bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Functional Definition of Outer Membrane Proteins Involved in Preprotein Import into Mitochondria
Authors: Lister Ryan , Carrie Chris , Duncan Owen , Ho Lois H.M. , Howell Katharine A. , Murcha Monika W. , Whelan James
Published: November 2007

The role of plant mitochondrial outer membrane proteins in the process of preprotein import was investigated, as some of the principal components characterized in yeast have been shown to be absent or evolutionarily distinct in plants. Three outer membrane proteins of Arabidopsis thaliana mitochondria were studied: TOM20 (translocase of the outer mitochondrial membrane), METAXIN, and mtOM64 (outer mitochondrial membrane protein of 64 kD). A single functional Arabidopsis TOM20 gene is sufficient to produce a normal multisubunit translocase of the outer membrane complex. Simultaneous inactivation of two of the three TOM20 genes changed the rate of import for some precursor proteins, revealing limited isoform subfunctionalization. Inactivation of all three TOM20 genes resulted in severely reduced rates of import for some but not all precursor proteins. The outer membrane protein METAXIN was characterized to play a role in the import of mitochondrial precursor proteins and likely plays a role in the assembly of β-barrel proteins into the outer membrane. An outer mitochondrial membrane protein of 64 kD (mtOM64) with high sequence similarity to a chloroplast import receptor was shown to interact with a variety of precursor proteins. All three proteins have domains exposed to the cytosol and interacted with a variety of precursor proteins, as determined by pull-down and yeast two-hybrid interaction assays. Furthermore, inactivation of one resulted in protein abundance changes in the others, suggesting functional redundancy. Thus, it is proposed that all three components directly interact with precursor proteins to participate in early stages of mitochondrial protein import.
Glycolytic Enzymes Associate Dynamically with Mitochondria in Response to Respiratory Demand and Support Substrate Channeling
Authors: Graham James W.A. , Williams Thomas C.R. , Morgan Megan , Fernie Alisdair R. , Ratcliffe R. George , Sweetlove Lee J.
Published: November 2007

In Arabidopsis thaliana, enzymes of glycolysis are present on the surface of mitochondria and free in the cytosol. The functional significance of this dual localization has now been established by demonstrating that the extent of mitochondrial association is dependent on respiration rate in both Arabidopsis cells and potato (Solanum tuberosum) tubers. Thus, inhibition of respiration with KCN led to a proportional decrease in the degree of association, whereas stimulation of respiration by uncoupling, tissue ageing, or overexpression of invertase led to increased mitochondrial association. In all treatments, the total activity of the glycolytic enzymes in the cell was unaltered, indicating that the existing pools of each enzyme repartitioned between the cytosol and the mitochondria. Isotope dilution experiments on isolated mitochondria, using 13C nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy to monitor the impact of unlabeled glycolytic intermediates on the production of downstream intermediates derived from 13C-labeled precursors, provided direct evidence for the occurrence of variable levels of substrate channeling. Pull-down experiments suggest that interaction with the outer mitochondrial membrane protein, VDAC, anchors glycolytic enzymes to the mitochondrial surface. It appears that glycolytic enzymes associate dynamically with mitochondria to support respiration and that substrate channeling restricts the use of intermediates by competing metabolic pathways.
Profilin Is Essential for Tip Growth in the MossPhyscomitrella patens
Authors: Vidali Luis , Augustine Robert C. , Kleinman Ken P. , Bezanilla Magdalena
Published: November 2007

The actin cytoskeleton is critical for tip growth in plants. Profilin is the main monomer actin binding protein in plant cells. The moss Physcomitrella patens has three profilin genes, which are monophyletic, suggesting a single ancestor for plant profilins. Here, we used RNA interference (RNAi) to determine the loss-of-function phenotype of profilin. Reduction of profilin leads to a complete loss of tip growth and a partial inhibition of cell division, resulting in plants with small rounded cells and fewer cells. We silenced all profilins by targeting their 3′ untranslated region sequences, enabling complementation analyses by expression of profilin coding sequences. We show that any moss or a lily (Lilium longiflorum) profilin support tip growth. Profilin with a mutation in its actin binding site is unable to rescue profilin RNAi, while a mutation in the poly-l-proline binding site weakly rescues. We show that moss tip growing cells contain a prominent subapical cortical F-actin structure composed of parallel actin cables. Cells lacking profilin lose this structure; instead, their F-actin is disorganized and forms polarized cortical patches. Plants expressing the actin and poly-l-proline binding mutants exhibited similar F-actin disorganization. These results demonstrate that profilin and its binding to actin are essential for tip growth. Additionally, profilin is not needed for formation of F-actin, but profilin and its interactions with actin and poly-l-proline ligands are required to properly organize F-actin.
The Homeotic Protein AGAMOUS Controls Late Stamen Development by Regulating a Jasmonate Biosynthetic Gene inArabidopsis
Authors: Ito Toshiro , Ng Kian-Hong , Lim Tze-Soo , Yu Hao , Meyerowitz Elliot M.
Published: November 2007

