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Healthcare providers are under pressure due to increasing and more complex demands for services. Increased pressure on budgets and human resources adds to an ever-growing problem set. Competent leaders are in demand to ensure effective and well-performing healthcare organisations that deliver balanced results and high-quality services. Researchers have made significant efforts to identify and define determining competencies for healthcare leadership. Broad terms such as competence are, however, inherently at risk of becoming too generic to add analytical value. The purpose of this study is to suggest a holistic framework for understanding healthcare leadership competence, that can be crucial for operationalising important healthcare leadership competencies for researchers, decision-makers as well as practitioners.

In the present study, a critical interpretive synthesis (CIS) was conducted to analyse competency descriptions for healthcare leaders. The descriptions were retrieved from peer reviewed empirical studies published between 2010 and 2022 that aimed to identify healthcare services leadership competencies. Grounded theory was utilised to code the data and inductively develop new categories of healthcare leadership competencies. The categorisation was then analysed to suggest a holistic framework for healthcare leadership competence.

Forty-one papers were included in the review. Coding and analysing the competence descriptions resulted in 12 healthcare leadership competence categories: (1) character, (2) interpersonal relations, (3) leadership, (4) professionalism, (5) soft HRM, (6) management, (7) organisational knowledge, (8) technology, (9) knowledge of the healthcare environment, (10) change and innovation, (11) knowledge transformation and (12) boundary spanning. Based on this result, a holistic framework for understanding and analysing healthcare services leadership competencies was suggested. This framework suggests that the 12 categories of healthcare leadership competencies include a range of knowledge, skills and abilities that can be understood across the dimension personal – and technical, and organisational internal and – external competencies.

This literature review was conducted with the results of searching only two electronic databases. Because of this, there is a chance that there exist empirical studies that could have added to the development of the competence categories or could have contradicted some of the descriptions used in this analysis that were assessed as quite harmonised. A CIS also opens for a broader search, including the grey literature, books, policy documents and so on, but this study was limited to peer-reviewed empirical studies. This limitation could also have affected the result, as complex phenomenon such as competence might have been disclosed in greater details in, for example, books.

The holistic framework for healthcare leadership competences offers a common understanding of a “fuzzy” concept such as competence and can be used to identify specific competency needs in healthcare organisations, to develop strategic competency plans and educational programmes for healthcare leaders.

This study reveals a lack of consensus regarding the use and understanding of the concept of competence, and that key competencies addressed in the included papers are described vastly different in terms of what knowledge, skills and abilities they entail. This challenges the operationalisation of healthcare services leadership competencies. The proposed framework for healthcare services leadership competencies offers a common understanding of work-related competencies and a possibility to analyse key leadership competencies based on a holistic framework.

This study aims to investigate university students’ awareness of green residences and the factors influencing their willingness to pay for living in such accommodations.

This mixed-methods research involved 493 participants from Louisiana State University, USA. Data were collected through a survey questionnaire distributed via departmental and collegiate administrators. Both descriptive and inferential statistical tools were used to analyze the data.

Moderate familiarity with green building concepts, alongside a high degree of interest in residing in a green building prevailed among participants. A substantial majority of the students, 79.8%, excluding homeowners (n = 63), would consider investing at least double their current rent. Influencing factors encompassed peer influence, alignment with personal values, proximity to campus, energy efficiency, cost savings, sustainable materials, a reduced environmental impact and comfort. Despite initial concerns about high costs, optimism was expressed concerning the normalization of green buildings in university housing in the future.

The findings are beneficial to housing administrators and real estate developers when applied to other university communities, guiding them in marketing strategies for sustainability initiatives.

The survey instrument served as a primer on green building literacy while also eliciting nuanced responses from participants. Questions regarding financial considerations offer unique insights for decision-makers, and the study design lays the foundation for future comprehensive investigations in this relatively underexplored area.

This study aims to explore the impact of locational and seasonal factors on the financial performance of short-term rental properties in Margaret River, Western Australia. It seeks to address the gap in understanding how these factors influence key financial metrics such as average daily rate (ADR) and occupancy rates, providing insights for property managers, investors and policymakers.

