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This paper explores whether relational leadership enhances nurses’ employability. An empirical study was conducted to investigate associations between relational leadership, perceived supervisory support, perceived opportunities for competence development and employability.

A serial mediation model was constructed to investigate our hypothesized relationships. We applied a two-wave panel design and collected self-reported survey data from 109 nurses who worked in a Dutch homecare organization. Relationships were tested using PLS-SEM.

Our findings suggest no direct association between relational leadership and employability. However, we found support for a serial mediation model, in which perceived supervisory support and perceived opportunities for competence development fully mediated the relationship between relational leadership and employability.

This scholarly work contributes to the employability literature; a supervisor who fosters high-quality relationships with nurses communicates a willingness to support their development and provides them competence development opportunities, which, in turn, fosters nurses’ employability.

HR managers and supervisors in homecare organizations should create leadership development policies and practices that encourage relational leadership, particularly empowering leadership.

To the best of our knowledge, up until now, this study is the first to use supervisors’ relational leadership to predict employees’ employability.

There is a compelling need for developing constructs in management science rather than adapting the constructs that have been developed in other domains. Having emerged in the 1950s, quality of work-life (QWL) measures have proved to be ineffective due to the lack of conceptual clarity and theoretical support. The article analyses the QWL measures highlights their coherence and verifies them for being used in specific contexts.

The study includes three stages to develop a QWL Measurement Scale. Fourteen questions were developed based on QWL concepts. They were validated using exploratory factor analysis (EFA) which split the dimensions into five factors. A survey was conducted on 375 medical residents. Finally, confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), convergence and validity were tested along the five dimensions.

Results extend the QWL concept and provide theoretical support for the same. Five dimensions were developed to measure QWL namely: pay and benefits, supervision, intra-group relations, working conditions and training.

The study may offer an overview of evaluation strategies to researchers and organizations that aim to improve employee QWL while they enhance its effectiveness through reliable instruments.

The scale developed in this study contributes to the body of QWL literature in the healthcare arena. It may be beneficial to carry out further research in this domain.

The purpose of this meta-analysis was to examine the effect of pomegranate juice (PJ) intake on glycemic control in adults.

Materials and methods: PubMed (Medline), ISI Web of Science, Cochrane Library and Scopus databases, measuring glucose and/or insulin and Homeostatic Model Assessment for Insulin Resistance (HOMA-IR) in adults, were searched from inception to December 11, 2021. Moreover, to examine whether grouping factors influenced heterogeneity between research results, subgroup analysis was used.

This meta-analysis showed that PJ intake reduced HOMA-IR significantly, especially if =250 mL was used. This reducing effect remained significant in females, nondiabetic patients and unhealthy subjects.

The authors believe the presented data would be highly motivating and of a wide readership for the readers of your journal, and this paper stimulating a surge of research on the impact of PJ consumption on glycemic indices.

This study investigated the regulatory landscape surrounding artificial intelligence (AI) in the context of e-government development. The purpose of this article is to identify record-keeping challenges, opportunities and weaknesses that emerge from AI loose regulation. The research focuses on Sweden, Finland and South Africa, examining the interplay between existing guidelines, recommendations and legal structures at various levels.

The research adopted comprehensive systematic and scoping literature reviews, encompassing academic papers, reports and legal documents, along with an analysis of non-academic sources relevant to the study. This methodological approach helped to obtain a deep understanding of the evolving AI regulatory frameworks.

There is currently limited research that focuses on the impact AI deployment has on the management of critical records in government administrations. Also, the findings reveal that AI regulatory environment varies from country to country. The European Union stands as a noteworthy example of a comprehensive framework for AI governance. In contrast, South Africa, while at its infancy stage, demonstrates potential initiatives and policies at different levels. There is emphasis on the need to focus on co-operation, skills development and uniform regulatory frameworks.

This research holds significant practical implications for policymakers, government bodies and stakeholders involved in AI governance. It emphasizes how crucial it is to incorporate AI alongside a solid records management system. The study advocates for strategic investments in education and skills development to enable individuals to navigate the complexities of AI governance.

This research adds to the existing body of knowledge by providing an examination of AI legislation in e-government in the context of public records management. The analysis helps to review literature and other research materials across different geographical areas. The study explores the distinctive strategies used by Sweden, Finland and South Africa. The recommendations offer policymakers and stakeholders suggestions on how to foster effective AI governance and innovation in the public sector but at the same time manage public records effectively.

