessing professional and the user voice is seldom evident in recording of safeguarding interventions.

Research limitations/implications

– This study was wholly reliant upon the data provided rather than primary investigations with practitioners and service users. The focus on recorded data permitted variance and recorded data were open to worker interpretation. MSP. The starting premise of the methodology by adopting a critical perspective sought to elevate the perspective of marginalised service user groups. This may have unduly framed the practitioner provider from a deficit position.

Practical implications

– The need to ensure MSP approaches are embedded fully in all aspects of local authority safeguarding. There is a need for recording to greater reflect principles of empowerment with the wishes of service users, their narratives and actual words providing greater weight to assessment.

Social implications

– The power shifts apparent in the principles supporting The Care Act needed to be embedded in safeguarding to support marginalised adults.

Originality/value

– MSP is a relatively new development for safeguarding adults and the evidence base is building. This paper focuses on the recorded outputs of safeguarding interventions which complements work already produced which has focused on system and strategic changes.
Assessing the readiness of sustainability reporting tools (SRTs) for an age-friendly built environment
Authors: Siew Renard Y.J.
Published: August 2016

Purpose

Population ageing is expected to have an increasing impact on the economy and society. In particular, it creates a myriad of challenges for stakeholders in the construction and property sectors. The design of the built environment would now need to consider the requirements of the older population in the community. This paper aims to provide a study on the readiness of mainstream sustainability reporting tools (SRTs) in helping to create an age-friendly built environment.

Design/methodology/approach

First, a list of criteria representing the needs of the older community in the built environment is developed based on a rigorous literature survey and is validated with five focus groups. Then, using this list, SRTs are assessed for their age-friendly readiness.

Findings

The findings from this study show that not only are there variations across different SRTs but also a majority do not emphasize enough on age-friendly criteria.

Research limitations/implications

It is suggested that mainstream SRTs should consider allocating mandatory credits for age-friendly criteria. This would definitely encourage property developers and town planners to consider and plan for the needs of the older population.

Originality/value

This paper is original as none of the prior studies have considered assessing the readiness of SRTs in creating an age-friendly built environment.
Assessing the validity of accounting for human rights
Authors: Pianezzi Daniela , Cinquini Lino
Published: August 2016

Purpose

This paper aims to focus on accounting for human rights. It explores the validity of conflicting theoretical perspectives on accounting and their ability to reduce the gap between accounting and accountability for human rights.

Design/methodology/approach

This study relies on the notion of topos to develop a pragmatic constructivist perspective on conventional accounting and social accounting with respect to human rights. Applying pragmatic constructivism permits a better understanding and assessment of the ethics underpinning the conventional and social accounting approaches.

Findings

The ethics underpinning the topos of conventional accounting offer a reductive explanation of the agency of organizational actors, so inhibiting moral and social responsibility. Furthermore, the calculative logic that dominates this topos promotes a monovocal form of communication (to shareholders) and translates valuesper seinto instrumental values. By contrast, the social accounting topos sheds new light on the role that accounting may play in detecting human rights violations, by focusing more on communication and social values. However, for this topos to be valid, alternative management practices that go beyond voluntary social reporting need to be further developed.

Originality/value

Human rights accountability is an urgent challenge for companies in today’s society. However, scholars have largely disregarded the role of accounting in the process of holding companies accountable for human rights violations. By questioning the relationship between accounting and human rights, this paper takes a first step towards resolving this issue.
Boundary subjects and boundary objects in accounting fact construction and communication
Authors: Laine Teemu , Korhonen Tuomas , Suomala Petri , Rantamaa Asta
Published: August 2016

Purpose

This paper aims to elaborate the concepts of boundary subjects and boundary objects in constructing and communicating relevant accounting facts for managing product development (PD). Boundary subjects as reflective actors benefit effective accounting enactment, by building a shared understanding about different actors’ roles and information needs, and by helping to respond to these needs with new boundary objects.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper uses a longitudinal interventionist case study of a machinery manufacturer. The focus of this case study was the production ramp-up phase at the end of a PD program. Different actors’ needs were first collected and elaborated by interventionist researchers (boundary subjects). Then accounting prototypes (boundary objects) provided new means of communication.

Findings

The findings show that dealing with boundaries is crucial in accounting development. The role of boundary subjects was fundamental in the process of choosing, constructing, elaborating and communicating accounting facts. During this process, accounting prototypes integrated new accounting facts, the boundary subjects mitigated the boundaries and the boundary objects focused and restricted communication about accounting facts.

Research limitations/implications

The paper tests the pragmatic constructivism approach by examining accounting enactment under uncertainty and ambiguity. The study refines pragmatic constructivism in terms of boundaries, boundary subjects as actors and boundary objects.

Practical implications

The intentional use of boundary subjects and objects as communication platform could push a more active inclusion of business controllers as active business partners.

Originality/value

The paper contributes to the literature on accounting development by highlighting the use of boundary subjects and boundary objects as fundamental mechanisms in constructing and communicating accounting facts.
Tracing the becoming of reflective practitioner through the enactment of epistemic practices
Authors: Trenca Mihaela
Published: August 2016

Purpose

This paper aims to develop a conceptual framework for tracing the cognitive and affective micro-processes management accountants can draw upon to construct themselves as reflective practitioners within organizational context.

Design/methodology/approach

Drawing on pragmatic constructivism and Heron’s (1992) theory of learning and personhood, the framework provides a methodology for tracing the way management accountants can construct themselves as reflective practitioners by enactig epistemic practices (Cetina, 2001). Furthermore, we enquire into the epistemological requirements for creating trustworthy knowledge and the processes through which actors can diminish the proactive-pragmatic truth gap.