The Arabidopsis thaliana floral homeotic gene AGAMOUS (AG) plays a central role in reproductive organ (stamen and carpel) development. AG RNA is expressed in the center of floral primordia from a time prior to the initiation of stamen and carpel primordia until late in flower development. While early AG expression acts in specification of stamens and carpels, the role, if any, of continued AG expression in later flower development is unknown. To examine the timing of AG action and its possible late-stage functions, we performed a series of time-course experiments using a transgenic line with inducible AG activity in an ag homozygous mutant background. We show that AG controls late-stage stamen development, including anther morphogenesis and dehiscence, as well as filament formation and elongation. We further show that AG coordinates late stamen maturation by controlling a biosynthetic gene of the lipid-derived phytohormone jasmonic acid (JA). Expression analysis and in vivo binding of AG indicate that AG directly regulates the transcription of a catalytic enzyme of JA, DEFECTIVE IN ANTHER DEHISCENCE1. Our results indicate that stamen identity and differentiation control by AG is achieved by the regulation of different transcriptional cascades in different floral stages, with organ specification induced early, followed by phytohormone biosynthesis to coordinate stamen maturation.
Evidence‐based practice in teaching: an information perspective
Authors: Williams Dorothy , Coles Louisa
Published: November 2007

Purpose

The purpose of this research is to explore UK teachers' use of research‐based information, with a particular focus on issues relating to access to information in schools, information literacy, and the role of the school librarian and school library services.

Design/methodology/approach

The study adopts a mixed methodology. In‐depth qualitative data gathered through vignette interviews (n=28), group exercises (four groups of between three and five teachers) and a discussion forum were supplemented by quantitative data gathered through surveys of teachers (n=312), head teachers (n=78), school librarians (n=78) and school library services (n=26).

Findings

Teachers' professional use of research information reflects a preference for predigested information and informal sources. Although professional bodies and government departments promote the use of research by teachers and provide a range of customised web sites for information, lack of ready local access to information and lack of time were cited as major barriers to the use of research information. Teachers also revealed uncertainties and lack of confidence in their own ability to find and evaluate such information. The findings suggest scope for more targeted provision by school librarians of both information and skills to support the professional development of teachers. However, this raises issues of priorities and resources, and needs to be seen in the context of a wider change in ethos supported by senior management. The study also raises questions about teachers' own experiences and approaches to the use of information in professional learning, and how this might impact on the provision of support for their pupils and the potential for collaborative working between librarians and teachers.

Research limitations/implications

The qualitative aspects of the study provided a rich source of data from teachers with varying levels of experience and involvement with the use of research information. However, a low response to the teacher questionnaire survey (10.9 per cent, overall, 312 teachers) resulted in a bias towards more research‐oriented teachers in that particular data set. While the data from research‐oriented teachers do appear to triangulate, it is difficult to generalise to other teachers. Therefore teacher survey data have been treated with some caution and drawn on only to aid further understanding of the issues raised in interviews and group exercises.

Originality/value

In focusing attention on teachers' information behaviour and information literacy, this paper provides a new perspective on the issues affecting the lack of uptake of research evidence within the teaching profession, contributes to the literature on information behaviour and information literacy in professional contexts, and contributes to the understanding of factors which may have a bearing on the development of student information literacy in schools.
Open access in context: a user study
Authors: Nicholas David , Huntington Paul , Jamali Hamid R.
Published: November 2007

Purpose

The purpose of this research is to examine the impact on usage of the journal Nucleic Acids Research (NAR) moving to an open access model. A major objective was to examine the impact of open access in the context of other initiatives that have improved accessibility to scholarly journals. The study also aims to demonstrate the potential of deep log analysis for monitoring change in usage over time.

