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1 – 10 of 20Immigration-themed children’s literature can be an important resource in the classroom, especially because some U.S. immigrant groups, including French-Canadians, have received…
Abstract
Purpose
Immigration-themed children’s literature can be an important resource in the classroom, especially because some U.S. immigrant groups, including French-Canadians, have received limited curricular representation. Using the qualitative method of critical content analysis, this study aims to examine depictions of French-Canadian immigrants to the United States in contemporary children’s books.
Design/methodology/approach
Postcolonialism is employed as an analytical lens with special attention given to the ways immigrant characters are constructed as different from the dominant group (i.e., othering), how dominant group values are imposed on immigrant characters, and how immigrant characters resist othering and domination. Three books comprise the sample: “Charlotte Bakeman Has Her Say” by Mary Finger and illustrated by Kimberly Batti, “Other Bells for Us to Ring” by Robert Cormier, and “Red River Girl” by Norma Sommerdorf.
Findings
The findings reveal multiple instances in which French-Canadian immigrants are constructed as Other and few instances in which these characters resist this positioning, and these books reflect the real ways French-Canadians were perceived as subalterns during the mass migration from Québec to the United States between the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Originality/value
This study is significant because it examines portrayals of a substantial immigrant group that has been overlooked in the immigration history curriculum. This sample of children’s books may be used to teach children the complexities of immigration history and provide a more nuanced understanding of immigration during the 19th and 20th centuries.
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Alan Gardner, Allison M. Orr, Cath Jackson and James T. White
The retail investment landscape in the UK has drastically changed. Understanding owners’ responses to this structural change is critical to gain insight into protecting investment…
Abstract
Purpose
The retail investment landscape in the UK has drastically changed. Understanding owners’ responses to this structural change is critical to gain insight into protecting investment performance. This paper identifies and evaluates the tactics and strategies being adopted.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper employs a mixed methods research approach, using data collected from semi-structured interviews with professionals involved in the retail investment process. This is supplemented by secondary market data analysis.
Findings
The paper assesses the practical responses made by retail property owners/managers, structured around emerging sub-themes. Actions include mitigating short-term risks through greater use of temporary tenants/licensees and independent retailers, preparing generic “white box” retail space to capture remaining tenant demand, exploiting the tenant mix to provide “the retail experience,” and applying new technologies and processes in a sector where systematic risk remains high. A new framework for retail asset management has been developed.
Research limitations/implications
This study contributes to the retail asset management literature and understanding of the way the contemporary retail landscape is shaping investment management behaviour.
Practical implications
The developed framework provides guidance to real estate managers developing a retail real estate management strategy and will help them recognise tactics to better support the evolving retailing market.
Originality/value
The new framework adds new insights to understanding the process for managing retail assets and the actions necessary for asset managers to address economic/functional obsolescence and sustain asset investment values.
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Claudia Giacoman, Pamela Ayala Arancibia and Camila Joustra
The social sciences have extensively studied meals; nonetheless, a few have investigated the menu format, with all the data originating from European countries. Within this…
Abstract
Purpose
The social sciences have extensively studied meals; nonetheless, a few have investigated the menu format, with all the data originating from European countries. Within this framework, the novelty of this research is that it analyses the relationship between social class and lunch structure among adults in a Global South city: Santiago, Chile.
Design/methodology/approach
The study worked with data from the Survey of Commensality in Adults (>18) of the Metropolitan Region, which used a questionnaire and a self-administered eating event diary. The analysis unit was lunches (n = 3,595). The dependent variable was the structure of the lunches (single course, starter with a main course, a main course with dessert or a full-course menu with starter, main course and dessert). The independent variable was the individual’s social class (either the working, intermediate or service class).
Findings
The data showed that lunches are mostly semi- or fully structured (only 44.5% of the lunches reported by the participants contained a single course). The odds of eating a single course were lower in the service class than the working one and the odds of eating a full-course meal were higher in the service class than the working one.
