bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
CAD‐CAM‐RTV – lost‐wax casting technology for medical implants
Authors: Manuel de A. Monteiro Ramos António , António Simões José
Published: May 2009

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present the development of a technical procedure for the manufacturing of medical implant prototypes.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper was performed on a new hip implant design and manufactured with different metallic alloys F75 (ASTM) commonly used in biomedical applications. Dimensional parameters between the computer‐aided design (CAD) geometry and the prototypes and surface roughness for different casting alloy were compared. A CAD model was used for machining of a prototype. Room temperature vulcanising (RTV) rubber moulds allowed the manufacturing of wax models of the femoral prosthesis. A specific lost‐wax casting (LWC) technology was used to manufacture prototypes for in vitro tests. The final geometry was dimensionally controlled using different type of parameters (performance, average, standard, maximum and minimum deviations), surface roughness (Ra, Rt and Rp) were measured for all prototypes.

Findings

To obtain a small number of implants, RTV rubber vacuum casting technique can be used to obtain lost wax models with good dimensional stability. No significant dimensional differences were observed relatively to the virtual model. However, the temperature of the wax and the rubber mould were important parameters to obtain good quality wax models. Surface roughness was different for different alloys.

Practical implications

The design and development of a new hip femoral prosthesis prototype based on rapid tooling techniques to manufacture LWC prototypes is suitable for clinical trials.

Originality/value

This paper describes a biomanufacturing methodology to manufacture biomedical implant prototypes.
The evolution of rapid prototyping in dentistry: a review
Authors: Azari Abbas , Nikzad Sakineh
Published: May 2009

Purpose

The goal of rapid mechanical prototyping is to be able to quickly fabricate complex‐shaped, 3D parts directly from computer‐aided design models. The key idea of this novel technology is based upon decomposition of 3D computer models data into thin cross‐sectional layers, followed by physically forming the layers and stacking them up; “layer by layer technique.” This new method of modeling has raised many attentions in dentistry especially in the field of surgery and implantology. The purpose of this review study is to represent the historical development and various methods currently used for building dental appliances. It is also aimed to show the many benefits which can be achieved by using this new technology in various branches of dentistry.

Design/methodology/approach

The major existing resources, including unpublished data on the internet, were considered.

Findings

Although, creating 3D objects in a layered fashion is an idea almost as old as human civilization but, this technology has only recently been employed to build 3D complex models in dentistry. It seems that in near future many other methods will develop which could change traditional dental practices. It is advisable to include more unit hours in dental curriculums to acquaint dental students with the many benefits of this novel technology.

Originality/value

It is hard to believe that the routine dental techniques were affected by revolutionary concepts originally theorized by engineering methods. It is a reality that in future, most of the restorative disciplines will be fully revised and the computer methods be evolved to an extent where dentistry can be performed by computer‐assisted methods with optimum safety, simplicity, and reliability.
Toward a unifying framework to support informal learning theory, research and practice
Authors: Marsick Victoria J.
Published: May 2009

Purpose

The purpose of this Guest Editorial is to introduce the papers in this special issue and outline how they help us to better understand the theory and practice of informal learning.

Design/methodology/approach

The Guest Editorial provides an overview of the topics discussed in the special issue, focusing on teachers and schools, social workers, and knowledge management in academic and business settings.

Findings

In practice informal and formal learning are often inextricably intertwined.

Originality/value

The papers in this issue contribute to the search for a unifying framework to support theory, research and practice.
Experienced teachers' informal workplace learning and perceptions of workplace conditions
Authors: Hoekstra Annemarieke , Korthagen Fred , Brekelmans Mieke , Beijaard Douwe , Imants Jeroen
Published: May 2009

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore in detail how teachers' perceptions of workplace conditions for learning are related to their informal workplace learning activities and learning outcomes.

Design/methodology/approach

From a sample of 32 teachers, a purposeful sampling technique of maximal variation was used to select two cases described in this paper. In a mixed methods design quantitative data are used to position the two teachers in relation to their peers. Qualitative data are used to describe the two cases in depth.

Findings

The findings show how the diverging ways in which the two teachers perceive and actively shape their workplace conditions help to explain differences in the teachers' learning activities and learning outcomes.