Design/methodology/approach

Data were gathered from the logs for the period 2003‐June 2005 and analysed using deep log methods. The data were analysed to provide the following information on use: type of item viewed; usage over time; usage for individual journal issues; usage per type of article; age of article. Usage analyses were further examined with regard to the following user characteristics: subscriber/non‐subscriber; referrer link employed, organisational affiliation; geographical location.

Findings

The analysis showed that the rise in use of NAR over the survey period (140 per cent) could largely be attributed to the opening up of the site to search engines and that the move to OA had a relatively small influence on driving usage up further (less than 10 per cent).

Originality/value

The study for the first time thoroughly analyses the usage data of a significant experimental open access journal and reveals the huge impact of search engines on driving up usage.
Information kiosks: a taxonomy
Authors: Rowley Jennifer , Slack Frances
Published: November 2007

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to propose a multi‐dimensional taxonomy for information kiosk‐based self service technologies (SSTs). This taxonomy has an important contribution to make to the integration of research and development, in relation to information kiosks. There are aspects that may also be extended to e‐service, online service and self‐service.

Design/methodology/approach

The conceptual context for this work is established by a review of previous literature. This focuses on taxonomies and classification schemes relating to information kiosks, traditional services (p‐services) and e‐services. A comprehensive database of information kiosk technologies and their applications is constructed. Longitudinal observation of the development of information kiosk technologies is the basis for this and has been extended by web research.

Findings

An iterative analysis of the kiosk database defines the nature of service delivery from kiosks, and supports the identification and verification of the dimensions and sub‐dimensions of the taxonomy. It is informed by earlier classification schemes and taxonomies in the information kiosk, e‐service and p‐service literature.

Originality/value

This taxonomy has four main dimensions: Location, User, Task and Technology. Sub‐dimensions are developed for each of these main dimensions. It can be used to classify all information kiosks.
Constructing an image indexing template for The Children's Society
Authors: Conduit Neil , Rafferty Pauline
Published: November 2007

Purpose

The purpose of this research is to describe the development of an indexing template to guide the indexing of images using keywords. The template is designed to be used for indexing the image collection held at The Children's Society.

Design/methodology/approach

A facet matrix based on analysis of existing studies was used to identify the most popular user query facets from user studies in the literature. A total of 33 archivists were surveyed regarding indexing practice and indexing wish‐lists. The results of these investigative activities were synthesised to produce an indexing template.

Findings

The results of this study suggest that indexing general entities and activities could be more comprehensive than is currently the case. A practical indexing template is proposed for organisations wishing to index image collections.

Originality/value

This article reports a project undertaken on behalf of The Children's Society to design an image indexing system for use with their photographic collection. Its method of enquiry is based on an application and interpretation of the Shatford‐Ensor matrix.
The information needs and information‐seeking behaviour of the users of the European Parliamentary Documentation Centre
Authors: Marcella Rita , Baxter Graeme , Davies Sylvie , Toornstra Dick
Published: November 2007

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the results of a customer knowledge study commissioned by the Parliamentary Documentation Centre (PDC) of the European Parliament in order to elicit a better understanding of the views and needs of its actual and potential client base.

Design/methodology/approach

The study consisted of in‐depth, face‐to‐face interviews with 72 clients and 11 staff (83 individuals) in Brussels in February 2004. The paper explores the significance of information in the parliamentary context and summarises the activities which respondents described as being information‐dependent. The paper also highlights the evolutionary nature of information need during the course of the legislative process.

Findings

The information‐seeking behaviour and skills of the PDC clients are discussed, as are the criteria by which they assess information quality. The study revealed that users were frequently uncritical and pragmatic in use of the most readily available information, sacrificing quality in favour of ease of access.

Originality/value

This paper presents results from a uniquely complex information environment – the European Union. Users tended to be complacent about their information‐seeking skills and reluctant to engage in skills enhancement activities.
A review of the spiritual in information studies
Authors: Kari Jarkko
Published: November 2007

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore one broad question: what do information, information processes, information services, as well as information systems and technology have to do with the spiritual?

Design/methodology/approach

The task is accomplished by conducting a literature review of 31 refereed texts in information studies. The paper proceeds by inspecting the manifestation of spirituality in information sources, generic information processes, as well as specific information processes: conceptualizing, seeking, processing, using, storing, describing and providing information.

Findings

A total of 11 relationships between information phenomena and the spiritual are discovered. Based on these, a definition of spiritual information is put forth. There are also some descriptive statistics on the corpus as a whole.

