Search results

The recent impasse over federal forest management in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States has been a living laboratory of conflict and its management, and provides the context for this case study. While most of the media attention has been focused on regional or national events such as President Clinton's Forest Conference of April 1993, a larger number of localized conflicts have shaped the controversy at the grassroots level. This case study focuses on a pivotal meeting in one such conflict: the Shasta Costa planning process. Outside intervenors mediated the meeting, and USDA Forest Service personnel, timber industry representatives, and environmentalists participated Participant observation and a supplemental survey led to the following conclusions: (1) measures of standing (the legal and social basis for legitimate participation) differed between the industry and environmental representatives, (2) reliance on science differed between groups, and (3) the process was not able to overcome a power imbalance. These findings suggest that there may be little hope for local dispute efforts if there is substantial policy uncertainty at the national level. Implications for managing forestry conflict in the region are discussed.

The purpose of this paper is to determine and describe the effect of oil degradation on the engine of a 20-ton class excavator operating in Latin America.

The research parameters include: a specific engine class and equipment, the John Deere PowerTech Plus 6068 Tier 3 diesel engine that powers the 20-ton class excavator; identical OSA3 oil analysis laboratory equipment in 11 target countries in Latin America was employed to analyze oil samples; and the same sampling scope and method were followed for each oil sample.

The research results indicated that at 500 h of use, 73.4 percent of the oil sample results indicated that soot accumulation was a significant problem. When associating the engine oil contamination with the environment risk drivers: altitude and diesel quality have the greatest impact on iron readings; bio-diesel impacts copper; and precipitation and poor diesel quality are associated with silicon levels.

Due to diverse machine operating conditions, research offers an accurate global representation. Because there is an exponential count of particles as oil use approaches 250 h, the interval of engine maintenance (oil change) for machinery operating under similar conditions should not exceed 250 h of use.

The main contribution of this paper will help machinery final users and manufacturers to implement mitigation strategies to improve engine durability in countries with similar operating conditions.

Internationally publicized cases of police violence against unarmed black men have led to calls for accountability in policing. Increased footage of police–public interactions, specifically through the form of police body-worn cameras (BWCs), is encouraged and considered an innovation that can improve the policing profession. However, BWC adoption is likely more feasible in big city departments than in small and rural departments, who respond to many of the same issues as their larger counterparts. The purpose of this study is to explore perceptions of BWC among leaders of small and rural police departments.

Using a mixed methods approach, the authors surveyed 349 chiefs of small and rural Pennsylvania police departments and conducted qualitative follow-up interviews with 53 chiefs.

The results indicate that both adopters and non-adopters esteem BWC in a positive light, particularly toward the ability to improve professionalism and police–community relations. Other findings and implications of these results will be discussed.

This study focuses on small and rural police departments, which make up the majority of police departments but are often understudied.

This paper aims to present and test a model of how the autonomy of an organization’s representative alters the effects of customer experiences on customer emotions and repurchasing intentions toward the organization. Specifically, this paper offers a moderated mediation model whereby representative autonomy alters attributions of organizational responsibility, which moderate the effect of service experience on emotion and emotion mediates the effects of service experiences on repurchasing intentions.

Study 1 is a laboratory experiment (N = 115), where participants engaged in a multi-round product purchasing task through an online representative of a company. Study 2 is a vignette experiment (N = 393), where participants responded to situations of purchasing either a car, furniture, haircut or vacation package from a representative of a company. In both studies, manipulated representative autonomy information was either low or high and manipulated customer experience was either positive or negative. Measures included responsibility, emotion toward the organization and repurchase intention.

Structural equation models support the proposed model. In the presence of information about representative autonomy, the link between customer experience and repurchasing intent is amplified and mediated by emotion toward the organization.

Because of the experimental approach, the findings may not be generalizable, but the experimental method allows for a controlled test of the process, ordering and relationship among variables.