This systematic literature review examines the domain of sports sponsorship involving controversial industries. We delve into the shared patterns, differences and overarching themes prevalent across various dark consumption industries (i.e. alcohol, food and beverages high in fat, salt and sugar, gambling and tobacco).

This study systematically reviews research on controversial sports sponsorships (CSS). Literature searches in Web of Science and Scopus, and additional searches in reference lists resulted in a total of 90 publications meeting the inclusion criteria, which can be grouped into three research clusters: prevalence, impact and (in)appropriateness of CSS.

This review revealed a high prevalence of so-called controversial sponsors in sports, particularly in – but certainly not limited to – soccer. Especially gambling sponsorships have become more prominent in recent years. Ethical concerns surfaced since CSS are positively related to attitudes, preferences, purchase intention and consumption, potentially causing health-harming consequences for children and adults.

This study provides scholars and practitioners with insights to advocate for policy measures curbing CSS.

In light of the identified research gaps, we propose a research agenda to particularly investigate causal relationships between exposure to CSS and its impact by conducting longitudinal and experimental research. Additionally, we propose to establish a consumer-centered framework for processing CSS.

Informed by the social disorganization theory (SDT), the study intends to identify the ecological factors most likely to predict assaults against the police recorded over five years in a southern American state, which has a relatively large rural population.

The study uses aggregated county-level data on non-lethal assault against the police recorded in Kentucky between 2012 and 2016. We anticipated that structural conditions would affect directly and indirectly assaults against the police. Because predictors of social disorganization generally correlate with crimes police respond to, we hypothesized that the effects of SDT predictors on police victimization will be mediated by violent crime rates and domestic violence rates.

The study found partial empirical support for the social disorganization theory. Assaults against the police were more common in counties that had a higher proportion of female-headed households, higher rates of domestic violence citations and higher violent crime rates. Conversely, police victimization was less common in densely populated areas and in counties with higher poverty rates. While family disruption had significant direct and indirect positive effects on police victimization, the significant positive effect of ethnic heterogeneity (percent Black population) was only indirect. Residential instability did not predict significant variations in police victimization.

To our knowledge, no prior research attempted to determine if SDT is a valid theoretical framework when non-lethal assaults on police are examined beyond metropolitan areas. This analysis extends to counties research assessing the effects of structural conditions on nonfatal assaults against the police. Additionally, by including domestic violence among the correlates of police victimization, the current macro-level study addresses an apparent gap in the literature.

Taking the dialogic organizational development perspective, this study aims to investigate the framing processes when engaging in dialogue for strategy implementation and how these enable the evolution of implementation opportunities.

Through a qualitative exploratory study conducted in a large multinational, the authors analyse the dialogue and interactions among 25 dyads when identifying opportunities to contribute to strategy implementation. The data analysis relies on a process-coding approach and linkography, a valuable protocol analysis for identifying recursive interaction schemas in conversations.

The authors identify four main framing processes – shaping, unveiling, scattering and shifting – and provide a framework of how these processes affect individuals’ mental models through increasing the tangibility of opportunities or elevating them to new value hierarchies.

From a theoretical perspective, this study contributes to the strategy implementation and organizational development literature, providing a micro-perspective of how dialogue allows early knowledge structures to emerge and shape the development of opportunities for strategy implementation.

From a managerial perspective, the authors offer insights to trigger action and change in individuals to contribute to strategy when moving from formulation to implementation.

Rather than focusing on the structural control view of strategy implementation and the role of the top management team, this study considers strategy implementation as a practice and what it takes for organizational actors who do not take part in strategy formulation to enact and shape opportunities for strategy implementation through constructive dialogue.

Mental health issues such as stress, anxiety and depression are prevalent among the prisoners, highlighting the urgent need to address mental health challenges in prison facilities. Existing research highlights the crucial role of recreational and extracurricular (R&E) programs in promoting the mental well-being of prisoners. Another stream of literature identifies the importance of effective leadership within the prison system to the success of these programs and services aimed at improving the mental health of incarcerated individuals. The purpose of this study is to provide a thorough examination of the breadth, scope and characteristics of the published literature, focusing on how positive leadership in prison settings can foster the success of R&E programs in addressing mental health challenges among prisoners.