Originality/value

Scholars have argued that informal workplace learning is embedded in interdependent practices that arise from the interaction between social practices and individual agency. The case studies provide insight into how workplace conditions for learning are shaped in this interaction and how perceptions of these conditions enable or constrain teachers' informal workplace learning.
Teachers' workplace learning within informal contexts of school cultures in the United States and Lithuania
Authors: Jurasaite‐Harbison Elena
Published: May 2009

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore informal contexts of teachers' workplace professional learning and inform educational researchers, teacher educators, administrators and teachers about ways in which teachers learn to improve their practice. By questioning how teachers learn on‐the‐job to be better teachers and how school cultures position them as learners, this study seeks to generates hypotheses about relationships between the nature of workplace professional learning and its content and informal contexts.

Design/methodology/approach

An ethnographic design based on a grounded theory generates analytic categories from interviews, participants' reflective journals and field notes through comparison of learning environments in three contrasting schools in two countries – Lithuania and the USA. Discourse analysis is employed to analyze three cases of the schools' informal learning contexts in order to better understand how teachers learned through everyday interactions.

Findings

Within each case, the findings illuminate three facets of school culture that provide or fail to provide opportunities for teacher learning in informal contexts: school leadership, teachers' professional relationships, and their individual stances as learners.

Research limitations/implications

The limitations of the paper derive from its focus on school cultures as learning organizations producing detailed thick descriptions, which are culturally specific and may not necessarily be transferable to other schools.

Practical implications

The implications underline that teachers and teacher educators could enhance teachers' professional learning by contributing to building and sustaining the opportunities necessary to maintain professional growth at teachers' workplaces.

Originality/value

The value of the paper is in: defining specific cultural features in schools that create or fail to create opportunities for teachers to learn informally; showing how teachers use these opportunities for their learning; calling for re‐evaluation of professional development systems to include informal learning as an important path for professional growth.
The informal learning of new teachers in school
Authors: McNally Jim , Blake Allan , Reid Ashley
Published: May 2009

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present what the study of the experiences of beginning teachers and their informal learning says about the process of learning to teach, and to discuss the main emerging themes in relation to a wider literature.

Design/methodology/approach

The design of the paper is essentially ethnographic and building of grounded theory, based on an accumulation of data derived from interviews with beginning teachers and connecting to extant theory.

Findings

The findings are that a focus on the informal learning of beginners in teaching leads to the notion of learning as becoming that is predominantly emotional and relational in nature with the emergence of teacher identity.

Research limitations/implications

The research is limited in its exploration of the cognitive dimension of professional learning, a dimension which may be elicited using a more tightly focused and structured method.

Practical implications

The implications are that learning to teach is not determined by a professional standard and that a revised standard would need to take account of these findings.

Originality/value

The value of the paper lies in the pursuit of informal learning as a research area in teaching to reveal a greater complexity of learning in that specific professional context; and showing how the understanding of learning to teach can be enriched through a wider appreciation of the school as workplace, workplace learning and connections to a wider philosophical literature.
Informal learning of social workers: a method of narrative inquiry
Authors: Gola Giancarlo
Published: May 2009

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate social workers' processes of informal learning, through their narration of their professional experience, in order to understand how social workers learn. Informal learning is any individual practice or activity that is able to produce continuous learning; it is often non‐intentional and non‐structured learning.

Design/methodology/approach

The study employed qualitative research methods, according to specific epistemologies such as Grounded Theory, and Inquiry into Narrative. The tool used for data collection has been the narrative interview. The scientific software ATLAS.ti has facilitated the analysis of the contents and the narrative structure.

Findings

The data classified throughout the analysis allow for observing and explaining possible interpretations of informal learning of the social workers. The informal learning process, depending on the level of intentionality, can be random and often appears as a learning process leading to change and improvement, resulting from reflection and awareness.

Originality/value

The paper offers a methodological contribution for narrative data collection and analysis, through elaborating a network of all elements examined within each interview and defining some characteristics and meaning of informal learning in the workplace.
Workplace learning: the roles of knowledge accessibility and management
Authors: Li Jessica , Brake Gary , Champion Angeline , Fuller Tony , Gabel Sandy , Hatcher‐Busch Lori
Published: May 2009

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine how knowledge management systems have been used by the studied organizations to improve knowledge accessibility and knowledge sharing in order to increase workplace learning.

Design/methodology/approach

The study relies on a qualitative multisite case study method. Data were obtained from five organizations at a southern state in the USA. Multiple interviews, onsite observation, and documentation analyses were conducted at each studied organization. Data analysis used open coding and thematic analysis. Results were triangulated based on multiple data sources.