Research limitations/implications

The results are susceptible to limitations imposed by the reviewed studies themselves. Errors of interpretation were a possibility. The article suggests many directions for further research in the context of the spiritual, and discusses how to view spirituality in information science.

Practical implications

Practical implications are only mentioned here and there, because research implications are of primary concern in the investigation.

Originality/value

This paper is the first to synthesize information research in the spiritual domain. Beyond the subject area, the article demonstrates how to classify information processes, and conduct a context‐centric literature review in the field of information studies.
Evolution of concept networks and implications for knowledge representation
Authors: Park Jung‐ran
Published: November 2007

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present descriptive characteristics of the historical development of concept networks. The linguistic principles, mechanisms and motivations behind the evolution of concept networks are discussed. Implications emanating from the idea of the historical development of concept networks are discussed in relation to knowledge representation and organization schemes.

Design/methodology/approach

Natural language data including both speech and text are analyzed by examining discourse contexts in which a linguistic element such as a polysemy or homonym occurs. Linguistic literature on the historical development of concept networks is reviewed and analyzed.

Findings

Semantic sense relations in concept networks can be captured in a systematic and regular manner. The mechanism and impetus behind the process of concept network development suggest that semantic senses in concept networks are closely intertwined with pragmatic contexts and discourse structure. The interrelation and permeability of the semantic senses of concept networks are captured on a continuum scale based on three linguistic parameters: concrete shared semantic sense; discourse and text structure; and contextualized pragmatic information.

Research limitations/implications

Research findings signify the critical need for linking discourse structure and contextualized pragmatic information to knowledge representation and organization schemes.

Originality/value

The idea of linguistic characteristics, principles, motivation and mechanisms underlying the evolution of concept networks provides theoretical ground for developing a model for integrating knowledge representation and organization schemes with discourse structure and contextualized pragmatic information.
A prototype twenty‐first century university library
Authors: Wells Andrew
Published: November 2007

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide a case study of organizational change at an academic library.

Design/methodology/approach

The change process employed scenario modelling techniques.

Findings

The scenario modelling technique was found to be effective in developing shared understandings about the future directions of an organization. The next stage involved identifying the implications involved in implementing organizational change to achieve the future organization outlined in the scenario. This stage identified three issues that would need significant investment before the scenario could be realized. They were: skills development; management practices; and the structure of the library. Re‐organization requires attention to cultural and personal issues to enable an organization to undergo major change.

Research limitations/implications

A range of techniques, tools and experiments were used. There would be limitations in applying these in a general way to other organizations.

Originality/value

The scale of the change process is significant in terms of the size of the undertaking and the time taken to achieve it. This paper describes the process. It is too early to predict whether the organizational change is successful.
The right staff from X to Y
Authors: Sayers Richard
Published: November 2007

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine selected findings of the 2006 CAVAL Training Needs Survey across Australia, New Zealand and Asia and to assess their implications for academic libraries in the context of generational change.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper compares 2006 Training Needs Survey data with previous survey data (2004 and 2005) and uses the findings to inform a range of simple strategies to assist academic libraries recruit and retain talented staff.

Findings

The data appears to confirm studies conducted in the US and Canada that show Generation X and Y learning styles are typically motivated by a desire to enhance professional skills and thus marketability to future employers. For many Generation X and Y staff working across a range of professions, access to professional development has become an important component of their overall remuneration package. It also figures highly in any decision to join or remain with an organisation. This paper concludes that a better understanding of generational change and commitment to professional development are critical to the recruitment and retention efforts of future academic libraries.

Originality/value

This paper draws upon survey data not previously available for research.
Treasuring our traditions and our people
Authors: Storey Colin
Published: November 2007

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to address two questions: first, faced with the “disruptive technologies” of e‐revolution, will there be academic libraries in 25 years time for our younger colleagues to inherit? Are senior academic library managers reacting rightly and proactively making the correct strategic decisions now to ensure the rightful and proper place for librarians in a university for decades to come? Second, assuming there will indeed be university libraries and “librarians” to people them in the future, what professional and personal attributes will future librarians need, not only to ride the e‐revolution wave, but also to prosper as leaders in their institutions to the year 2057 and beyond?

Design/methodology/approach

A general review of the current state‐of‐play in academic library management vis‐à‐vis the e‐revolution, in terms of the history of the profession and previous perceived “revolutions”.

Findings

Suggests academic library professionals are over‐reacting to the “newness” of the electronic environment and under‐valuing their own professional traditions and their own people.

