bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Strategic human resources management in times of economic uncertainty: a lifebuoy for employees?
Authors: Mousa Mohamed , Arslan Ahmad 
Published: January 2025

PurposeDrawing on social exchange and street-level bureaucracy (SLB) theories, the authors of the present paper seek to identify how public banks in Egypt strategically manage their frontline employees to maintain high performance even during periods of economic uncertainty.Design/methodology/approachThe empirical sample comprises semi-structured interviews with 28 frontline employees working in 4 public banks. The authors used the Gioia mechanism to analyze their data.FindingsThe authors identified job-related (discretionary power of bank employees, nature of banking jobs and hiring elite individuals for banking jobs); learning-related (continuous learning of bank employees, spread of MBA programs and resilience of bank employees) and context-related categories of factors (career support and more financial rewards during economic uncertainty) that explain the stability of the performance of the frontline bank employees addressed in this study despite the economic uncertainty their country is passing through.Practical implicationsGiven the findings of the present paper, the authors propose that the administration of the addressed banks maintain the policy of providing training opportunities to their employees. However, such training should pay more attention to issues such as crisis management, customer-employee engagement and the mental health of employees during crises, among others. Second, as dissatisfaction is very high with other public sector organizations in Egypt, their top management should try to learn from public banks, follow the best practices and collaborate with them to improve their service offerings to the citizens. Finally, for global financial institutions such as the International Monetary Fund who are involved in rescuing Egyptian economy should incorporate strategic human resources management implementation in public sector organizations in their recommendations, along with economic reforms package.Originality/valueThis paper contributes by filling a gap in the literature on strategic human resources management and economic uncertainty in which empirical studies of the association between them, particularly in the context of North African countries such as Egypt, have been limited so far.
Problems of participatory processes in policymaking: a service design approach
Authors: Díez-Calvo Susana , Lidón Iván , Rebollar Rubén , Gil-Pérez Ignacio 
Published: January 2025

Purpose
This study aims to identify and map the problems of participatory processes in policymaking through a Service Design approach.

Design/methodology/approach
First, 50 semi-structured interviews were conducted with experts in the field of citizen participation. This was followed by a comparative analysis of how backstage and frontstage stakeholders perceived the identified problems. Secondly, a Service Blueprint model was proposed as a means of mapping the identified problems within the broader framework of a service experience of participation. Finally, a brainstorming session was held with the aim of proposing design solutions to the problems from a human-centred perspective.

Findings
Fifteen problems of participatory processes in policymaking were identified, and some differences were observed in the perception of these problems between the stakeholders responsible for designing and implementing the participatory processes (backstage stakeholders) and those who are called upon to participate (frontstage stakeholders). The problems were found to occur at different stages of the service and to affect different stakeholders. A number of design actions were proposed to help mitigate these problems from a human-centred approach. These included process improvements, digital opportunities, new technologies and staff training, among others.

Practical implications
Public managers, politicians and designers of participatory processes can use this study to design participatory processes based on the real needs and expectations of the different stakeholders involved.

Originality/value
This research adds to the literature on citizen participation and Service Design by shedding new light on the problems of participatory processes through a human-centred approach.
Is the police service still a long-term career choice? Perspectives of new recruits
Authors: Cox Carol , Blockley Tony , Hagan Rachel , James Adrian 
Published: January 2025

PurposeThis article is timely due to the current high attrition of officers (National Police Chiefs Council, 2023) and will explore the literature surrounding retention and attrition of officers, the impact of this on trust and confidence, and the need to understand the reasons why officers join the service coupled with their expectations of the police as a long-term career (>10 years).Design/methodology/approachThis research will describe a study using a survey that examined views of 120 new recruits from 3 UK police forces on why they joined the service.FindingsIt notes that many still see the police service as a long-term career and indicate little intention of leaving, raising further questions surrounding the reasons for the current high attrition rates. It concludes with where police forces could focus to improve retention, suggesting some reasons for the attrition such as low job satisfaction, poor welfare and organisation culture, and some practical suggestions as to where police forces could focus to improve retention.Research limitations/implicationsAlbeit this research was sent to a small sample (n = 127) and did not address shift work issues or welfare support, it will serve as a foundational pilot. The research initial findings can inform future studies with more detailed analyses and targeted strategies to enhance officer retention and public trust in the police force.Practical implicationsThe research aims to provide insights into how recruitment motivations and job satisfaction impact long-term retention.Social implicationsThis research highlights the significance of examining the reasons for new recruits joining the service, and of implementing retention strategies prioritising stability, officer support, and community engagement to cultivate a trusting relationship between the police and the public.Originality/valueThis study was designed to examine if current new police officers still view the police as a long-term career choice and to identify if their reasons for joining the service have changed with the current political climate of policing in the UK.
Conclusion: what is the transformative relationship between tourism and technology?
Authors: Liasidou Sotiroula , Pipyros Kosmas 
Published: January 2025

