Francois van Schalkwyk and Nico Cloete
Relations in university settings are becoming more heterogeneous in terms of race, ethnicity, religion, nationality, class, and gender. In South Africa, transformation imperatives…
Abstract
Relations in university settings are becoming more heterogeneous in terms of race, ethnicity, religion, nationality, class, and gender. In South Africa, transformation imperatives have radically changed the complexion of the country’s university campuses but have also entrenched political imperatives in its universities. As a consequence, the university is a highly politicised space. This is not new. What is new is a communication environment characterised by real-time, global networked digital communication and the uptake of digital media platforms (including social media platforms). We explore the effects of politicisation and new modes of communication using the case of a controversial article published in a South Africa journal and the ensuing polemic. Drawing on both institutional theory and Castells’ description of the network society, we conceptualise collegiality along two dimensions: horizontal collegial relations which exist for the purpose of knowledge creation and transfer which, in turn, depends on self-governance according to a taken-for-granted code of conduct; and vertical collegiality which describes collegial relations between academic staff and university management, and which is necessary for the governance of the university as a complex organisation. We conclude that the highly personal nature of communication that is propelled by digital communication has a direct impact on collegial relations within the university. The motivations of both university academic staff and management, as well as the public, extend beyond stimulating collective debate in the service of knowledge production to serving individual and/or ideological agendas as the communication of science becomes politicised. While issues pertaining to collegiality in South Africa may at first glance appear to be unique to the country, we believe that in a globally transforming academy, the South African case may offer novel insights and useful lessons for other highly politicised university systems.
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Jenny Lindholm, Klas Backholm and Joachim Högväg
Technical solutions can be important when key communicators take on the task of making sense of social media flows during crises. However, to provide situation awareness during…
Abstract
Technical solutions can be important when key communicators take on the task of making sense of social media flows during crises. However, to provide situation awareness during high-stress assignments, usability problems must be identified and corrected. In usability studies, where researchers investigate the user-friendliness of a product, several types of data gathering methods can be combined. Methods may include subjective (surveys and observations) and psychophysiological (e.g. skin conductance and eye tracking) data collection. This chapter mainly focuses on how the latter type can provide detailed clues about user-friendliness. Results from two studies are summarised. The tool tested is intended to help communicators and journalists with monitoring and handling social media content during times of crises.
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Vida Siahtiri, Welf Hermann Weiger, Christian Tetteh-Afi and Tobias Kraemer
As consumer debt can substantially impair subjective well-being, it is crucial for research to gain insights into how consumers can be motivated to improve financial planning…
Abstract
Purpose
As consumer debt can substantially impair subjective well-being, it is crucial for research to gain insights into how consumers can be motivated to improve financial planning. This paper aims to investigate how frontline employees in financial services can help consumers regulate their financial planning behaviors and how financial service providers can effectively support their frontline employees in this effort through leadership and organizational climate.
Design/methodology/approach
We incorporate regulatory focus theory and conservation of resource theory to develop a conceptual model that we test in a triadic study with a unique dataset collected from consumers, frontline employees, and managers in the banking sector.
Findings
We find that frontline employees must pay attention to the details of consumers’ needs and customize the service to those needs to trigger consumer promotion focus and stimulate consumers’ financial planning behaviors. Moreover, our results emphasize that the organization must act as an integrated entity. Thus, a manager’s servant leadership and an organizational climate of customer stewardship are crucial for frontline employees to transform consumers’ financial planning behaviors.
Research limitations/implications
The study highlights frontline employees’ key role in motivating consumer financial planning behavior, offering a new perspective in transformative service research on enhancing financial well-being.
Practical implications
The findings provide financial service providers with actionable implications for enhancing consumers’ financial planning. This benefits both consumers and financial institutions, as customers with greater spending power can buy more financial products.
Originality/value
This study advances transformative service research on consumer financial planning behavior, which has largely focused on consumer-related or society-level variables, by exploring the role of frontline employees and organizational support in terms of leadership and climate.
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Vivien E. Schuleigh, John M. Malouff, Nicola S. Schutte and Natasha M. Loi
This study assessed the effectiveness of training leaders in behaviors that satisfy meeting attendees’ psychological needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness. Three…
Abstract
This study assessed the effectiveness of training leaders in behaviors that satisfy meeting attendees’ psychological needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness. Three managers who regularly lead meetings with their work- groups participated in the study. The study used a research design of multiple baselines across groups and began with baselines ranging over three to five meetings. Group leaders then received a session of behavioral skills training with a role-play component, followed by post-training assessment over three to five meetings. The final assessment occurred one month later. Leaders reported the number of recommended leader behaviors they used prior to training and at subsequent meetings. Group members anonymously completed ratings of (1) the extent of their psychological need satisfaction, (2) their satisfaction with each meeting, and (3) how productive each meeting was. Meeting leaders showed significantly more use of the recommended behaviors after training than before training. Member ratings indicated a significant increase in need satisfaction, satisfaction with meetings, and meeting productivity after the training of their leader. Significant positive effects remained at a one-month follow-up. The findings show that training leaders in needs-focused behaviors to use in running meetings can be used to satisfy attendee-needs and to improve meeting satisfaction and productivity.