Findings

The findings revealed that the learning environment of an organization is important for workplace learning. All studied organizations share a need for a conversion of tacit to explicit knowledge in order to facilitate effective informal learning in the workplace. This research concludes that engineering the learning environment through effective knowledge management should be a cohesive effort of the entire organization and demands congruent support from all levels of the organization.

Originality/value

The study expands the understanding of issues related to workplace learning through knowledge accessibility in both business and academic settings. To improve workplace learning, one should not just stipulate technology interventions; other factors, such as the organization's design, work design, and the culture/vision of the organization, all play important roles in the creation of a learning organization that will induce informal learning in the workplace.
Family‐member and non‐family‐member managers in family businesses
Authors: Sonfield Matthew C. , Lussier Robert N.
Published: May 2009

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate, in a multi‐country context, the inclusion of family‐member managers and non‐family‐member managers in family businesses, and the relationship of this variable to certain management activities, styles and characteristics.

Design/methodology/approach

This four‐country study involved survey research and correlational testing of nine hypotheses. The four countries, Croatia, France, India and the USA, provided a mixture of entrepreneurial contexts. Given limited prior research in this area, this study is exploratory and broadly focused.

Findings

There was limited support for the relationship between the percentage of non‐family‐member managers and the nine management activities, styles and characteristics studied, both between and within countries. The strongest support was for the positive relationship between the percentage of non‐family managers and the use of sophisticated financial management methods.

Research limitations/implications

Inherent in the choice of countries are some variations among the four country samples. Future research can build on these findings with more focused studies in areas that seem worthy of further analysis.

Practical implications

This study, along with further research, should allow family business owner/managers to better understand the possible impacts of bringing non‐family managers into their firms. Family businesses may not need to be concerned that their firms will lose their “familiness” if they hire non‐family managers.

Originality/value

This study begins to fill a gap in the family business literature identified by prior researchers and, as noted above, creates a base for future research and for possible practical implications for family firm practitioners.
Adoption of internet in Malaysian SMEs
Authors: Shah Alam Syed
Published: May 2009

Purpose

This paper aims to investigate empirically the decision of small to medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) to adopt the internet in their businesses.

Design/methodology/approach

Using a survey of 465 sampled SMEs from Klan valley area in Malaysia, this study tests seven hypotheses about the factors that influence internet adoption.

Findings

The findings show that manager's characteristics, perceived benefits, organisational culture, technological competency and cost of adoption have significant relationships with internet adoption. The results of the study of highly educated managers of SMEs also revealed a non‐significant relationship between language, growth of web and internet adoption.

Originality/value

The study provides more understanding of managers' perceptions about internet adoption in their businesses. Those interested in promoting the web may find these results helpful in guiding their efforts.
Women‐owned small and medium enterprises in England
Authors: Azam Roomi Muhammad , Harrison Pegram , Beaumont‐Kerridge John
Published: May 2009

Purpose

This study attempts to understand the nature and activities of growth‐oriented women‐owned businesses in the East of England by highlighting the problems faced by women entrepreneurs during the growth process.

Design/methodology/approach

The approach analysed the main growth factors and their influence on the adoption of different growth strategies. An online questionnaire was designed using Snap survey software™, with results exported to SPSS™ for analysis. Both quantitative and qualitative data were collected via a variety of scaled, open‐ended, rank order, dichotomous, multiple choice and open questions.

Findings

The research indicates that most do not opt to develop growth‐oriented businesses, choosing instead small, non‐scalable, locally focused businesses providing services or operating in low‐tech industries. Women who are growth‐oriented appear to be inhibited due to a lack of access to, and control over such resources as, capital, business premises, information and technology, production inputs, appropriate childcare, qualifications, experience, training facilities and appropriate assistance from business development agencies. Non‐effective accumulation and use of social capital hinders access to appropriate decision‐making circles, and limits the probability of accessing critical management and financing resources, especially through the venture capital industry.

Practical implications

This research has implications for government or other business development agencies seeking to understand the growth patterns and problems of women‐owned enterprises in the East of England.