PurposeThe thematic issue purposed explored the transformative relationship between tourism and technology from various perspectives.Design/methodology/approachThe thematic issue presents various methodologies that examine each topic. Each topic deals with an important issue of tourism and technology and provides an in-depth understanding of the interrelationship.FindingsThe integration of technology in the tourism sector has significantly transformed several aspects, including customer and supplier behaviour, business operations, destination assessment, safety and education. Emerging technologies, like artificial intelligence, are reshaping the tourism industry by creating new opportunities for innovation and engagement. The industry’s primary challenge is to utilize these technologies wisely, ensuring they do not replace the concept of hospitality or the exceptional services that humans can offer.Originality/valueBy providing diverse methodologies and perspectives, it highlights the multifaceted nature of the relationship between tourism and technology, thereby contributing original insights into how digital innovations are influencing traveller behaviours, destination marketing and operational efficiencies in the sector. The inclusion of case studies and empirical research enriches the discourse, enabling stakeholders such as policymakers, practitioners and researchers to better understand the implications of this transformative relationship and to adopt strategies that force technological advancements for sustainable tourism development.
Evaluating Ten Second Triage: A Novel Multi‐Agency Prehospital Triage Tool for Major Incidents
Authors: Davidson Louise , Vassallo James , Cowburn Phil , Bull Dave , Moran Chris , Carter Holly 
Published: January 2025

ABSTRACTThis article is an example of ‘Lessons from the Field’. Recent inquests following major incidents in the United Kingdom have criticised the ‘care gap’—the time period between an incident occurring and emergency services accessing casualties to deliver life‐saving interventions. To address this, Ten Second Triage (TST) was developed in the United Kingdom to facilitate rapid non‐physiological assessments by any first responder, regardless of their profession or organisation. TST aims to speed up the delivery of early life‐saving interventions and facilitate the prioritisation of casualties, ultimately improving casualty outcomes in major incidents. The current study evaluated TST's usability through a series of live exercises involving the participation of specialist and non‐specialist responders from a variety of Police, Fire and Rescue, and Ambulance Services in the United Kingdom. Focus groups and questionnaires were used to capture participants' perceptions of TST and their experiences using it during the exercises. Results show that TST can be used to facilitate the delivery of early life‐saving interventions and casualty prioritisation by responders regardless of their clinical background, and that responders from all services are confident in using it. However, results also highlighted key considerations for the practicalities of using a multi‐agency triage tool, such as TST, in real emergencies including the consideration of key interoperability factors, such as communication, the importance of reciprocal trust, and collaborative training. Recommendations drawn from this evaluation informed the further development of TST and supported its integration into UK practice in Spring 2023.
Recommendation section of psychoeducational reports: A barrier or opportunity to promote inclusion in early education and care?
Authors: Vaags Agnete , Uthus Marit 
Published: January 2025

AbstractPsychoeducational reports prepared by the Educational Psychological Service are foundational for special educational support in Norway, ensuring equitable opportunities for development, learning and participation among children with special educational needs in mainstream Early Childhood Education and Care settings. This qualitative study examines the characteristics of recommended goals and support measures in these reports, and how they promote or inhibit inclusion. Through a holistic approach, the study explores individual and social contextual considerations within the recommendation sections of seven reports for children aged 3–5 years. Employing reflexive thematic analysis, our findings suggest that while certain measures promote children's participation in inclusive communities, there is a predominant focus on the individual child. This emphasis often centres on skill acquisition and ability development through performance‐based goals and compensatory measures. However, while most recommendations are individually oriented, certain measures appear generalised and broadly applicable to most children, highlighting the challenges of addressing each child's unique needs in their specific context. The study's implications underscore the necessity for a holistic approach in the field of special education, both at the policy and legislative levels. Such an approach is essential for enabling psychoeducational reports to promote inclusion in early childhood education and care settings.
Farm size and agricultural productivity of nutritious foods: Evidence from Ethiopia
Authors: Ameye Hannah , Bachewe Fantu Nisrane , Minten Bart , Tamru Seneshaw 
Published: January 2025