The research uses a mixed-method approach, integrating advanced predictive modeling techniques, such as Random Forests and Gradient Boosting, with spatial clustering algorithms like density-based spatial clustering of applications with noise (DBSCAN) and ordering points to identify the clustering structure (OPTICS). The study analyzes a comprehensive data set of short-term rental properties between 2012 and 2019. It focuses on locational attributes, seasonal variations and financial outcomes.

The findings reveal that properties located near tourist attractions and amenities consistently achieve higher ADRs and occupancy rates, confirming the critical role of location in driving rental demand. Seasonal analysis indicates significant fluctuations in both ADR and occupancy rates, with peaks during high tourist seasons and troughs in off-peak periods. The study underscores the importance of dynamic pricing strategies to optimize revenue and sustain occupancy across different seasons. In addition, it highlights the influence of property features, such as the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, on ADR, while noting that larger properties do not necessarily achieve higher occupancy rates.

Future research could expand the scope to include different locations and explore the long-term impacts of locational and seasonal factors on property performance.

This research contributes to the literature by integrating spatial analysis with advanced predictive modeling techniques to provide a nuanced understanding of how locational and seasonal factors impact financial performance in the short-term rental market. It offers a novel application of data analytics within the context of tourism and hospitality management, bridging theoretical frameworks with practical insights.

Although adaptation to climate change is a well-researched topic at the individual level and in highly vulnerable industries, its integration into business strategies is poorly researched. In this chapter, we conduct bibliometric analyses on a sample of 368 relevant papers published in business journals to derive descriptive statistics and map the conceptual and intellectual structure of the field. We find an increased interest in adaptation and confirm a strong representation of industry-specific research. We complement the bibliometric analyses with a content analysis focused on emergent themes in the adaptation scholarship. We discuss systemic influences, individual effects, regulations and stakeholders, and exposure as areas likely to attract further scrutiny in future scholarship. For each theme, we derive practical implications for practitioners and policymakers.

This chapter examines how innovation and research are essential to the advancement of science, the economy, and society. We examine the current status of scientific research in Saudi Arabia, highlighting issues like financial limitations and a lack of skilled researchers. We emphasize how important it is to develop the next generation of scientists in order to transform existing practices and improve the state of scientific research in the country.

Proficiency in research and innovation is crucial for expanding the frontiers of knowledge, empowering scientists to tackle intricate problems, and advancing scientific rigor. These abilities also support the use of evidence in decision-making, enabling researchers to provide empirical data that inform practices and policies in a variety of industries. Sustained growth requires the formation of future leaders, who promote knowledge exchange and multidisciplinary collaboration.

Despite Saudi Arabia’s significant spending on science, problems still exist. Addressing governance deficiencies is demonstrated by the establishment of the Research, Development, and Innovation Authority in 2021. The nation has grown in the world’s scientific rankings, drawing eminent specialists and fostering cross-border cooperation. Still, there is room for improvement, especially when it comes to fostering a culture of research, improving financing sources, and encouraging international collaboration. It is imperative that these problems are resolved in order to avoid stagnation, guarantee ongoing innovation, and take advantage of chances for society’s progress.

The chapter ends with a call to action that highlights how quickly improvements must be made. Failing to do so runs the risk of stifling the advancement of science, preventing the creation of new technologies, and prolonging complicated issues. To lower risks, seize opportunities, and ensure that research and innovation continue to advance for the good of society, immediate action is necessary.

This chapter explores the proposition that Australia’s abusive treatment of refugees and asylum seekers can be traced back to a denial of the foundational violence of colonisation.

By adopting a psychoanalytic frame, the research explores three questions: is Australia engaging in cruel, degrading and humiliating treatment of asylum seekers, a treatment that devolves into torture? If so, how is this operationalised? And finally what does the abuse satisfy within the state?

The work uses Freud’s paper, ‘Mourning and Melancholia’, and Melanie Klein’s work on the paranoid/schizoid position to describe the psycho-affective terrain from which this abuse emanates.

The chapter takes this psycho-affective terrain as the foundation and then investigates the impact the privatised detention regime has had in enabling the known/unknowability of the abuse and mechanisms at work within media practice to create ‘torturable subjects’ (Mendiola, 2014, p. 13).