Originality/value

There are few British studies that have focussed on growth oriented women‐owned businesses. This study contributes to the body of knowledge by attempting to understand the nature and activities of such business, by analysing the main growth factors and their influence on different growth strategies.
UK small owner‐managed businesses: accounting and financial reporting needs
Authors: Sian S. , Roberts C.
Published: May 2009

Purpose

In recent years there has been a growing interest in the provision of financial information by small business entities. In the UK, regulation has taken the form of the Financial Reporting Standard for Small Enterprises (FRSSE) and internationally UNCTAD has issued its own reporting guidelines for small enterprises ahead of the International Accounting Standards Board's (IASB's) standard on the subject. Despite this international interest, academic research investigating the accounting and financial reporting needs of small enterprises remains relatively scarce. This UK‐based study aims to assess the potential demand for and usefulness of reporting guidelines specifically designed for small owner‐managed enterprises (SoMEs).

Design/methodology/approach

Using postal questionnaires, data were gathered from accountants providing services to SoMEs and the owners of such enterprises.

Findings

It was found that most SoMEs produce accounting records, often based on computerised packages. However, financial awareness varies significantly and there is evidence that most small enterprise owners rely on their accountants to prepare their financial statements and are often left bewildered by the complexity of the information provided. With UK and the future IASB standards being designed to meet the needs of the largest small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs), there does appear to be a relatively high level of agreement that specific guidance for much smaller entities would be desirable. However, many of the accountants felt that some aspects of existing regulations, such as the UNCTAD level 3 guidelines, were too complex, indicating that regulators need to carefully consider the contents of regulations for the smallest entities.

Origniality/value

The findings of this study have implications for regulators who are now considering the possibility of developing guidance for the smallest business entities.
Financing preferences of micro and small enterprise owners in Tigray: does POH hold?
Authors: Haileselasie Gebru Gebregziabher
Published: May 2009

Purpose

This paper aims to investigate the determinants of financing preferences of micro and small enterprises (MSEs) owners in Tigray regional state of Ethiopia in light of the Pecking Order Hypothesis (POH).

Design/methodology/approach

Structured questionnaires were used to collect data from 120 MSEs in six zonal towns of Tigray regional state. Logistic regression model was used to empirically test the literature‐driven hypotheses.

Findings

Key findings include that POH holds true for MSE owners in Tigray regional state as the educational level of owners decreases and there is less intrusion in the form of ownership. On the other hand, MSE owners with a higher degree of entrepreneurial skills are found to conform with the predictions of POH. Furthermore, factors such as ownership type, acquisition type, level of education of the owner/s and reason for business startups are found to be major determinants of MSE owners' financing preferences.

Research limitations/implications

There are of course elements that could determine MSE owners' financing preferences that require better understanding before a reliable prescriptive position on SME financing can be reached. At the same time, in this paper, data were collected from one regional state of Ethiopia that limits the generalization power of the conclusions reached. A need for more in‐depth qualitative investigation is further pointed out.

Originality/value

The research shows significance of ownership structure, entrepreneurability and MSE owners' education level in financing decisions of MSEs. The paper empirically tests POH in MSEs in Tigray regional state of Ethiopia.
Entrepreneurship education in the UK
Authors: Matlay Harry
Published: May 2009

Purpose

This paper aims to explore stakeholder involvement in, and expectation of, entrepreneurship education in UK higher education institutions (HEIs).

Design/methodology/approach

Longitudinal telephone surveys were conducted annually over an eight‐year period (2000 to 2007) to document and analyse 336 respondents' involvement in, and expectation of, entrepreneurship education in UK HEIs.

Findings

The results indicate that stakeholder involvement in entrepreneurship education is explicit, widespread and linked to ongoing educational developments that have radically transformed management structures and accountability at all levels of the UK educational system. Stakeholders' expectations are equally complex and varied, reflecting a heterogeneous range of individual, group and community needs.

Practical implications

The findings provide valuable insights into entrepreneurship education for students, university staff, policy makers and other stakeholders. Government could use the results of this research study to ensure that relevant policies and initiatives reach the targeted sector in a focused and cost‐efficient manner.

Originality/value

This study provides an original and empirically rigorous insight into stakeholder involvement in, and expectation of, entrepreneurship education in UK HEIs. It provides valuable longitudinal data for a wide range of stakeholders involved in entrepreneurship education in the UK.
Sense‐making by clinical and non‐clinical executive directors within new governance arrangements
Authors: Storey John , Holti Richard
Published: May 2009

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the various ways in which clinical executive directors and non‐clinical executive directors are interpreting and responding to the extensive reforms and restructuring in the UK health service.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper draws upon detailed research in two very large teaching hospital organizations in order to understand how actors crucial to the delivery of this vision are responding. Schedule‐structured interviews with executive directors were conducted, recorded, transcribed and coded.

