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Smoke-free prison policies have been introduced in some countries, in part to address very high levels of tobacco use in people in prison. However, relapse rates post-release remain high. This papers aims to improve understanding of post-release smoking and/or vaping behaviour is necessary to inform support for a priority population.

The authors searched health, social science and criminal justice databases for studies about smoking/vaping behaviours among people released from smoke-free prisons. Studies were included if they reported primary data and were published between January 2017 and March 2024 in English; the population was adults/young people (16 yr+) imprisoned or formerly imprisoned, in prisons with comprehensive smoke-free policies; and at least one of the following was reported: pre-release intention to smoke, vape or remain abstinent post-release; smoking/vaping behaviour post-release and factors influencing smoking/vaping behaviour; attempts to quit again following post-release smoking/vaping relapse.

Nine studies met our criteria. The evidence base is small and mainly from the USA or Australia. Evidence continues to suggest that most people resume smoking after leaving a smoke-free prison. No new interventions have been successful in reducing relapse rates. No studies report on vaping post-release, although two studies report on perceived factors affecting smoking relapse post-release from prisons allowing vaping.

Given very high rates of relapse, there remains a significant need to better understand what approaches are feasible and acceptable for reducing return to smoking post-release.

This review updates the limited evidence on smoking behaviours after leaving a smoke-free prison.

Multi-academy trusts (MATs) are privatised, corporatised multi-school organisations led by chief executive officers (CEOs) whose role as system leaders requires them to structure school leaders as policy actors. To illustrate the impact this can have on school leaders, an interview with a special educational needs and disabilities coordinator (SENDco) for a secondary school which is part of a MAT is analysed. This individual described a complex role requiring specialist skills and knowledge but also disclosed that she was not consulted on policy decisions which she had strong reservations about regarding their equity and inclusivity. This occurs because of the structure of the MAT. A typology for thinking about policy work and policy actors in schools set out by Ball et al. (2011) is used to show that the structure of the MAT can effectively bar school policy actors like the SENDco from being a ‘policy entrepreneur’ able to advocate for and interpret policy, to being a mere ‘receiver’ of policy. The result is that such an individual can become critically misaligned with their institution. In response to this mis-alignment, and without the outlet to be a vocal policy ‘critic’, the SENDco chooses to align herself professionally and personally with the local authority based on a shared history, culture and philosophy. This effectively renders the SENDco a ‘policy outsider’ within their own employing organisation, in effect stuck between two different worlds.

Although many organisations and governments internationally acknowledge that a diverse workforce is essential for improved decision-making, employee well-being and organisational performance and competitiveness, women with disabilities and their (potential) participation and contributions within organisations continue to be overlooked and under-researched. Examining the careers of women with disabilities through the lens of human resource management (HRM) allows for the development of policies and practices that support their inclusion and progression in the workforce and helps lay the foundation for legislative, institutional and organisational changes that address the unique challenges faced by this cohort.

We conducted a comprehensive, systematic scoping review that analyses various career-related aspects for women with disabilities across different cultural and geographical contexts internationally. A two-stage review (Stage 1 – Title and abstract screening and Stage 2 – Full-text review) of the extant literature on the careers of women with disabilities yielded 80 relevant empirical articles.

Our review identified four key career-related themes pertaining to women with disabilities: (1) Educational interventions and support for positive career outcomes of women with disabilities; (2) Workplace discrimination and workplace accessibility of women with disabilities; (3) Factors influencing the career development and advancement of women with disabilities and (4) The role of gender in the career exploration and decision-making processes of women with disabilities.

This systematic scoping review contributes to the nascent scholarly discourse on enhancing career-related outcomes of women with disabilities and offers evidence-based insights to guide future HRM research on the intersection of gender and disability/ies in careers.

The purpose of the study is to investigate female prisoners’ perspectives on why they gain weight while in prison.

A qualitative design was used with semi-structured interviews with six females currently residing in a prison in the south of England.

Analysis of the data generated three themes relating to the reasons why women gain weight in prison. These were labelled as “The only thing you haven’t got to ask permission for is your food, it’s just handed to you”, “If you’ve been stripped of the things that make you happy, or that you are addicted to, eating can soothe you” and “prison can make you take better care of your health”.

The results identify perceived reasons why women gain weight in prison uniquely from the female prisoner perspective. The implications of the research identify the need for systemic change throughout different prison departments to enable women to maintain a healthy weight during their custodial sentence.

The purpose of this paper is to introduce the concept of socially responsible human resource management (SRHRM) and examine the reflection of SRHRM on sustainable development (SD) in Egyptian companies.

The study data was collected using a quantitative method to examine and test the relationship between the two variables. An empirical study was conducted between 2022 and 2023 on 150 samples of male and female employees from 18 companies located in Egypt working in castings and car batteries.