Practical implications

Proposes remedies: advising caution, common sense, and the right sort of professionals to “brand” the library for a successful future.

Originality/value

The author's own personal views built up after 35 years of experience in academic library management.
Brain drain or tap the strengths
Authors: Wa Esther Woo Mei
Published: November 2007

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the value of Human Resource Development (HRD) in the recruitment of academic librarians.

Design/methodology/approach

A literature review was conducted to analyze the demand and supply of academic librarians since the year 2000 as well as the different approaches adopted by libraries to resolve recruitment problems through developing potential candidates and serving staff.

Findings

The study found that academic libraries need to pursue more active strategies in staff recruitment to maintain a quality workforce in the strong competition of human resources. Through the cases studied, HRD is proved to be a crucial part of such strategies.

Originality/value

The practical value of HRD is discussed in juxtaposition with recruitment strategies, unveiling the close relationship of the different components in human resource management.
Communicating the library: librarians and faculty in dialogue
Authors: Brophy Peter
Published: November 2007

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to consider the challenges facing academic librarians in an increasingly networked environment.

Design/methodology/approach

Draws on theoretical perspectives and the literature to argue the case for academic librarians to develop their theoretical understanding of communication and pedagogy and the practical implications.

Findings

Suggests five distinct areas of opportunity in which librarians can develop their role.

Originality/value

The paper states that new roles are opening up for academic librarians, roles which build on their traditional skills but challenge them to acquire new ones.
Managing change in the Hong Kong library environment
Authors: Ferguson Anthony W.
Published: November 2007

Purpose

The purpose of this article is to employ four library case studies to determine how changes can be made more successfully.

Design/methodology/approach

The article employs a list of five basic change management principles suggested by Team Technology to measure the effectiveness of what happened in our library.

Research limitations/implications

The principles themselves are fairly simple and are not meant to be either qualitative or quantitative research tools.

Practical implications

It would seem that if the five basic change management principles were followed, libraries would be more successful in the management of those changes that they must pursue to keep vibrant and alive.

Originality/value

This paper is a personal view of the four changes which were successfully implemented but which did cause angst among staff members. The value of managers paying attention to the list of change management principles is demonstrated.
Promoting information literacy skills through web‐based instruction
Authors: Fong Li Lai , Leung Shirley , Tam Gladys
Published: November 2007

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to reflect on The Chinese University of Hong Kong Library's development of its web‐based Information Literacy Tutorial and how it was incorporated into the mandatory Student IT Proficiency Test.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper outlines the current trends faced by academic libraries in Hong Kong and the need to provide web‐based e‐learning tutorials on information literacy skills to support diverse ways of learning. It describes the implementation of the web‐based tutorial at The Chinese University of Hong Kong as the courseware of the information literacy section in the IT Proficiency Test.

Findings

The reference librarian's teaching role is expanding as information literacy instruction becomes increasingly valued by university administrators and faculty. The inclusion of information competencies as a graduation requirement provides opportunities to incorporate information literacy into the curriculum and foster collaboration between faculty and librarians.

Originality/value

This paper provides information on Hong Kong academic libraries and is useful for librarians planning to develop an interactive e‐learning platform on information literacy.
Why us? Arranged marriage: libraries and computer centers
Authors: Hwang Chiou‐shu J.
Published: November 2007

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the factors of the decision for merging libraries and computing centers on Taiwanese academic campuses.

Design/methodology/approach

Describes the differences, similarities, and missions between the academic libraries and computing centers from the past to the present, gives a brief introduction toward the historical development of the merger, and uses multiple‐case study approach by interviewing relative decision‐makers of four colleges of Taiwan.

Findings

Two categories of factors, which are environment and decision‐makers, are found for impacting the decision of the merger.

Originality/value

Contributes to library and information sciences by giving five suggestions, which are: curriculum design; communication skills; law knowledge; partnership; and working attitude adjustment.
Creating a new library for Macquarie University: are we there yet?
Authors: Brodie Maxine , Martinelli Meredith
Published: November 2007

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to document the long‐term, transformational change strategies that the authors are using to create a new Library at Macquarie University.

Design/methodology/approach

The strategies are explained using the metaphor of a journey, with a roadmap, or guiding principles, the milestones reached and next steps for the future. They are also discussed in the context of University and Library strategic planning and with reference to the concepts emerging from Library 2.0 discussions.

