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1 – 10 of 58Chetwynd Carlos Osborne, Leandra Cho-Ricketts and Jané Salazar
Mangrove forests are one of the most bio-diverse and productive wetland environments on earth. However, these unique tropical forest environments that occupy coastal areas are…
Abstract
Purpose
Mangrove forests are one of the most bio-diverse and productive wetland environments on earth. However, these unique tropical forest environments that occupy coastal areas are among the most threatened habitats globally. These threats include logging, conversion of land for agriculture and mariculture and degradation due to pollution over the past 50 years. The large population of resilient mangroves occupying the Turneffe Atoll area in Belize faces growing anthropogenic threats such as permanent clearing of land for housing, infrastructural development and pollution and natural factors (climate change). Given the few formal studies done to evaluate mangrove resilience at Turneffe Atoll, the purpose of this study was to evaluate mangrove resilience and nursery functions in the Turneffe Atoll Marine Reserve (TAMR).
Design/methodology/approach
Mangrove fish abundance and forest structure was assessed by means of a visual census and the point-centred quarter method (PCQM) for 11 sites that span across conservation and general use zones.
Findings
This study found that the more resilient mangroves (lower vulnerability ranks, higher standing biomass and higher fish biomass and abundance) exist in general use zones and warrant the need for improved mangrove conservation measures for these areas by Turneffe Atoll Sustainability Association (TASA).
Research limitations/implications
Limitations of the methods for data collection included accessibility within mangrove forests stands when establishing PCQM, observer bias among data collectors, sites without surrounding mangroves were not captured to serve as a true control group and poor visibility underwater affected the estimation of fish species and size. The timeline for this research was only three months based on available funding, and no follow-up study was done to make a true comparison.
Originality/value
The findings of this research have a guiding role in the formulation of conservation measures such as better waste management, a robust framework for mangrove management, a communication strategy to guide public awareness and long-term monitoring surveys.
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Max Weedon, Kathy Mansfield Higgins and Ciaran Burke
The Prevent policy was singular and ‘simple’: to prevent individuals from getting drawn into terrorism, to identify and stop this process before it begins. In the context of the…
Abstract
The Prevent policy was singular and ‘simple’: to prevent individuals from getting drawn into terrorism, to identify and stop this process before it begins. In the context of the global war on terror and the shadow of terrorist attacks in the United States and England, this was an increasingly growing issue within the media and the broader public discourse. A central institution charged with enacting Prevent in the United Kingdom were education institutions (schools, colleges and universities), the rationale being that these places of learning house individuals during impressionable and vulnerable times and the Prevent policy can protect these individuals.
This chapter will provide an alternative critical discussion on Prevent by framing it as the securitisation of the UK education sector. As such, Prevent is a form of surveillance and a mechanism of power over educators and learners which carry counterproductive consequences for both. In doing so, this chapter will question how education professionals balance their professional identity and their new role in supporting and enacting the Prevent duty. Through developing a new multi-level ‘Critical Realist World Systems Model’, this chapter will provide a conceptual discussion of Prevent policy more broadly and how education professionals navigate the friction between their professional values and legal obligations. This chapter draws on a range of theoretical traditions to begin to question a well-established security policy within English and Welsh educational institutions providing a conceptual starting point to examine similar and future policies.
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Wesley L. C. Henry, Bryan A. VanGronigen and Meredith L. Wronowski
This study investigated a teacher leadership program created by a partnership between a large US urban district, their teachers’ union and a university. We were part of an…
Abstract
Purpose
This study investigated a teacher leadership program created by a partnership between a large US urban district, their teachers’ union and a university. We were part of an action-research partnership that examined the program’s implementation.
Design/methodology/approach
We employed a hermeneutic phenomenology methodology and mixed-method data collection methods and analysis strategies to understand the experiences of program participants. Data included interviews with program participants, union leaders and district administrators along with an analysis of projects that participants created during the program.
Findings
Teacher leadership programs were legitimized through diverse stakeholder collaboration, and involvement of a university partner was viewed as a value-add for teachers. Formalized teacher leadership programs professionalize teachers through expanding professional networks, developing leadership skills and lifting teachers’ voices. When teacher leader work is directed towards school improvement, teachers’ unique perspectives yield varied problems of practice and goals in ways that help schools address these problems.
Practical implications
This study has implications for districts seeking to create teacher leadership opportunities and for districts and universities seeking to partner for in-service professional learning opportunities.
Originality/value
This study underscores the role effective district-union-university partnerships can play in fostering pipelines for teacher leader development, which can better position school improvement efforts to be sustained over time.
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Kate McCombs, Ethlyn Williams and Bryan Deptula
This study aims to explore individual leader identity development across four key dimensions: strength, integration, meaning and inclusiveness.
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to explore individual leader identity development across four key dimensions: strength, integration, meaning and inclusiveness.
Design/methodology/approach
Around 70 semi-structured interviews with aspiring and practicing leaders were conducted to gather qualitative data.
Findings
The majority of individuals interviewed showed development or were developing in the dimensions of strength and integration. However, over half of the sample demonstrated underdevelopment in the dimensions of meaning and inclusiveness.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the existing literature by providing nuanced insights into the level and patterns of development across all four dimensions of leader identity within individuals. It reveals that while some symmetry of development across dimensions is possible, it is less prevalent than previously assumed.
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Bryan Johnson and William T. Ross
The purpose of this study is to contribute to previous research on customer relationships by quantitatively examining differences in the monetary benefits obtained by consumers…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to contribute to previous research on customer relationships by quantitatively examining differences in the monetary benefits obtained by consumers using social and commercial relationships to make purchases from small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
Design/methodology/approach
Customer transaction and relationship data from an SME in the USA is used to quantitatively assess the value of different marketplace relationships in an entrepreneurial context. Tobit regression is used to empirically model and test the impact of specific relationship characteristics on customer discounts.