AbstractAgri‐food systems are transforming quickly in Africa. An important issue in the transformation process of agricultural production is the role of small farms. While many authors have looked at this question, one aspect that has received little attention is the role of small farms in the production of nutritious foods, an important topic given the low availability and relatively high prices of nutritious foods and the consequent low level of nutrition security in the continent. Using a unique large‐scale dataset from Ethiopia—one of the largest countries in Africa that has been transforming rapidly—we look at the production of vegetables and dairy products. We find a strong association between farm size and partial productivity measured in terms of output, value of outputs and profit per hectare/cow, with productivity twice to four times as high for larger farms. These farms have substantially higher input expenditures as well as differences in farm technologies compared to small ones. Our findings have important implications for the debate on the role of small farms and nutritional improvements in the continent.
Quantifying degradation in animal acoustic signals with the R package baRulho
Authors: Araya‐Salas Marcelo , Grabarczyk Erin E. , Quiroz‐Oliva Marcos , García‐Rodríguez Adrián , Rico‐Guevara Alejandro 
Published: January 2025

Abstract

Animal acoustic signals are shaped by selection to convey information based on their tempo, intensity, and frequency. However, sound signals degrade as they transmit over space and across physical obstacles (e.g., vegetation or infrastructure), which affects communication potential. Therefore, propagation experiments are designed to quantify changes in signal structure in a given habitat by broadcasting and re‐recording animal sounds at increasing distances.

We introduce ‘baRulho’, an R package designed to simplify the implementation of sound propagation experiments. We highlight the package features with a case study testing the effects of habitat and acoustic structure on signal propagation, two common factors evaluated in such experiments. Synthesized sounds that varied in frequency, duration, and frequency and amplitude modulation were broadcast and re‐recorded at five increasing distances in open and closed understory at the Bosque de Tlalpan, Mexico City. With this data, we showcase baRulho's functions to prepare master sound files, annotate re‐recorded test sounds, as well as to calculate and visualize measures that quantify the degradation of acoustic signals in the time and frequency domain.

Degradation measures in baRulho adequately quantified acoustic degradation, following predicted patterns of sound propagation in natural environments. Re‐recorded signals degraded less in open understory compared to closed understory, with higher‐frequency sounds exhibiting more degradation. Furthermore, frequency modulated sounds degraded to a greater extent than pure tones. The increased attenuation and reverberation observed in higher frequency sounds and closed habitats suggest that factors such as absorption and scattering by vegetation play significant roles in propagation patterns.

The R package ‘baRulho’ provides an open‐source, user‐friendly suite of tools designed to facilitate the analysis of animal sound degradation. Notably, baRulho offers similar results to other sound analysis software but with significantly reduced processing time. Moreover, the package minimizes the potential for user error through automated test file annotation and verification procedures. We hope that baRulho can help enhance accessibility to propagation experiments within the research community, ultimately contributing to a deeper understanding of the ecological drivers of animal communication systems.
Evaluating sex and line differences in successive negative contrast and ethanol consumption using alcohol preferring and high alcohol drinking rats
Authors: Smith Nicholle E. , Czachowski Cristine L. 
Published: January 2025

AbstractBackgroundThe loss of a job or relationship are a couple of examples of unexpected reward loss. Life events, such as these can induce negative emotional reactions (e.g., anxiety and stress), which have been associated with increased alcohol consumption and in turn, an increased risk of developing an alcohol use disorder (AUD). The present study analyzed consummatory successive negative contrast (SNC) for the first time in alcohol preferring (P) and high alcohol drinking (HAD) rats that have been selectively bred to consume high amounts of ethanol. Following reward loss, animals were given free access to ethanol to determine whether consumption would increase as a possible indication of any negative emotional reaction.MethodsMale and female P and HAD rats were split into shifted and unshifted groups receiving either 32% or 4% sucrose for 5 min across 10 preshift days. Subsequently, all animals received 4% sucrose for four postshift days, across which, animals were given access to 20% ethanol for 30 min after access to 4% sucrose.ResultsMale and female P rats demonstrated a longer contrast effect than HAD rats, indicated by a longer recovery time following the downshift in reward. Conversely, HAD males did not demonstrate a contrast effect following this downshift in reward unlike their female counterparts. Surprisingly, P rats who experienced a loss of reward consumed significantly less ethanol than animals who did not. Lastly, individual measure of contrast size, or shift ratio, was significantly associated with greater ethanol consumption in HAD males only, who did not display a contrast effect.ConclusionsThese data indicate different reactivity to SNC between these two lines and sexes, suggesting different genetic and sex‐related mechanisms underlying sensitivity to an unexpected loss of reward and ethanol consumption following this loss.
Successful Translocation of a Long‐Distance Migrating Passerine—New Impetus for the Conservation of the Globally Threatened Aquatic Warbler
Authors: Morkvėnas Žymantas , Arbeiter Susanne , Kozulin Aleksandr , Riauba Gintaras , Zhurauliou Dzmitry , Yakovich Vitali , Tanneberger Franziska 
Published: January 2025