Findings

The clinical and non‐clinical directors of these organizations engaged in a process of active sense‐making are found, which is leading to significant changes to the service and also changes to identity. The clinical directors are revealing a willingness to assume accountability for devolved profit centres in their service lines. The non‐clinical directors are supportive of this idea in broad terms but are cautious about releasing “too much” central control.

Research limitations/implications

The paper is based on just two case studies and the analyses are made through the perspectives of the executive teams in each case.

Practical implications

Changes to healthcare environments of this kind are occurring in many countries, but such is the extent and intensity of these changes in the UK that the government's aspiration is high – it sees this set of reforms leading to a peerless world class health service. The way in which the actors make sense of and navigate their way through the cross cutting principles and the layered reforms is a critical issue.

Originality/value

There have been few systematic studies of the practical reality involved in the enactment of profit centre and service line management initiatives in acute hospital settings and the ways these are understood and negotiated at executive team level.
Determinants of out‐of‐pocket expenditures on prescribed medications in Tajikistan
Authors: Habibov Nazim
Published: May 2009

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to quantify the impact of socio‐economic characteristics on out‐of pocket expenditures for prescribed medications in Tajikistan and provide recommendations for healthcare sector reform. The research question in this paper is: what household, personal, economic, and health factors help explain expenditures on medications? From a theoretical perspective, this paper contributes to the on‐going discussion of out‐of‐pocket expenditures in Tajikistan. From a practical perspective, in line with this recent development in the Tajikistan healthcare sector, it helps to develop evidence‐based decision‐making by answering practical questions: what factors affect pattern of out‐of‐pocket expenditures for prescribed medication? Which groups of the population should be granted a discount or fee‐waiver when buying them?

Design/methodology/approach

Based on micro‐file data from the most recent cross‐sectional nationally‐representative survey of Tajik households, this paper develops and tests a multivariate model of identifying determinants of out‐of‐pocket expenditures on prescribed medications in Tajikistan.

Findings

The paper finds that economic status, chronic illness, disability, number of small children, short supply of necessary drugs, and cardiac and acute illnesses are the strongest determinants of spending for prescribed medications in the country.

Originality/value

This paper demonstrates that to ensure accessibility to and affordability of prescribed medications, discounts or fee‐waivers should be granted to specific categories of households, those in poverty, with chronically ill members and with small children. These discounts or fee‐waivers should cover prescribed medications for children, long‐standing illness as well as for cardiac and acute infectious diseases. Administrative and economic measures should be taken to reduce the extra costs incurred due to the shortage of prescribed medications. Hence, these findings can be used in developing and designing reforms in the Tajikistan healthcare sector.
Knowledge sources affecting decision‐making among social and health care managers
Authors: Simonen Outi , Viitanen Elina , Lehto Juhani , Koivisto Anna‐Maija
Published: May 2009

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate how managers in social and health care evaluate the knowledge sources affecting their decision‐making, and how the evaluations were associated with the managers' professional background, activity sector, gender, age and management experience.

Design/methodology/approach

The study data are gathered from a questionnaire survey to the middle‐line doctor, nurse and social managers (n=404) within the responsibility area of a Finnish university hospital. Assessed the proportions of individual knowledge sources in the complete data set and their associations with the subjects' background data. In addition, grouping of individual knowledge sources variables are made using factor analysis.

Findings

The findings indicate that social and health care managers attempt to utilize diverse knowledge sources. Overall, professional experience and education, organization budget, and action plans of one's own unit are estimated as knowledge sources with the greatest impact. Manager's professional background and activity sector are associated with the kind of knowledge affecting their decision‐making. Some differences are noted between genders, but differences with respect to age or management experience are non‐significant.

Research limitations/implications

Social and health care organizations represent expert organizations where decision‐making is steered by professions and management tasks.

Originality/value

This paper suggests that the future decision‐makers will be required to identify versatile knowledge areas across cultural barriers, and to be capable of making comprehensive decisions affecting the entire organization.
Stereotypical images between physicians and managers in hospitals
Authors: Klopper‐Kes A.H.J. , Meerdink N. , van Harten W.H. , Wilderom C.P.M.
Published: May 2009

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to apply the image theory to the hospital context in order to add a perspective into the known complex relationship between physicians and hospital managers. This insight can enrich current intervention schemes used in health care to facilitate organisational change.

