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This study aims to assess the extent to which acute hospital trust mergers in England are associated with quality improvements.

We apply an event study design using difference-in-difference (DID) and coarsened exact matching to compare the before-and-after performance of eight mergers from 2011 to 2015.

We find little evidence that mergers contribute to quality improvements other than some limited increases in the proportion of patients waiting a maximum of 18 weeks from referral to treatment. We postulate that financial incentives and political influence could have biased management effort towards waiting time measures.

Inherent sample size constraints may limit generalisability. Merger costs and complexity mean they are unlikely to offer an efficient strategy for helping to clear elective care backlogs. We recommend further research into causal mechanisms to help health systems maximise benefits from both mergers and emerging models of hospital provider collaboration.

This paper is the first to study the quality impact of a new wave of acute hospital mergers taking place in the English National Health Service from 2011 onwards, applying a group-time DID estimator to account for multiple treatment timings.

This study aims to offer an original criterion of assessment for examiners of practice-based doctorates in contemporary arts practices, based upon the degree of intrigue, perceptual and conceptual, afforded by the research outputs. It is argued that intrigue is the necessary stimulus for the states of attention required for the recognition of fresh understanding and the acquisition of new knowledge from such outputs. The paper is intended to support doctoral students structuring theses for such research, those responsible for assessing proposals in university cross-disciplinary research committees with limited experience of practice-based research and the examiners of such research.

Acknowledging the several decades of work already published on practice-based research, this study adopts an aesthetic cognitivist position from which the visual arts are construed as powerful means of deepening our understanding, a source of non-propositional knowledge on a par with, although qualitatively different from, the way that the sciences are accepted as the means to propositional knowledge.

A case study demonstrates the efficacy of applying the proposed criterion in the assessment of practice-based doctoral research.

Within the social context of academic research, the article strengthens the validation of practice-based research.

The terms perceptual intrigue and conceptual intrigue are coined as values implicit in aesthetic cognitivism; they are construed as the initial stimuli for the state of attentiveness required for fresh understanding, and the degree of balance between them is proposed as an original criterion for the assessment of practice-based research.

Scholars have been sounding the alarm of novice teacher turnover crises for decades. South Africa is soon to be facing an educational catastrophe because of a shortage of experienced teachers. Globally and in South Africa, novice teacher attrition is high, and teachers entering the classroom often described feeling isolated and unsupported.

This qualitative study was underpinned by an interpretative phenomenology approach. The author reviewed the literature and newly emerged findings of novice teacher mentoring support needs through the theoretical lens of the Ubuntu philosophy “I am because we are” which emphasises the importance of interconnectedness and community. Using semi-structured interviews, this study aimed to explore novice teacher mentoring needs from an Ubuntu perspective.

Novice teachers report feeling overwhelmed with the complexities of teaching in their early careers and express the desire to be formally mentored by a knowledgeable “elder” teacher. This paper argues that a competent mentor who values Ubuntu in their mentoring could offer collaboration, respect, compassion and support to novices that may keep them in the profession. This paper further explores the potential benefit of a prescribed Ubuntu-orientated mentoring programme to formalise mentoring for novices. In addition, it explores the school micro-community from the Ubuntu principles to support novices.

While there is a plethora of studies about mentoring novice teachers, literature from an Africanised Ubuntu perspective is scarce. Perhaps the time has come to find African solutions to our African problems.

This paper aims to unravel how family businesses can harness the power of gamification and to illuminate the hurdles that obstruct this path to success. The research identifies these challenges providing valuable insights into the application of gamification in family businesses and the role of supervision and engagement as moderator variables in this relationship.

Using a structural modeling approach in a qualitative research methodology, the authors collected responses from n = 200 participants. The results were analyzed using Spearman’s test and multiple linear regression.

The research findings reveal that family businesses need to carefully redefine costs when introducing gamification, considering both fixed and variable expenses. The moderating effects of supervision are crucial for user evolution and the correlation, while user engagement influences user and useability experience. Additionally, a positive attitude enhances engagement. Finally, the five key challenges lead to difficulties when implementing gamification strategies.

This research provides valuable insights for the literature on gamification and family business and offers practical guidance for family business owners seeking to introduce a tailored value proposition adapted to their unique organizational needs and challenges.

A novel approach is proposed which, through the integration of gamification strategies with family business dynamics, explores the unique challenges and opportunities that arise within this context. By focusing specifically on family businesses, this study highlights how generational differences, ownership structures and cultural resistance can impact the successful implementation of gamification.

The purpose of this study is to investigate managers’ decision-making processes when evaluating suggestions provided by human collaborators or artificial intelligence (AI) systems. We employed the framework of Social Comparison Theory (SCT) in the business context to examine the influence of varying social comparison orientation levels on managers’ willingness to accept advice in their organization.

A survey was conducted on a sample of 192 US managers, in which we carried out an experiment manipulating the source type (human vs AI) and assessing the potential moderating role of social comparison orientation. Results were analyzed using a moderation model by Hayes (2013).