Findings

During 2005/2006 the authors transformed the design of jobs and structure to build a more flexible Library that is agile, resilient, informed, connected, successful and responsible. These changes are being implemented during 2006/2007, supported by extensive training and new approaches to planning, team building, performance monitoring and governance. Two significant changes are being made. One is the construction of a new library building to reaffirm the centrality to research and learning. Also, strategies to maximise the visibility and use of physical resources in this new environment are being implemented. A new technical architecture to underpin all of the activities is being designed.

Originality/value

The aim in creating a new Library is to make the services client‐centric rather than library‐centric.
Reaching out, building bonds: NUS Libraries for knowledge, for inspiration, for life
Authors: Yap Sylvia , Yeo Gabriel
Published: November 2007

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to look at the National University of Singapore's Libraries' (NUSL) efforts in moving forward to assert its place as an institutional service organisation, not solely in the traditional area of providing access to information, but also in developing itself as a place for knowledge, for inspiration and for life to its user community.

Design/methodology/approach

The article takes the form of a case study, giving details about the seven libraries that together make up the NUSL. It looks at how the libraries face competition from a number of information sources.

Findings

The NUSL needs to understand its users, use the correct branding and reach out to the community.

Originality/value

NUSL has embarked on a new proactive journey to reach out, bond with its users and seize every opportunity to promote its brand.
Temporary agency work and the business cycle
Authors: de Graaf‐Zijl Marloes , Berkhout Ernest E.
Published: November 2007

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to test the relationship between gross domestic product (GDP) and agency work.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper develops a theoretical model for the time interdependence of GDP, agency work and regular employment and tested model predictions using a VAR model.

Findings

Results show that on the macro level temporary agency work leads GDP development. Temporary agency work is an excellent instrument for employers to adjust the size of their workforce to fluctuations in product demand. Temporary work agencies, however, have a tough job finding qualified personnel in tight labour markets because workers generally prefer the security of a permanent contract. It is shown in this paper that, as a result of these two countervailing forces, the number of hours worked through temporary work agencies precedes GDP development. Agency work increases in the last phase of a recession after regular workers have been dismissed. It expands further, in line with GDP, when the trough is passed until agency worker's labour supply stagnates. This leads to a decrease in agency hours even before the business cycle reaches its peak. Then agency work declines further, in line with GDP, until regular workers are dismissed and the cycle start again.

Originality/value

Temporary work arrangements have become a key area of interest for firms, academics and policy makers. This paper shows how the use of these work arrangement fluctuates over time. Also, this paper shows that agency work can be used in predicting future GDP development.
Do the unemployed become successful entrepreneurs?
Authors: Andersson Pernilla , Wadensjö Eskil
Published: November 2007

Purpose

Many unemployed people become self‐employed. Self‐employment, however, does not necessarily lead to success. The main objective of the paper is to compare the economic outcome and success as self‐employed between those who entered self‐employment from paid employment, unemployment and inactivity. The question is if individuals who enter self‐employment from a weak position on the labour market are equally successful as those who enter self‐employment from a stronger position.

Design/methodology/approach

Micro‐econometric methods are used to estimate first the propensity to become self‐employed in the period 1998‐2002 among Swedish‐born men aged 20‐60 years who were unemployed, inactive or wage earners in 1998, and second, the economic outcome of self‐employment. Economic outcome in 2002 is measured using income from self‐employment and having employees in the firm.

Findings

The study finds that the unemployed, and even more the inactive, are overrepresented among those who become self‐employed. Those who were wage earners in 1998 have higher incomes and are also employing other people in their business to a much higher extent in 2002 than those who were unemployed or inactive in 1998.

Practical implications

The results indicate that support for unemployed to become self‐employed should be implemented with great care. The economic outcome of self‐employment is inadequate for many who were unemployed earlier.

Originality/value

The study will be valuable for those who are interested in those who become self‐employed and in the economic outcome of self‐employment for different groups.
Designing the optimal length of working time: a counterfactual policy analysis
Authors: Altavilla Carlo , Garofalo Antonio , Paolo Vinci Concetto
Published: November 2007

Purpose

How many hours per week should workers in the USA and Germany spend at their paying jobs? The present paper aims to address this question by constructing policymakers' reaction functions capable of modelling the optimal length of working time as a function of the relevant labour market variables.

Design/methodology/approach

The study is based on a counterfactual policy experiment. Given a policymaker's loss function and a structural model of the labour market alternative specifications of reaction functions are defined where the response coefficients indicate how policymakers should react to any news in the labour market in order to stabilise employment and wages.