Design/methodology/approach

In this paper, the image theory of Alexander et al. on the known complex intergroup context of physicians and hospital managers is applied. The theory is operationalised in relative status, power, and goal incompatibility.

Findings

The data show the three variables are highly relevant and representative. Hospital managers see physicians as higher in professional status and power, and having different goals. Physicians see hospital managers to have higher power, lower status, and different goals. The study validates the applicability of the image theory in the Dutch hospital context. This results in a questionnaire suitable for performing a quick scan on the strength and direction of intergroup stereotyping within hospital organisations.

Originality/value

Data from the questionnaire give the opportunity to have insight in the way physicians and hospital managers perceive each other. This insight helps to focus attention on bottlenecks and possibilities in enhancing the co‐operation between physicians and hospital managers. Research on the relationship between physicians and hospital managers is scarce and mostly of a qualitative nature. This paper is executed in both qualitative and quantitative way, which enables us to empirically and statistically validate the data. The resulting questionnaire is applicable on an organisational intergroup level, while the focus in the extant literature is mostly on the interpersonal or intragroup level.
Learning from dialogue groups – physicians' perceptions of role
Authors: Bergman David , Stotzer Emelie , Wahlström Rolf , Sandahl Christer
Published: May 2009

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the aspects of being a physician that such medical professionals mention in dialogue groups when given the opportunity to choose their own topics of discussion.

Design/methodology/approach

Over a period of two years, 60 physicians participated in eight dialogue groups at one of the main hospitals in Stockholm, Sweden. Five focus group interviews were performed after the final dialogue group session.

Findings

Qualitative content analysis showed that three themes dominated in the physicians' perceptions of their role: hierarchy and subgroups; understanding of learning and knowledge; clinical work. Very little time in the dialogue groups was spent discussing the third theme, i.e. problems or issues related to patients or their families. The hierarchy among doctors seemed to influence many aspects of the role of these individuals, their healthcare organisation and their work environment. The methodology in the dialogue groups challenged the prevailing hierarchical structures and seemed to improve the relations between different groups of doctors in the hierarchy. For some of the physicians, this also resulted in a new way of perceiving and acting in their professional role.

Research limitations/implications

The results of this study represent only one hospital.

Practical implications

The findings may help healthcare managers understand physicians' conceptions of their role.

Originality/value

Few intervention studies have considered management programmes directed towards physicians. The present investigation is the first qualitative analysis of the use of dialogue groups within a healthcare setting.
Logics of pre‐merger decision‐making processes
Authors: Choi Soki , Brommels Mats
Published: May 2009

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine how and why a decision to merge two university hospitals in a public context might occur by using an in‐depth case study of the pre‐merger process of Karolinska University Hospital.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on extensive document analysis and 35 key informant interviews the paper reconstructed the pre‐merger process, searched for empirical patterns, and interpreted those by applying neo‐institutional theory.

Findings

Spanning nearly a decade, the pre‐merger process goes from idea generation through transition to decision, and took place on two arenas, political, and scientific. Both research excellence and economic efficiency are stated merger motives. By applying a neo‐institutional perspective, the paper finds that the two initial phases are driven by decision rationality, which is typical for political organizations and that the final phase demonstrated action rationality, which is typical for private firms. Critical factors behind this radical change of decision logic are means convergence, uniting key stakeholder groups, and an economic and political crisis, triggering critical incidents, which ultimately legitimized the formal decision. It is evident from the paper that merger decisions in the public sector might not necessarily result from stated and/or economic drivers only.

Practical implications

This paper suggests that a change of decision logic from decision to action rationality might promote effective decision making on large and complex issues in a public context.

Originality/value

This is the first systematic in‐depth study of a university hospital merger employing a decision‐making perspective.
Distributed leadership to mobilise capacity for accreditation research
Authors: Greenfield David , Braithwaite Jeffrey , Pawsey Marjorie , Johnson Brian , Robinson Maureen
Published: May 2009

Purpose

Inquiries into healthcare organisations have highlighted organisational or system failure, attributed to poor responses to early warning signs. One response, and challenge, is for professionals and academics to build capacity for quality and safety research to provide evidence for improved systems. However, such collaborations and capacity building do not occur easily as there are many stakeholders. Leadership is necessary to unite differences into a common goal. The lessons learned and principles arising from the experience of providing distributed leadership to mobilise capacity for quality and safety research when researching health care accreditation in Australia are presented.