Despite the growing consideration gained by AI systems, results showed a discernible preference for human-generated advice over those originating from Artificial Intelligence (AI) sources. Moreover, the moderation analysis indicated how low levels of social comparison orientation may lead managers to be more willing to accept advice from AI.

This study contributes to the current understanding of the interplay between social comparison orientation and managerial decision-making. Based on the results of this preliminary study that used a scenario-based experiment, future research could try to expand these findings by examining managerial behavior in a natural context using field experiments, or multiple case studies.

This is among the first studies that examine AI adoption in the organizational context, showing how AI may be used by managers to evade comparison among peers or other experts, thereby illuminating the role of individual factors in affecting managers’ decision-making.

This study proposes a novel method utilising a speech-word pair bipartite network to examine the correlation structure between members of parliament (MPs) in the context of the UK- China relationship.

We construct MP-word pair bipartite networks based on the co-occurrence relationship between MPs and words in their speech content. These networks are then mapped into monopartite MPs correlation networks. Additionally, the study calculates correlation network indicators and identifies MP communities and factions to determine the characteristics of MPs and their interrelation in the UK-China relationship. This includes insights into the distribution of key MPs, their correlation structure and the evolution and development trends of MP factions.

Analysis of the parliamentary speeches on China-related affairs in the British Parliament from 2011 to 2020 reveals that the distribution and interrelationship of MPs engaged in UK-China affairs are centralised and discrete, with a few core MPs playing an integral role in the UK-China relationship. Among them, MPs such as Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, David Cameron, Lord Hunt of Chesterton and Lord Howell of Guildford formed factions with significant differences; however, the continuity of their evolution exhibits unstableness. The core MP factions, such as those led by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon and David Cameron, have achieved a level of maturity and exert significant influence.

The research has several limitations that warrant acknowledgement. First, we mapped the MP-word pair bipartite network into the MP correlation network for analysis without directly analysing the structure of MPs based on the bipartite network. In future studies, we aim to explore various types of analysis based on the proposed bipartite networks to provide more comprehensive and accurate references for studying UK-China relations. In addition, we seek to incorporate semantic-level analyses, such as sentiment analysis of MPs, into the MP-word -pair bipartite networks for in-depth analysis. Second, the interpretations of MP structures in the UK-China relationship in this study are limited. Consequently, expertise in UK-China relations should be incorporated to enhance the study and provide more practical recommendations.

Firstly, the findings can contribute to an objective understanding of the characteristics and connotations of UK-China relations, thereby informing adjustments of focus accordingly. The identification of the main factions in the UK-China relationship emphasises the imperative for governments to pay greater attention to these MPs’ speeches and social relationships. Secondly, examining the evolution and development of MP factions aids in identifying a country’s diplomatic focus during different periods. This can assist governments in responding promptly to relevant issues and contribute to the formulation of effective foreign policies.

First, this study expands the research methodology of parliamentary debates analysis in previous studies. To the best of our knowledge, we are the first to study the UK-China relationship through the MP-word-pair bipartite network. This outcome inspires future researchers to apply various knowledge networks in the LIS field to elucidate deeper characteristics and connotations of UK-China relations. Second, this study provides a novel perspective for UK-China relationship analysis, which deepens the research object from keywords to MPs. This finding may offer important implications for researchers to further study the role of MPs in the UK-China relationship.

This study proposes a novel scheme for analysing the correlation structure between MPs based on bipartite networks. This approach offers insights into the development and evolving dynamics of MPs.

For many years, universities have been confronted with the rise of a managerial logic, in line with the new public management movement. They have been encouraged to implement new accounting tools such as cost calculations. Literature shows mixed results regarding the institutionalization of such tools, and the logic they try to support. In most studies, the agency of actors is examined to explain the institutionalization of accounting tools and only few studies consider the specific characteristics of these accounting tools to understand this process. To enrich the literature on institutionalization, this article examines how the affordances of costing tools affect the institutionalization of these tools and the institutionalization of new logics in pluralistic organizations such as universities.

The data were collected at a French university which is considered as an example of successful institutionalization of the tool and is cited as a model to follow. The data include a four-month participant observation and 18 interviews. Access to internal and external documents was also available. The analysis of the data is based on a framework proposed by Jarzabkowski and Kaplan (2015), which draws on the concept of affordance of tools, to investigate how the possibilities and constraints of costing tools shape the selection, application and outcomes of cost calculations.

The results show that the affordances of cost calculations facilitate the institutionalization of a new logic and its coexistence with previous logics. Technical affordances are mobilized by actors aiming to bring in a new logic without directly confronting the old ones. Role affordances also play a major role in the institutionalization by facilitating the adhesion of the actors through multiple applications of the tool. Finally, value-based affordances reinforce the institutionalization of a managerial logic by emphasizing the values shared with the other logics and thus facilitating the coexistence of the three logics at stake in the university.