Findings

The results suggest that simple rules perform quite well and that the advantages obtained from adopting an optimal control‐based rule are not so great. Moreover, the analysis emphasises the success of the wage‐based rule and of the employment‐based rule in the USA and Germany, respectively.

Research limitations/implications

The study is based on a counterfactual policy experiment, which perhaps limits its operational value.

Practical implications

Labour market authorities might stabilise employment and wages by implementing policy rules.

Originality/value

The paper proposes a policy rule to capture the dynamics of the weekly working hours. According to the rule in the paper the length of the workweek is an inverse function of the deviation between the actual and potential employment level.
Outsourcing (the) economy to India: utopian and dystopian discourses of offshoring
Authors: Knights David , Jones Beverley
Published: November 2007

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine critically both utopian and dystopian discourses of offshoring so that a more considered, nonetheless theoretically informed, view of the global offshore phenomenon can be formed.

Design/methodology/approach

Drawing upon some preliminary research on offshoring ventures from the UK to India, and the extant literature, the practice of business process outsourcing (BPO) via offshoring is explored and critiqued.

Findings

It is argued that neither dream nor nightmare is the adequate discursive metaphor to capture what we have discerned through our research on offshore outsourcing.

Originality/value

The primary contribution of this paper is that demonstrates that utopian and dystopian discourses fail to adequately explain the practice of offshore BPO and that in cultural, economical, ethical, and political terms, it is much more complex.
Facing culture: the (de)legitimation of social work
Authors: Gastelaars Marja , van der Haar Marleen
Published: November 2007

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore how Dutch social workers make sense of the cultural otherness produced by clients with migrant origins and relates this to the various discourses that constitute the legacy of Dutch social work.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper relies on a historical discourse analysis based on secondary sources and on a fieldwork study performed in a contemporary organization.

Findings

The analysis reveals three different discourses. The first relates to how the association of social work with government policy produces a generalised “otherness” as the practical starting point for the social workers’ interventions, and a specific kind of cultural indifference. The second concerns a discourse around lifestyle interventions influenced by a specific tradition of institutionalised diversity called pillarization. Finally, there is a discourse in which social workers are expressly expected to be “open” to their individual clients’ specific backgrounds which generates scope for a “constructivist” conceptualization of cultural diversity.

Originality/value

The paper offers insights into the discursive construction of social work.
Institutional transformation through positive textual deviance
Authors: Zandee Danielle P. , Bilimoria Diana
Published: November 2007

Purpose

The paper aims to explore an affirmative, discursive perspective for its potential to expand the current understanding of processes of institutional transformation.

Design/methodology/approach

First the notion of institutional transformation is discussed and the “discursive model of institutionalization” as developed by Phillipset al.is described. Then the concept of “positive textual deviance” is introduced and defined. The discursive model is read to explore possibilities for institutional transformation through instances of positive textual deviance.

Findings

The insertion of the concept of positive textual deviance into the discursive model of institutionalization reveals openings for transformation which are captured in propositions that address the agency of texts and their authors in the creation of desired change.

Originality/value

The paper is unique in its synthesis of three distinct theoretical perspectives – institutional, discursive, and affirmative – in the definition and application of positive textual deviance. Its affirmative, constructionist stance goes beyond a critical deconstruction of taken for granted practice by proposing a hopeful, emancipatory approach that enables institutional actors to become agents of change.
A discursive study of institutionalisation in community organisations
Authors: O'Shea Peri
Published: November 2007

Purpose

The institutionalisation of neo‐liberalist discourse has significantly changed the way in which the relationship between government and community organisations is described and regulated in Australia. These changes are most clearly articulated in government policy discourse as a move away from “funding” community service organisations to “purchasing” the delivery of community services. This research aims to explore institutionalisation in the community sector: how institutionalisation interplays with increased central control, the impact on practice and the continued relevance of community organisations.

Design/methodology/approach

This research applies critical discourse analysis, within the framework of neo‐institutional theory, to examine data from “conversations” with workers in community organisations.

Findings

Imposed institutionalisation, seen to threaten flexibility and autonomy, is spurned. However, some evidence of increased internal institutionalisation revealed some potential to strengthen the sector from within.

Originality/value

Due to significant devolution of government services, the extent of welfare provision provided by community organisations is now so great that a crisis in the community sector would result in severe disruption in the delivery of welfare services in Australia. An examination of how the community sector can be resilient and relevant in this new policy environment has important practical implications at the local and international level.
The ideology of markets and the practice of policy: objectivity, control and the objectionable
Authors: Lightfoot Geoff , Lilley Simon
Published: November 2007

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to briefly explore some recent curious interlocking of the ideology of markets and the practice of policy.