Design/methodology/approach

A case study structured by temporal bracketing that presents a narrative account of multi‐stakeholder perspectives. Data are collected using in‐depth informal interviews with key informants and ethno‐document analysis.

Findings

Distributed leadership enabled a collaborative research partnership to be realised. The leadership harnessed the relative strengths of partners and accounted for, and balanced, the interests of stakeholder participants involved. Across three phases, leadership and the research partnership was enacted: identifying partnerships, bottom‐up engagement and enacting the research collaboration.

Practical implications

Two principles to maximise opportunities to mobilise capacity for quality and safety research have been identified. First, successful collaborations, particularly multi‐faceted inter‐related partnerships, require distributed leadership. Second, the leadership‐stakeholder enactment can promote reciprocity so that the collaboration becomes mutually reinforcing and beneficial to partners.

Originality/value

The paper addresses the need to understand the practice and challenges of distributed leadership and how to replicate positive practices to implement patient safety research.
Rethinking risk and return: part 2 – some felicitous Fourier frequencies
Authors: Powers Michael R.
Published: May 2009

Purpose

This editorial, the second of a two‐part series, proposes a new measure of risk for analyzing highly non‐normal (i.e. asymmetric and long‐tailed) random variables in the context of both investment and insurance portfolios. The proposed measure replaces the p‐norm‐based definition of “risk” – found wanting in Part 1 – with a cosine‐based alternative.

Design/methodology/approach

Just as p‐norm‐based risk measures were derived as generalizations of the standard deviation in Part 1, the paper now extend this approach to a cosine‐based risk measure. This involves computing the Fourier transform of the underlying random variable for a given frequency value. Methods for selecting an appropriate frequency are then discussed.

Findings

The cosine‐based risk measure provides an effective alternative to p‐norm‐based measures because the Fourier transform is always well defined, even for long‐tailed random variables. The frequency parameter necessary for the Fourier transform may be computed according to several interesting criteria, including the maximization of marginal Shannon information, as well as consideration of “Planck boundaries” in human cognition.

Originality/value

The editorial explores the use of cosine‐based measures in constructing a general definition of “risk” that is equally applicable to asymmetric and long‐tailed random variables as to normal random variables.
The effects of advertising media on sales of insurance products: a developing‐country case
Authors: Aduloju S.A. , Odugbesan A.O. , Oke S.A.
Published: May 2009

Purpose

Characterized by declining goodwill and exemplified sharp drop in gross premium, the Nigerian insurance industry, in recent times, has experienced turbulent economic challenges that necessitated re‐engineering of its core activities. However, advertising and sales are core activities, which are important predictors of stability and growth in the insurance industry. Consequently, the purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of advertising on sales of insurance products.

Design/methodology/approach

An empirical investigation is carried out using a survey that utilizes questionnaires, interviews, and field observation as major research instruments. A total of 71 insurance companies in Nigeria, which represent the total operating insurance companies in Nigeria at the time of study, were surveyed. With 100 scientifically selected subjects sampled, descriptive analysis was employed to understand the relationship and the strength of such relationships.

Findings

It was found that advertising had effects on sales volume and improved public image. However, the choice of advertising medium, the message, and the format are critical ingredients of a successful advertising program in the insurance industry.

Research limitations/implications

The insurance industry in Nigeria was studied from a holistic viewpoint due to the need to present reliable and detailed information for decision makers. However, limitation in achieving this relates to the reluctance of respondents to release information for the study.

Practical implications

The implication of this research is that proper control of advertisement budget vis‐à‐vis the expected sales volume could be made. Thus, organizations could spend budgets more effectively on growth enhancing projects instead of excessive wastage of funds on advertisement.

Originality/value

This paper seems to be the first original work that concerns the impact of advertising on sales in the Nigerian insurance industry. As such, it bridges a gap that is opened for investigations. It may be of great value to decision making seeking for control tools.
Universal banks and stock‐market reaction
Authors: Harissis Harilaos F. , Merikas Andreas , Mutenga Stanley , Staikouras Sotiris K.
Published: May 2009

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the interface between the banking and insurance sectors. Using capital market data, the paper aims to discover any significant equity returns around the announcement date of these bank‐insurance interfaces.

Design/methodology/approach

The analysis employs an event study methodology to evaluate the equity performance of these institutions. The empirical findings are based on well‐known financial intermediaries taken from an international sample.