The study found that, in general, SRHRM has a significant impact on organizational sustainability. This contribution is also beneficial for general HRM and corporate social responsibility (CSR) literature as it stresses the importance of its relations to SD. By critically analyzing contemporary SRHRM literature, this study further demonstrates how studies with utilitarian approaches have dominated earlier research. By recognizing the necessity for process-oriented studies and the significance of critical scholarship within the field of SRHRM and its connections to the SD, the researcher thereby creates a research agenda for future studies.

The findings only apply to the sample that has participated in this study and to the Egyptian companies. A longitudinal quantitative evaluation of the SRHRM approaches and dimensions and their impact on the SD strategies of Egyptian companies would be recommended in terms of further research study, highlighting the role of SRHRM and its impact on achieving companies' CSR strategies.

The study's findings are helpful for firms looking to implement SR-HRM to enhance some employees' performance and promote organisational sustainability. In Egypt, there is a dire need for responsible leadership in the public and private sectors, which is crucial in the market and industry sectors. In addition to updating all policies, urge the younger generation to participate in them. For example, new hires to the company must demonstrate that they have engaged in volunteer work as part of their social obligation to the community, and this is required for recruitment.

Furthermore, refreshing all the policy encourage the young generation working or before working to take part in these policy, such as newcomers to the companies have to show that they have conducted some social responsibility towards their community as voluntary work. A study conducted by Cristina del-Castillo et al. (2022) confirmed that regarding the performance of different factors, the results show that the organizations under study are investing too much effort in improving CSR factors that are less relevant to achieving positive legitimacy assessments. On the one hand, resources destined to improve policies related to health, security and social benefits and those regarding the improvement of the relationship paths between managers and employees are excessive considering the relevance that they represent compared to the rest of the CSR policies. According to Hazzi and Maldaon (2023), stakeholders (including the general public and policymakers) might make an informed choice about how much organizations with CSR could safeguard their well-being if they had access to transparent CSR information. Talking about the sustainability behaviour of SRHRM as crucial for embedding sustainability in the business, a study by Abutaleb et al. (2021) evidence that subjective norms and attitudes, followed by perceived behavioural control and personal norms had the greatest influence on intentions towards behavioural HR. Attitudes towards sustainability practices were significantly influenced by economic advantages and sustainability. A good model fit was demonstrated by measurement and structural models (Abutaleb et al., 2021).

This paper is unique in that it participates in presenting the concept of the social responsibility of HRM as an intervention and approach for SD. It also participates in presenting unique findings related to Egyptian companies. There is a scarcity of literature related to research and studies on SRHRM in Egypt.

Using elements of Bourdieu’s (1986) capitals framework as an underpinning conceptual architecture, this paper theorises the role of symbolic capital in resourcing a specific example of socially entrepreneurial behaviour.

This paper relies on data collected via a qualitative variant of the critical incident technique.

The analysis resulted in three focal themes: power (a dynamic of cooperation rather than domination), age (youth as a means of legitimation) and temporality (as both lever and conduit).

These themes further current understanding of socially entrepreneurial behaviour and potentially catalyse additional questioning and investigation specific to the construct of symbolic capital in this context.

The insights offered in the paper may assist those tasked with supporting success (policymakers and practitioners) in the social entrepreneurship domain.

Relatively little is known about the operationalisation of capitals in the context of social entrepreneurship, and even less about symbolic capital specifically. Particular emphasis is given to moving beyond a focus on the simple mechanics of capital exchange and conversion.

Diversity, equity and inclusion ideology is the latest appeal of individual compassion, institutional legitimacy and enlightened society. Specific to higher education, diversity, equity and inclusion is an honorable ideology, value and mission. This paper aims to (1) empirically recognize the differences in the level of importance between the university’s and faculty’s diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, (2) identify the diversity, equity and inclusion outcomes, such as university brand image and student intention to engage postgraduation, (3) uncover the moderating role of university brand preference attainment and (4) validate the mediating role of student identification in diversity, equity and inclusion literature.

A survey of 1,027 usable responses was employed to perform two moderations, four mediations and two confidence interval analyses.

The university’s diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives are significantly more rewarding than the faculty’s diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives for the university brand image and students’ intention to engage postgraduation. Findings uncover the mediating role of student identification and the moderating role of brand preference attainment.

Focusing on diversity, equity and inclusion at the institutional level is more impactful than at the faculty level. In industries where frontline employees have significant autonomy, such as higher education, the positive brand performance outcomes are related to the faculty’s diversity, equity and inclusion awareness, not the faculty’s diversity, equity and inclusion advocacy. Diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives should align with the student’s shared values.

The study relies on institutional theory to underscore the asymmetric importance of the university’s and faculty’s diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives in achieving perceived brand image and engagement.