In this scoping review, a systematic literature review (SLR), using the guidelines of preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analysis (PRISMA, 2020) by Page et al. (2021), was followed which provides guidelines for study selection and research question, identification of relevant studies via databases and registers, multi-step screening to exclude literatures that are not directly relevant and finalizing body of literature for theory development, summarizing and reporting. The included studies for theory development were appraised for quality using methodology-specific tools. A critical narrative synthesis was adopted to present a theoretical framework for positive leadership influence on R&E programs to promote prisoner engagement and their mental well-being.

The SLR procedure resulted in a total of 122 studies that met the inclusion criteria for the topics of the current paper. The finalized list of studies that were used for theory development included 21studies in the area of prison and prison system (including organizations), 33 in the area of individual and team behavior (including inmates and correctional officers), 26 in the area of leadership (both organizational and correctional facilities), 12 in the area of R&E (including training and education), 31 in the area of mental health and behavior and 2 studies on research methods. Of these 122 studies, 83 studies were peer-reviewed scientific publications, selected chapters from 7 books, while the remaining 32 included nonscientific and anecdotal reports.

Despite the plethora of literature on the significance of effective leadership within organizational strategies and operations, there remains a notable gap in literature regarding the role of leadership and other enabling factors in the implementation and management of effective programs within correctional facilities aimed at improving the mental well-being of prisoners. This paper explores the role and relationship of leadership and R&E programs and activities in prisons to improve the mental well-being of prisoners. Specifically, a program’s resource sufficiency, positive reinforcement of prisoner behavior during the engagement and psychological conditions of the program are critical for successful prisoner engagement in such programs. Based on organizational theories of positive leadership and engagement (i.e. prisoner participation and engagement in R&E programs), this study offers four propositions to develop a theoretical framework of positive leadership in influencing such programs, which in turn can be a catalyst to reduce mental health issues among prisoners in correction facilities.

This study aims to address a significant and previously unanswered question for both academics and practitioners: how do organizations learn to apply Blockchain technology to support modern slavery (MS) supply chain capabilities? Specifically, this study examines whether employees’ digital dexterity (EDD) and strategic investment in Blockchain technology (SIBT) can support three MS supply chain capabilities: internal MS capability (IMSC), MS capability with customers (MSCC) and MS capability with suppliers (MSCS).

This study uses resource accumulation and deployment perspective to explain how EDD promotes SIBT, which then drives the development of MS supply chain capabilities. Survey data collected from the Chinese manufacturing industry were used to test the proposed theoretical framework and hypotheses through structural equation modelling and moderated regression analysis.

EDD has a positive relationship with SIBT. SIBT has a positive relationship with IMSC. IMSC fully mediates the relationships between SIBT and MS capability with customers and suppliers.

By conceptualizing MS supply chain capabilities as a multi-dimensional construct for the first time, this study discovers the significant mediating roles of IMSC. The empirical findings also clarify digital dexterity of employees that drives investment in Blockchain technology to foster MS supply chain capabilities as resource accumulation and deployment processes.

Using visual metaphors with physical artefacts can improve collaboration planning processes in strategic meetings. The study presented here aims to examine these processes.

In this study, the participants used the LEGO® Serious Play® method in strategic planning meetings. The meetings were video recorded, and a thematic analysis method was applied to produce coded themes and narratives of collaboration planning based on the visual metaphors used in the meetings.

The study participants built LEGO artefacts representing three primary visual metaphors of collaboration focussing on landscapes, interaction processes and shared goals. The participants began with building landscapes by stacking and connecting LEGO base pieces as surfaces to build on, and to represent separate physical locations and more abstract business concepts. Alternatively, landscapes were built to centre activities around key business stakeholders. In terms of interaction processes, the participants lined up LEGO character pieces to explore communications between product developers, salespersons, customers and external partners. As for shared goals, tower-like high structures were created to represent open discussions, data sharing, prototyping and threats that should be avoided.

This study shows that using visual metaphors with physical artefacts provides an effective method for planning strategic collaboration areas, communications and future goals. Creating and communicating visual metaphors using physical artefacts enhances the creativity and participation of the meeting participants. Our future work will focus on studying the use of physical artefacts other than LEGO pieces in different group meetings contexts to better understand the role of visual metaphors.