Vadderas are an indigenous community, from the states of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, India, and are basically soil-diggers and stonecutters by occupation. As per folklores, they were king’s men once upon a time who lost their glory eventually. Their women enjoyed an affluent lifestyle and were reportedly physically active and went for small game very often. Men were a warrior class, and the folklores prove that they fought with valor but moved to forests after they lost wars and were at the mercy of their enemy. To save face, they became forest dwellers and gradually became construction-site laborers which brought transitions in their family structures. In earlier times, they had good progeny, but with lapse of time and over generations, they are conscious of family planning. In this chapter, the authors discuss the transitions in family structure as observed from the field among the Vadderas. A narrative style of discussion is adopted wherein first the family and its importance and reasons for its disintegration are discussed followed by approaches of study of prominent anthropologists/sociologists. Focus is drawn on Vadderas, and the granularities are discussed in a deconstructive manner, that is, going in detail and linking of current practices to the ones in the past and as mentioned in the folklores so as to understand the transitions evident in family structures of Vadderas. Ethnographic account has been knitted with this deconstructive approach as the authors observed the Vadderas from close corners. This chapter ends with summing of current trends as evident in the field.

This study aims to examine how the theory of planned behaviour and technology acceptance theory can be used to understand the adoption of non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs). The relationships between attitudes, behavioural intentions towards using NPIs, actual use of NPIs and word-of-mouth (WOM) were examined and compared between early and late adopters.

A survey was conducted to test the hypotheses with partial least squares structural equation modelling (n = 278).

The results indicate that relationships between attitudes, intentions and behavioural intentions were positive and significant in the whole data set – and that there were differences between the early and late adopters. WOM had no substantial relationship with actual usage and early adopters’ behavioural intentions.

This research gives a better sense of how WOM impacts attitudes, behavioural intentions and actual usage among early and late adopters of NPIs and highlights the effectiveness of WOM, especially among late adopters of NPIs. Furthermore, using the TAM allows us to make specific recommendations regarding encouraging the use of NPIs. A new three-stage communications model is introduced that uses early adopters as influencers to reduce the NPI adoption time by late adopters.

Precarious workers in academia represent most employees in higher education institutions (HEIs), and women and historically excluded groups are overrepresented in these positions, oppressed by intersecting inequities, such as sexism and racism. There is a need to comprehensively understand how precarity operates within academia from an intersectional perspective and how it oppresses marginalized and precarious workers.

Following the PRISMA guidelines, this paper systematically reviewed 22 articles that discuss academic precarity through an intersectional lens.

Studies have shown that (1) the uncertainty and insecurity in modern academia are driven by global forces and ongoing crises; (2) systemic intersectionality entrenched in HEIs influenced the shaping of their academic experiences and positionalities; and (3) intersectionality could be used as a reflexive tool to resist the precarious academy.

This paper is the first systematic review examining the intersectionality in precarious academia. By synthesizing articles highlighting precarity and intersectionality in academia, the paper contributes to theories of academic capitalism and intersectionality and offers comprehensive and critical implications for research and practice in higher education. This study illuminates how neoliberalism, global capitalism and intersecting inequities are deeply rooted in academia and how academic workers could challenge such issues.

Service-learning (SL) shows potential to respond to the global policy agenda of education for sustainable development (ESD) by increasing pro-sustainability competences through direct involvement of students in projects that satisfy identified community needs. Nevertheless, there is a scarcity of studies that attempt to measure the impact of SL on students’ sustainability competences, especially the action competence. This study aims to address this gap by examining the experiences of higher education students.

A pre-post survey design based on the Self-Perceived Action Competence for Sustainability Questionnaire was conducted on an interdisciplinary group of 219 students of two courses (Sustainable Development and Ecology) in Medellin, Colombia, half of which (109) participated in SL projects.

Sufficient empirical evidence was found to suggest that SL boosts the impact of academic courses regarding action competences in students (specially their willingness to act).

The statistical analysis shows some contradictions that should be addressed in further research.

These results can encourage more educators and universities to implement strategies such as SL to move forward with ESD and thus help overcome the current socioecological crisis.

This paper not only discusses the theoretical potential of SL but also contrasts theory with empirical observations of 13 SL projects assessed in terms of self-perceived action competence for sustainability.