Findings
Customers using social connections to make purchases obtain significantly larger discounts than customers using commercial connections; customers using direct connections attain significantly larger discounts than consumers using indirect connections (referrals). Interestingly, when examined by connection type, direct and indirect connections do not produce significant differences for social connections, yet they yield notable differences for commercial connections. The findings provide valuable insights to entrepreneurs for understanding and managing customer relationships.
Originality/value
This study empirically demonstrates that social relationships can be both prevalent and influential in the marketplace. The methodology used to quantitatively assess the monetary value associated with different methods of engaging with SMEs allows objective comparisons among different types of customer relationships. Quantification also allows important relationship characteristics to be empirically examined, including how the relationships compare to one another and to nonpersonal marketing activities. Ultimately, these novel contributions generate important insights to help marketers and entrepreneurs better understand customer relationships.
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Atika Srivastava and Shikha Dixit
Due to dynamic work contexts, mid-level managers struggle to advance their careers in contemporary organisations. Literature has consistently showcased that leadership style and…
Abstract
Purpose
Due to dynamic work contexts, mid-level managers struggle to advance their careers in contemporary organisations. Literature has consistently showcased that leadership style and gender significantly impact subordinates’ career and work-related outcomes. This study investigates the relationship between authentic leadership, gender, perceived career barriers and occupational well-being.
Design/methodology/approach
Using self-report questionnaires, we collected data from 198 mid-level managers employed in the information technology (IT) sector in Delhi-NCR. We tested two mediation models simultaneously, investigating the mediation of perceived career barriers on occupational well-being. Authentic leadership and gender were the predictors of the first and second models, respectively.
Findings
Authentic leadership was positively associated with occupational well-being but negatively with perceived career barriers. Perceived career barriers partially mediated the link between authentic leadership and occupational well-being. Gender had a significant impact on perceived career barriers. Finally, perceived career barriers fully mediated the association between gender and occupational well-being.
Research limitations/implications
The study showed that perceived career barriers were predicted by authentic leadership perception. In the face of career-related obstacles, managers with authentic leaders tend to have better well-being at the workplace. Further, perceived career barriers are essential in the relationship between gender and occupational well-being. However, the context of India’s IT sector is unique; therefore, caution must be practised when generalising.
Practical implications
Organisations must promote authentic leadership at the upper echelons. Such a leadership style helps reduce the hurdles for managers and improves their well-being. Furthermore, addressing gender-specific career barriers, such as lack of cultural fit, is the key to enhancing female managers’ well-being.
Originality/value
We turned towards positive psychology and utilised the construct of authentic leadership to address the issues of career barriers and diversity in IT organisations.
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Madhu Viswanathan, Lucy Joy Chase and Maria Jones
Vulnerabilities in subsistence marketplaces arise from the multifaceted deprivation that characterizes poverty. Associated with low income is low literacy, leading to…
Abstract
Vulnerabilities in subsistence marketplaces arise from the multifaceted deprivation that characterizes poverty. Associated with low income is low literacy, leading to vulnerabilities in terms of thinking, feeling, and coping. We review literature on vulnerability and on subsistence marketplaces, bringing out the confluence of vulnerabilities consumers in these contexts face. We also describe marketplace literacy, a way of addressing vulnerabilities and developing capabilities. We provide a case study of women in agriculture and conclude with a discussion of implications for research, education, and practice.
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Research examines the effectiveness of different-race presenter avatar use on bias reduction in single-session online diversity training. Building on research that indicates…
Abstract
Purpose
Research examines the effectiveness of different-race presenter avatar use on bias reduction in single-session online diversity training. Building on research that indicates different-race presenter use in in-person diversity training and different-race presenter avatars in online interactions are effective in reducing bias, this paper aims to test the use of simulated Inter Group Social Contact (IGSC) theory in single-session online diversity training. Undergraduate business students at nine United States institutes of higher education participated in an online training module that provided either a same-race or different-race presenter avatar to each participant. Participants then completed the Modern Racism Scale. The data were analyzed using T-tests and an analysis of covariance. Potential drawbacks to the use of different-race presenters and the diversity of the student bodies at participating institutions are considered. Results suggest that the use of different-race presenter avatars in brief online diversity training does result in less racial bias in some groups but is not effective among the groups such training is designed to affect. The results are cautionary. Organizations are advised to use multi-installment training programs when using a different-race presenter avatar to improve the effectiveness of online diversity training.
Design/methodology/approach
Participants were asked to answer demographic questions, to view a video with one of two avatars representing the online diversity training presenter, then to complete the Modern Racism Scale questionnaire. Results were evaluated based on school membership, representing the diversity of the school’s student body, gender and self-identified race using Independent T-tests and covariate analysis.
Findings
The effect of the use of different-race presenter was minimal and was not uniform across groups. Bias was not reduced in male or nonminority groups. Felt bias of minority respondents was reduced. There was a weak correlation between the diversity of school populations and the effect of different-race diversity presenters.
Research limitations/implications
Participants were undergraduate students invited to participate by their instructors. Participants self-identified their gender and race.
Practical implications
The use of different-race diversity presenters in single session online diversity training is cautioned against.
Social implications
Though the use of different-race diversity training presenters has been found to reduce bias in multisession online training and in in-person training, the use of different-race diversity training presenters may not be beneficial in single session online diversity training. Thus, this innovation is limited in its use. Specifically, felt bias by the object of bias was reduced, which is considered a negative response to diversity training. Single session online diversity training is more likely to be used by smaller firms which employ much of the workforce.
Originality/value
The effect of different-race diversity presenters had been tested in multisession online training and in in-person training, but not in single-session diversity training.
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