This research provides three main contributions. First, it contributes to the literature on the institutionalization of accounting tools. It shows the relevance of the concept of affordance (Leonardi and Vaast, 2017) to unpack the characteristics of accounting tools (including the constraints and the possibilities they offer) and to achieve a better understanding of the institutionalization of accounting tools. Second, this paper contributes to the literature dealing with the role of accounting tools in the institutionalization of logics. The results suggest that the institutionalization of tools and the institutionalization of logics are two different phenomena that move at different speeds. However, these phenomena interact: the institutionalization of accounting tools can facilitate the coexistence of different logics in pluralistic organizations. Third, this paper contributes to the literature on affordances. The data reveal several types of affordances for accounting tools: technical affordances that refer to the technical possibilities to shape and tweak the tool; role affordances that refer to the various roles and purposes that the tool can fulfill and value-based affordances that refer to the plasticity of the values and beliefs that the tool can convey. The study shows that each type of affordance is prevalent at a different time of the process of institutionalization and that the combination of these affordances contributes to the institutionalization of the tool and of new logics.

This study aims to examine the influence of workplace phubbing on employee deviant behavior and negligence, while also investigating the mediating role of coworker conflict. Additionally, the study explores the moderating effect of workplace mindfulness on the relationship between workplace phubbing, the mediators and employee deviant behavior and negligence.

Data were gathered from employees in the service sector in the UAE using an online survey questionnaire. A total of 374 participants submitted complete responses. The study’s hypotheses were tested through regression-based moderated path analysis, incorporating conditional process modeling and nonlinear bootstrapping.

The study indicates that experiencing “phubbing” at work contributes to feelings of coworker conflict, which subsequently leads to increased interpersonal deviance and employee negligence. Moreover, workplace mindfulness weakens the positive influence of being phubbed on coworker conflict, interpersonal deviance and employee negligence.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, no previous studies have examined the negative impact of being “phubbed” at the individual employee level within the service industry. This study aims to contribute to both theory and practice by elucidating the mediating mechanism of coworker conflict and exploring the moderating effects of workplace mindfulness.

The world population is getting older and housing decisions matter to the security of retirement life and well-being. However, senior housing and financing decisions are largely overlooked in the literature. This study aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the senior housing and financing decisions in the USA.

Using 2021 American Housing Survey data and ordinary least squares estimates, this paper studies senior housing and financing decisions in the 15 most populous US metropolitan areas. Multiple regressions are used to analyze the whole sample as well as various subsamples.

This paper finds strong evidence that seniors are more likely to own a house with a higher market value compared with nonseniors. More specifically, although race and gender do not matter in this relationship, it is less pronounced among those with higher education. Also, seniors, especially white senior homeowners, are more likely to have a lower mortgage debt burden due to a higher upfront down payment than nonseniors. Last, seniors are more likely to refinance their homes and receive cash than nonseniors.

Constrained by the data limitations, this study specifically focuses on seniors’ housing and mortgage decisions. Future research could involve exploring seniors’ mortgage decisions by considering factors such as mortgage loan terms, borrower credentials and the evolving landscape of the senior housing market, among other aspects.

The findings would help policymakers and contractors in the construction industry better understand the uniqueness of challenges in the senior housing market and develop effective housing policies and programs that cater to the needs of the elderly. A comprehensive understanding of the senior housing market would also help seniors make informed purchase and financing decisions.

The authors propose providing financial education to the elderly, particularly those of disadvantaged status, to improve their expertise and bargaining skills in the mortgage loan application process.

This paper contributes to understanding the dynamic senior housing market, which encounters challenges and opportunities associated with the aging population. The study fills the gap of limited research regarding seniors’ housing decision and their financing choices in the USA and would help policymakers and contractors in the construction industry develop effective housing policies and programs that cater to the needs of the elderly.

This study explores the impact of ethical and authentic leadership on employees' workplace perceptions, focusing on organisational citizenship behaviour (OCB), trust in leader, commitment, employee voice and empowerment in independent hotels across two contrasting Global Leadership and Organizational Behaviour Effectiveness (GLOBE) clusters: Germanic and Middle-Eastern clusters. It examines how national culture influences these relationships in the hospitality industry.

Data were collected from 1,678 employees in independent hotels in the Germanic European cluster (Germany and the Netherlands) and the Middle-Eastern cluster (Qatar and Turkey) using selective and snowball sampling techniques. Hypotheses were tested using two-stage structural equation modelling.

Ethical leadership significantly affects employee voice in Germany and the Netherlands but not in Qatar and Turkey. Authentic leadership positively influences employee voice in Qatar, Turkey and Germany but does not significantly impact trust in leader in any of the four countries. The study underscores the role of cultural dimensions, particularly power distance, in shaping these relationships.

This research contributes to the literature by investigating the effects of ethical and authentic leadership on key organisational variables in culturally diverse contexts within the hospitality industry. The findings highlight the necessity of considering national culture in leadership practices and suggest practical implications for independent hotels to adapt their leadership approaches to enhance employee outcomes. Future research should explore cultural dimensions as moderators in organisational relationships.