Findings

The framework shows how the participatory function of the mind, deeply rooted in affective processes, is implicated in creating empathic engagement with epistemic objects. Besides the affective dimension, there is the need for logical inferences to link facts and reveal possibilities for helping actors to pursue their value system. Coupling affective and logical processes fosters passionate humility, which helps actors create clear communicative acts with whom other actors can resonate, leading to the development of functioning practices.

Research limitations/implications

Providing a framework for tracing the micro-processes of epistemic practices can serve as a tool for researchers to acquire a more detailed account of the practice and. By looking into the epistemological aspect of practice, researchers could be able to go beyond describing practice and suggest improvements from a pragmatic point of view.

Originality/value

The paper provides a novel insight into the analysis of management accounting practice by showing the interplay between affective and cognitive processes in sustaining epistemic practice. Additionally, it opens up the dialogue on trustworthiness of knowledge generated through epistemic practices.
Arias to academia: an academic malpractice suite in three movements
Authors: Upshaw Allison
Published: August 2016

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to explore the possible affects of personal traumas on the pedagogical practices of educators sometimes resulting in a type of pedagogical malpractice. The content shares an interest towards reformation in artist training programs, and personal learning experiences for K-12 teachers.

Design/methodology/approach

– Beginning an inward/backward journey of narrative inquiry, I use autoethnography to explore the following questions: What am I teaching my students, explicitly and implicitly? To what extent do I perpetuate the traumas of my pre-professional training? How can I interrupt this legacy of abuse in my own pedagogical practices? My journey is shared through a collection of brief narrative vignettes, referred to by the musical term suite, in which I critically examine my life experiences in search of answers to these questions.

Findings

– Like most qualitative research puzzles, I’m left with more questions rather than finite answers. How would my educational experiences have been different, if I understood learning as a shared privilege between teacher and student? How much more transformative could my teaching, have been, if it were not a catchall just in case I wasn’t successful in my chosen path? How might I have grown as a performer, if teaching had been a respected and integrated part of my performance curricula? How much less of a failure would I have felt when I found myself leading a classroom in later years? Would I have perceived it as a failure at all?

Research limitations/implications

– This situated narrative stops for the sake of article length, but the journey into becoming continues and will require consistent reflection to remain headed in the right direction.

Originality/value

– This piece is an autoethnographic account that contributes to positive pedagogical practices.
Autoethnography as a praxis of care – the promises and pitfalls of autoethnography as a commitment to care
Authors: Visse Merel , Niemeijer Alistair
Published: August 2016

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to focus on the possibilities of autoethnography as a commitment to care and a social justice agenda (Denzin, 2014:p. x).

Design/methodology/approach

– Autoethnography can be seen as a “methodology that allows us to examine how the private troubles of individuals are connected to public issues and to public responses to these troubles” (Mills, 1959, cited in Denzin, 2014). This resonates strongly with the field of study: political care ethics, as the main focus is on how to promote a caring society. “Care” might be conceived broadly as everything the authors do to maintain and repair the world; i.e., as a social praxis.

Findings

– Care ethics can benefit from autoethnography, as there is a strong(er) emphasis on “what matters,” what people care for, about and why, rather than on what is “right.” In this paper, the authors will thus explore the promises and pitfalls of autoethnography for a caring society, by connecting insights from theories on political care ethics and qualitative inquiry with the own autoethnographic performance at the International Conference on Qualitative Inquiry in May 2015.

Originality/value

– Care ethics can benefit from autoethnography, as there is a strong(er) emphasis on “what matters,” what people care for, about and why, rather than on what is “right.”
Auto-, duo- and collaborative-ethnographies: “caring” in an audit culture climate
Authors: Rinehart Robert E. , Earl Kerry
Published: August 2016

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to make a case for the strength of qualitative work, but more specifically for various kinds of ethnographies.

Design/methodology/approach

– The authors argue that global neoliberal and audit culture policies have crept into academic research, tertiary education practice, and research culture.

Findings

– The authors then discuss major tenets of and make the case for the use of auto-, duo-, and collaborative-ethnographies as caring practices and research method(ologies) that may in fact push back against such hegemonic neoliberal practices in the academy. Finally, the authors link these caring types of ethnographies to the papers within this special issue.

Originality/value

– This is an original look at the concepts of auto-, duo-, and collaborative-ethnographies with relation to caring practices.
Outing autoethnography: an exploration of relational ethics in queer autoethnographic research
Authors: Mesner Kerri
Published: August 2016

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to open up a deeper, more complex discussion about ethical issues in queer autoethnography, by moving beyond either an outline of seminal autoethnographic thinkers, instigators, and writers, or a simple rearticulation of the key issues currently under discussion within the field of autoethnographic ethics.

Design/methodology/approach

– The author’s intention is toqueerautoethnographic ethics – that is, to employqueeringas a verb, and to queerly examine autoethnographic scholars through the problematizing lenses of unexamined privilege, and of potential ethical violence to the researcher. After this, the author turns to theological writers to help us to queer the notions of ethical certainty, challenging our fear of ideological uncertainty, our fear of the body, and our fear of ambiguity.

Findings

– This paper offers a more expansive and challenging approach to traditional autoethnographic ethical guidelines. It also raises several significant questions for ongoing scholarly discussion in the field.

Originality/value

– It is hoped is that this paper will open up new possibilities and trajectories in the ongoing debates about autoethnographic ethics.