Originality/value
The results provide new quantitative evidence from a representative sample of a Global South city about the relevance of social class as a differentiating factor in food, specifically regarding the existence of simpler meals among the lower classes.
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Pål Strandbakken, Eivind Jacobsen, Arne Dulsrud and Silje Elisabeth Skuland
Valentah Siamuzwe-Manase, Keith R. Halcro, Bimal Kumar and Martin Skitmore
The paper analyses the strategic management strategies of UK Construction Contracting Firms (CCFs) and their impact on the industry, highlighting their fragmentation, high-risk…
Abstract
Purpose
The paper analyses the strategic management strategies of UK Construction Contracting Firms (CCFs) and their impact on the industry, highlighting their fragmentation, high-risk, low-profit nature and low profit returns. It suggests proactive strategies for sustainable growth and explores the potential of corporate diversification.
Design/methodology/approach
Utilising a thematic critical literature review, specific inclusion/exclusion criteria are used to select relevant literature together with a thematic qualitative synthesis data analysis approach to identify trends and challenges.
Findings
UK CCFs primarily use reactive and project-based strategic management, which may not align with long-term success due to market volatility, reactive supply, fragmentation, high competition and lack of differentiation. The short-term business cycle makes medium- to long-term strategy development difficult. It is recommended that CCFs adopt proactive strategic management and consider corporate diversification for enhanced competitiveness, stability and performance. Although there are conflicting findings on the impact of diversification on firm performance, this research suggests that it is a viable strategy for achieving enhanced firm performance and competitive advantage.
Research limitations/implications
The importance of proactive corporate strategies for CCFs is emphasised to overcome industry challenges, promote sustainable growth and enhance competitiveness. Corporate diversification, cultural transformation, management qualifications promotion and talent development collaboration are advocated, providing valuable insights for practitioners, policymakers and researchers.
Practical implications
The practical implications of this research involve fostering a shift towards proactive and dynamic strategic management in the UK construction industry, addressing the historical neglect of broader strategic perspectives and empowering practitioners and academics to drive positive change and innovation within the sector.
Social implications
The social implications of this research encompass the potential to enhance the overall efficiency, sustainability and collaborative dynamics within the UK construction industry, which can ultimately contribute to improved infrastructure development and the well-being of communities.
Originality/value
Project-driven strategic management in the UK construction industry is explored, questioning the reactive approach used by CCFs. It provides insights, best practices and improvement areas, emphasising diversification, proactive corporate strategies, cultural shifts and industry improvement, spanning theory, practice and theory.
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Julian N. Marewski, Konstantinos V. Katsikopoulos and Simone Guercini
Are there smart ways to find heuristics? What are the common principles behind heuristics? We propose an integrative definition of heuristics, based on insights that apply to all…
Abstract
Purpose
Are there smart ways to find heuristics? What are the common principles behind heuristics? We propose an integrative definition of heuristics, based on insights that apply to all heuristics, and put forward meta-heuristics for discovering heuristics.
Design/methodology/approach
We employ Herbert Simon’s metaphor that human behavior is shaped by the scissors of the mind and its environment. We present heuristics from different domains and multiple sources, including scholarly literature, practitioner-reports and ancient texts.
Findings
Heuristics are simple, actionable principles for behavior that can take different forms, including that of computational algorithms and qualitative rules-of-thumb, cast into proverbs or folk-wisdom. We introduce heuristics for tasks ranging from management to writing and warfare. We report 13 meta-heuristics for discovering new heuristics and identify four principles behind them and all other heuristics: Those principles concern the (1) plurality, (2) correspondence, (3) connectedness of heuristics and environments and (4) the interdisciplinary nature of the scissors’ blades with respect to research fields and methodology.
Originality/value
We take a fresh look at Simon’s scissors-metaphor and employ it to derive an integrative perspective that includes a study of meta-heuristics.
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