Design/methodology/approach

This particular discursive combine has most visibly been apparent in the concatenated birth and death of the US Defense Department's so‐called “Policy Analysis Market” (PAM). Yet PAM is but the most notorious example of a more sustained and pervasive attempt to use the technologies and disciplines of markets to render policy both better informed and more amenable to control through robust and seemingly incontestable systems of accountability. Given its prominence, our way in is through a brief description of PAM's origins and demise.

Findings

It is found that PAM and its similar brethren of markets for use in policy formation and judgement are less concerned with the capture of reality and more with the disciplining power of a curious “objectivity”.

Originality/value

Projects such as PAM are thus not easily challengeable on grounds of their veracity. Rather research that seeks to interrogate the use of market technologies in policy must look to their context and effects.
Selection of planned supply initiatives: the role of senior management expertise
Authors: Fraser Johnson P. , Klassen Robert D. , Leenders Michiel R. , Awaysheh Amrou
Published: November 2007

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to assess the selection of planned supply initiatives and the role of senior management expertise. The drivers that influence the selection of particular supply initiatives by firms are of major interest to both practitioners and academics, as choices indicate priorities for resources, potential performance gaps and needs for future research. Moreover, theory indicates that senior management expertise and firm‐level resources might influence the likelihood of selecting particular initiatives.

Design/methodology/approach

A synthesis of the literature supported the development of a five‐dimensional framework of major supply initiatives. Logistic regression was conducted with data from a survey of chief purchasing officers at large North American firms. The impact of firm‐level resources and senior management expertise, including background and experience, was assessed for the selection of supply initiatives.

Findings

After controlling for general industry‐level factors, both firm resources and senior management expertise were found to systematically affect the likelihood of a firm planning to pursue particular initiatives. First, hiring senior management from outside the firm decreased the likelihood that network‐based initiatives were planned, while senior management who last worked in supply were found to be negatively related to planned supply strategy initiatives. Second, firms with greater use of e‐business technologies favored additional investment in supply networks.

Research limitations/implications

This research focused on large firms in developed countries, and additional research is needed to explore the generalizability to small and medium‐sized enterprises and less‐developed countries. Moreover, additional work is needed to explore trade‐offs between planned and emergent initiatives, as only the former were empirically assessed.

Originality/value

Senior management expertise has received relatively little attention in prior research, yet was found to be a significant factor influencing strategic, process and network‐related supply initiatives. Moreover, the framework of supply initiatives provides a basis for assessing and benchmarking firm‐level supply chain strategy and investment patterns. Finally, empirical evidence emerged that both firm and individual‐level factors influenced the probability of selecting particular initiatives.
Strategic profiling
Authors: Hill Alex , Brown Steve
Published: November 2007

Purpose

The purpose of this exploratory research paper is to present a strategic profiling managerial framework that enables businesses to show visually the level of internal strategic fit in their organisation. Using this framework, service operations managers are able to understand the level of fit that exists, how it is created and identify actions for improving it.

Design/methodology/approach

Case‐based research was conducted in eight service organisations to investigate their level of internal fit and the corresponding characteristics of their market, operating strategy and service delivery system. Based on these findings, a strategic profiling framework was developed.

Findings

The strategic profiling framework allows a service organisation to compare the characteristics of its market, operating strategy and service delivery system and determine the level of internal strategic fit. This enables it to see more clearly where conflicts exist and to start to understand the steps required to improve the level of fit in its organisation.

Research limitations/implications

The research used the Heskett strategic service vision and Hill's order‐winner and qualifier technique to investigate the level of internal fit. It looked at how they can be applied and the insights they reveal rather than whether the elements they contain are correct. The research focused on developing and presenting a method of visualizing internal fit, rather than investigating the link between fit and performance. The strategic profiling framework developed needs to be tested on a wider sample of organisations to see whether high‐fit profiles have high performance and whether the insights it reveals are true for other businesses.

Practical implications

Service organisations can use the strategic profiling framework to understand their level of internal strategic fit, and why it exists, in order to understand how to improve it.

Originality/value

The strategic profiling framework presented in this paper starts to address the gap in the literature around research into the field of internal strategic fit. It also meets the need for more management tools to help businesses develop strategies and understand the level of fit they create.