ABSTRACTTranslocations are a conservation measure that is increasingly applied to assist the recovery of animal populations threatened with extinction. Long‐distance migrating passerines, however, have been rarely addressed in translocation projects so far. One such species is the globally threatened Aquatic Warbler Acrocephalus paludicola, a habitat specialist breeding in fen mires in Central Europe and wintering in sub‐Saharan Africa. The global breeding population has severely declined during the last decades due to habitat loss. Although the implementation of conservation measures has stopped the decline in the core breeding area, peripheral populations continue to decline. The aim of this pilot study was to reveal whether translocated Aquatic Warblers will return to a distant release site after wintering in Africa. Our translocation method is based on natal habitat imprinting of juvenile passerines before their first migration. In 2018 and 2019, 50 chicks (10–12 entire broods) each year were translocated 526 km from Belarus to Lithuania at an age of about 7 days and hand‐reared with predominantly wild insects captured in the surroundings of the release site. The survival rate of chicks until soft release from outdoor aviaries was 98% (49 fledglings released) in 2018 and 100% (50 fledglings released) in 2019. In 2019, 11 Aquatic Warblers (9 males, 2 females) were resighted at the release site after returning from wintering grounds. In 2020, nine birds (6 males, 3 females) were observed, including three males from the 2018 release cohort. An average apparent first‐year survival of 0.30 was estimated. The very successful outcome gives new impetus for the restoration prospects of declined populations of the Aquatic Warbler to halt extinction at the margins of the breeding range.
Defining Excellence: The First Core Set of Quality Indicators for the European Paediatric Surgical Audit on Hirschsprung's Disease Care
Authors: Rossi Daniel , Granström Anna Löf , Pakarinen Mikko , Bjørnland Kristin , de Blaauw Ivo , Ellebæk Mark , Leon Francesco Fascetti , Gloudemans Dirk‐Jan , Prato Alessio Pini , Rolle Udo , Schwarzer Nicole , Tabbers Merit , Vilanova Alejandra , Wijnen Rene , Sloots Cornelius E. J. , Wester Tomas ,   the EPSA|ERNICA Registry Group and collaborative authors
Published: January 2025

ABSTRACTAimThis study aimed to develop a universally applicable core set of quality indicators for Hirschsprung's disease care through a consensus‐driven process, to standardise and improve care quality across Europe.MethodsA modified Delphi method was used to achieve consensus among healthcare professionals (HPs) and patient representatives (PRs) across Europe. Participants completed three rounds of anonymous surveys, rating quality indicators for Hirschsprung's disease care. A systematic literature review informed the initial item list. Results were analysed using predefined criteria, and a final consensus meeting established the core set of indicators.ResultsAn international panel of 8 PRs and 96 multidisciplinary health care professionals representing 59 European hospitals completed all questionnaires, eventually including 12 baseline characteristics and 39 indicators. Six of the top 10 indicators were commonly prioritised by both groups. The remaining items were refined through debate and finalised during a consensus meeting.ConclusionThis study established a core set of 12 baseline characteristics and 14 quality indicators for evaluating Hirschsprung's disease care. These indicators will support benchmarking and continuous quality improvement within the European Paediatric Surgical Audit framework, ultimately enhancing outcomes and care for children with Hirschsprung's disease.
Green Investing and Corporate Environmental Violations: Do CEO Ability and Female Directors Matter?
Authors: Khalid Fahad , Curseu Petru L. , Voinea Cosmina L. , Sun Xinhui , Srivastava Mohit 
Published: January 2025

ABSTRACTBuilding on the notion that organizations are congruence seeking systems, this study investigates the impact of green investing on corporate environmental violations (CEVs). The research sample consists of China's A‐share‐listed companies for the period 2009–2020. The study employs a robust analytical framework that integrates least squares dummy variable approach, different proxies for regressors and moderators, and instrumental variable technique. Based on the rigorous methods, empirical analysis reveals that green investing helps mitigate CEVs, aligning with the theoretical premise of environmental strategic congruence. The moderating results indicate that elevated CEO ability and a higher proportion of female directors on boards enhances strategic congruence and amplifies the alleviating effects of green investing on CEVs. Furthermore, cross‐sectional analysis suggests that the mitigating effect of green investing on CEVs is more pronounced for firms in sensitive sectors, state‐owned, and lacking internal controls for environmental, health, and safety. This research contributes nuanced insights on the role of strategic congruence in sustainable finance and governance and presents practical implications for policymakers, managers, and corporate leaders navigating the intricate landscape of environmental responsibility within an emerging market.