Understanding how representatives’ autonomy ultimately alters repurchasing and how this process involves responsibility attributions contributes to both practice and theory.

The purpose of this paper is to identify and discuss perceptions of petroleum-related corporate social responsibility (CSR) among local and regional authorities, local peoples (indigenous and non-indigenous) and representatives of petroleum companies working or living in the Nenets Autonomous Okrug (NAO) in the Russian Arctic. Although the CSR literature comprises a broad spectrum of approaches, an underrepresentation of perspectives from non-business stakeholders has been suggested. The paper seeks to redress this gap.

The data are obtained through 34 in-depth, semi-structured interviews conducted and qualitatively analysed to extrapolate perceptions, views and expectations of petroleum-related CSR in NAO. By exploring needs, wants and expectations, differences are identified between short-term expectations and long-term perspectives.

A central feature of the authors’ findings is the wide variation in the responses not only between community groups and sectors but also within them. The complexity identified is an argument in favour of local involvement to understand local contexts and suggests avoiding “one-size fits all” CSR approaches. Challenges and opportunities are identified for the petroleum companies in dealing with different stakeholders and diverging interests.

The importance of local context means that caution is advised when considering the transferability or generalisability of lessons, within NAO and elsewhere in and outside the Russian Arctic. Furthermore, fundamental motivations are not always transparent from interviews.

Although a rich literature exists on CSR, this is perhaps the first study providing a cross-sectoral analysis of people’s perceptions, including those of non-business stakeholders, in this region.

The purpose of this paper is to determine whether the altitude at which construction equipment operates affects or contributes to increased engine wear.

The study includes the evaluation of two John Deere PowerTech Plus 6,068 Tier 3 diesel engines, the utilization of OSA3 oil analysis laboratory equipment to analyze oil samples, the employment of standard sampling scope and methods, and the analysis of key Engine Control Unit (ECU) data points (machine utilization, Diagnostic Trouble Codes (DTCs) and engine sensor data).

At 250 h of engine oil use, the engine operating at 3,657 meters above sea level (MASL) had considerably more wear than the engine operating at 416 MASL. The leading and earliest indicator of engine wear was a high level of iron particles in the engine oil, reaching abnormal levels at 218 h. The following engine oil contaminants were more prevalent in the engine operating at the higher altitude: potassium, glycol, water and soot. Furthermore, the engine operating at higher altitude also presented abnormal and critical levels of oil viscosity, Total Base Number and oxidation. When comparing the oil sample analysis with the engine ECU data, it was determined that engine idling is a contributor for soot accumulation in the engine operating at the higher altitude. The most prevalent DTCs were water in fuel, extreme low coolant levels and extreme high exhaust manifold temperature. The ECU operating data demonstrated that the higher altitude environment caused the engine to miss-fire and rail pressure was irregular.

Many of the mining operations and construction projects are accomplished at mid to high altitudes. This research provides a comparison of how construction equipment engines are affected by this type of environment (i.e. higher altitudes, cooler temperatures and lower atmospheric pressure). Consequently, service engineers can implement maintenance strategies to minimize internal engine wear for equipment operating at higher altitudes.

The main contribution of this paper will help construction equipment end-users, maintenance engineers and manufacturers to implement mitigation strategies to improve engine durability for countries with operating conditions similar to those described in this research.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate Portuguese hospital inpatient satisfaction.

The study was conducted at a major university hospital in Portugal. Using the IAQH-IA mailed questionnaire, data were collected over three months (March to June 2015) from patients and families. From 1,500 former inpatients, 434 participated (29 percent response rate). Using the structural equation modeling, the authors derived satisfaction models and analyzed the relationship between quality, satisfaction and patient attitudes. Inferential statistics (bivariate analysis) were used to deal with global satisfaction determinants.

The satisfaction model was confirmed using factor analysis. Results show that developing a system for delivering timely information to both patient and relatives is relevant. Communication is a fundamental aspect for patients, which to date, seems to have been neglected by hospital managers. Education and current perceived health are important global satisfaction determinants.