Findings

The magnitude and sign of equity returns appear to differ among the cases examined. Some firms exhibit considerable abnormal returns, while others remain passive to any corporate restructuring revelation, or even undrape stock market losses. In many cases, the latter is associated with the overall economic environment, and/or with investments that are not compatible with the general banking philosophy of “fast growth within short‐term horizons.” Based on equity returns, the bank‐insurance interface seems to be the most preferable business restructuring; while insurance divestments and horizontal mergers, among financial intermediaries, do not perform as profitably as expected.

Originality/value

The paper will be of value to those interested in capital markets with emphasis on universal banking and insurance. It is suitable for academics as well as practitioners.
Effect of 9/11 on the conditional time‐varying equity risk premium: evidence from developed markets
Authors: Haque Mahfuzul , Kouki Imen
Published: May 2009

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the volatility effects on the returns for six developed market indices factoring in the unprecedented event of September 11, 2001, hereafter referred to as 9/11, in the USA. It also looks at the correlations between the indices and the risk premium when uncertainty in the financial markets affects the investors psyche, eroding confidence as volatility increases.

Design/methodology/approach

The volatility of the indices in generalized autoregressive conditional heteroskedasticity (GARCH) framework, employing first the Box and Jenkins ARMA (p, q) to select models is investigated. The chosen models are based on the results obtained from Akaike information criterion and Schwartz Bayesian criterion. GARCH is a mechanism that includes past variances in the explanation of future variances.

Findings

The results highlight several findings, the variance of developed market returns appears to have increased after the 9/11 event; the correlation has increased among developed markets following 9/11; 9/11 affects developed markets, holding short‐term assets do not provide the investors with the reward they usually seek, but results are mixed in the case of holding long‐term assets; for all the period including sub‐period, signs of significant volatility clustering are found; but shocks are not explosive throughout.

Originality/value

The effect of 9/11 on the markets is different from previous worldwide crashes, such as that of October 19, 1987. This paper will be of value to policy makers and managers/institutional investors and those who have some stakes in international portfolio diversification, as the objective of diversification, is to avail the opportunity to improve portfolio performance on the low correlations across international stock markets.
An info‐gap approach to managing portfolios of assets with uncertain returns
Authors: Beresford‐Smith Bryan , Thompson Colin J.
Published: May 2009

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide a quantitative methodology based on information‐gap decision theory for dealing with (true) Knightian uncertainty in the management of portfolios of assets with uncertain returns.

Design/methodology/approach

Portfolio managers aim to maximize returns for given levels of risk. Since future returns on assets are uncertain the expected return on a portfolio of assets can be subject to significant uncertainty. Information‐gap decision theory is used to construct portfolios that are robust against uncertainty.

Findings

Using the added dimensions of aspirational parameters and performance requirements in information‐gap theory, the paper shows that one cannot simultaneously have two robust‐optimal portfolios that outperform a specified return and a benchmark portfolio unless one of the portfolios has arbitrarily large long and short positions.

Research limitations/implications

The paper has considered only one uncertainty model and two performance requirements in an information‐gap analysis over a particular time frame. Alternative uncertainty models could be introduced and benchmarking against proxy portfolios and competitors are examples of additional performance requirements that could be incorporated in an information‐gap analysis.

Practical implications

An additional methodology for applying information‐gap modeling to portfolio management has been provided.

Originality/value

This paper provides a new and novel approach for managing portfolios in the face of uncertainties in future asset returns.
Control charts for monitoring observations from a truncated normal distribution
Authors: Cox M.A.A.
Published: May 2009

Purpose

The majority of quality control charts are employed for normally distributed data. In reality this assumption is not always valid. This paper aims to consider an alternative the truncated normal.

Design/methodology/approach

Having derived integral equations for the average run length (ARL), a key measure of the performance of a control chart, approximate solutions are derived using Gaussian quadrature.

Findings

Polynomials closely approximating the ARL for the three most popular control charts, using their usual parameterization, are obtained.

Research limitations/implications

An obvious extension is to other distributions and hopefully this work will encourage real world applications.

Practical implications

These charts are widely applicable within engineering, finance, medicine, environmental statistics, and many other fields. These problems are typically said to fall in the domain of risk management. It is hoped that this paper will add to the body of practitioners already employing this technique.

Originality/value

Control charts are widely employed, however applications are usually restricted to the normal distribution. This is the first time it has been applied to the truncated normal distribution and original polynomials derived for the ARL.