Hospital managers can use the authors’ findings to measure and improve operational performance.

Knowledge about patient perception and satisfaction leads to continuing improvement in healthcare quality.

Online vigilance is a novel construct which describes individual differences in users' cognitive orientation to online connectedness, their attention to and integration of online-related cues and stimuli and their prioritisation of online communication. Its proponents argue that it is acquired through the processes of instrumental and attentional training that underlie media use behaviours. The purpose of the present study is to investigate the role of three personal characteristics (emotional intelligence, rumination and identity distress) as predictors of online vigilance in addition to media use behaviour.

The authors adopted an exploratory frame and followed a survey-methodology to collect data among a sample of university students (n = 812). The resulting data were analysed through a hierarchical multiple regression process in which four models were considered.

The findings indicate that while media use behaviours (daily smartphone use, social media use, messaging, video watching and media multitasking) predict online vigilance, their combined effect is weak. However, when considering these behaviours in combination with trait rumination and identity distress, a moderate effect is observable.

While the findings do not permit causal inference, it suggests that two personal characteristics, trait rumination and identity distress, play an important role in determining an individual's tendency or ability to psychologically disconnect from their online spheres. This provides an initial step towards the theorisation of online vigilance and the identification of individuals who may be at risk of acquiring it.

Online vigilance is a novel construct which has only been investigated in a small number of studies. However, its emphasis on psychological connectedness presents a unique and important development in the context of permanently online, permanently connected living. The present study is the first to explore its association with personal characteristics.

This paper aims to present a visually documented brand history of Winchester Repeating Arms through a cultural analysis of iconic Western images featuring its lever action rifles.

The study applies visual culture perspectives and methods to the research and writing of brand history. Iconic Western images featuring Winchester rifles have been selected, examined, and used as points of departure for gathering and interpreting additional data about the brand. The primary sources consist chiefly of photographs from the nineteenth century and films and television shows from the twentieth century. Most visual source materials were obtained from the US Library of Congress, the Smithsonian Institution, the Buffalo Bill Center of the West and the Internet Movie Firearms Database. These have been augmented by written sources.

Within a few years of the launch of the Winchester brand in 1866, visual images outside company control associated its repeating rifles with the settlement of the American West and with the colorful people involved. Some of these images were reproduced in books and others sold to consumers in the form of cartes de visite, cabinet cards and stereographs made from albumen prints. Starting in the 1880s, the live Wild West shows of William F. Cody and his stars entertained audiences with a heroic narrative of the period that included numerous Winchesters. During the twentieth century and into the present, Winchesters have been featured in motion pictures and television series with Western themes.

Historical research is an ongoing process. The discovery of new primary data, both written and visual, may lead to a revised interpretation of the selected images.

Based largely on images as primary data sources, this study approaches brand history from the perspective of visual culture theory and data. The research shows how brands acquire meaning not just from the companies that own them but also from consumers, the media and other producers of popular culture.

The purpose of this paper is to describe the current context of social work as a profession and some of the major transition factors that are affecting social workers and social work organisations.

The paper first explores what social work is, and how it has developed as a profession. It reflects on social work academia and the place of social work educators and researchers. It then goes on to consider three factors that are having a major influence on social work as a profession: concepts of risk; personalisation; and the multi‐disciplinary environment.

The implications of these factors and the kind of transitions they are driving are discussed in the context of some of the potential implications for professional learning.

The paper does not aim to provide a comprehensive overview of all the factors that are affecting contemporary social work – the aim is to offer contextual information to help the reader consider some of the forces at play in social work. The paper does not introduce new empirical evidence, rather it identifies gaps in the existing evidence about these key influential factors.

The implications of social work in transition for society are that efficacy may be impeded if the profession is too inward looking.

This paper draws from the empirical and conceptual work of others – here the aim is to provide a broad overall context within which to consider the more detailed implications set out in further papers in the present issue.