Dana K. Voelker, Eric M. Martin, Jedediah E. Blanton and Daniel Gould
This cross-sectional study (1) described the views and practices of a national U.S. sample of high school coaches on the education and training of team captains in leadership; and…
Abstract
This cross-sectional study (1) described the views and practices of a national U.S. sample of high school coaches on the education and training of team captains in leadership; and (2) examined if their views and practices differed as a function of leadership behavior and coaching efficacy. Results of 255 online surveys showed nearly 90% of coaches thought formal captain leadership development programs were beneficial; only 12% used such a program. Coaches with higher character-building and motivation efficacy more strongly endorsed the intentional education and training of their captains and perceived fewer barriers to this process. These findings encourage coaches, others working directly with scholastic athletes, and leadership educators more broadly to leverage and examine sport, including captaincy, as a valuable leadership development opportunity for youth.
Daniel William Mackenzie Wright, David Jarratt and Emma Halford
The visitor economy of Forks now clearly relies upon a niche form of tourism – as fans of The Twilight Saga are drawn to the setting and filming location of the films. The purpose…
Abstract
Purpose
The visitor economy of Forks now clearly relies upon a niche form of tourism – as fans of The Twilight Saga are drawn to the setting and filming location of the films. The purpose of this study is to consider the process of diversification and subsequently present recommendations that could inform a future diversification strategy for Forks, in preparation for a post-film tourism scenario.
Design/methodology/approach
The research methods employed in this study have two interlinked but distinct elements. Firstly, the Twilight Effect in Forks (WA, USA) is considered as an illustrative case study to shed light on the issues facing a destination that has seen a tourism boom as a direct result of popular culture – The Twilight Saga Franchise. Secondly, a scenario thinking and planning approach is applied when considering the “long-view” future of tourism in Forks.
Findings
This article presents a post-film tourism future scenario for Forks; it suggests tourism diversification and a shift towards cultural heritage and wellness. Forks is well placed to afford such tourism experiences, as it offers unique cultural and natural characteristics; furthermore, these could be utilised to create and maintain a distinctive destination image. In doing so a more socially and environmentally sustainable industry can be established, one which supports the local community, including the Quileute tribe.
Originality/value
The article offers original discussions within the film-tourism literature with novel approaches to understanding the management and pre-planning opportunities for destinations that have become popular film tourism locations, with the application of a “Tourism Diversification Model”. The model is adapted from Ansoff Matrix and can be applied as a framework in future studies exploring destination diversification. The investigation of Forks as a post-film tourism case study alone is unique, and the discussions and findings presented are original.
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Ebere Donatus Okonta and Farzad Rahimian
The purpose of this study is to investigate and analyse the potential of existing buildings in the UK to contribute to the net-zero emissions target. Specifically, it aims to…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to investigate and analyse the potential of existing buildings in the UK to contribute to the net-zero emissions target. Specifically, it aims to address the significant emissions from building fabrics which pose a threat to achieving these targets if not properly addressed.
Design/methodology/approach
The study, based on a literature review and ten (10) case studies, explored five investigative approaches for evaluating building fabric: thermal imaging, in situ U-value testing, airtightness testing, energy assessment and condensation risk analysis. Cross-case analysis was used to evaluate both case studies using each approach. These methodologies were pivotal in assessing buildings’ existing condition and energy consumption and contributing to the UK’s net-zero ambitions.
Findings
Findings reveal that incorporating the earlier approaches into the building fabric showed great benefits. Significant temperature regulation issues were identified, energy consumption decreased by 15% after improvements, poor insulation and artistry quality affected the U-values of buildings. Implementing retrofits such as solar panels, air vents, insulation, heat recovery and air-sourced heat pumps significantly improved thermal performance while reducing energy consumption. Pulse technology proved effective in measuring airtightness, even in extremely airtight houses, and high airflow and moisture management were essential in preserving historic building fabric.
Originality/value
The research stresses the need to understand investigative approaches’ strengths, limitations and synergies for cost-effective energy performance strategies. It emphasizes the urgency of eliminating carbon dioxide (CO2) and greenhouse gas emissions to combat global warming and meet the 1.5° C threshold.
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Zhiyi Yu, Baoshan Zhu and Shuliang Cao
Interphase forces between the gas and liquid phases determine many phenomena in bubbly flow. For the interphase forces in a multiphase rotodynamic pump, the magnitude analysis was…
Abstract
Purpose
Interphase forces between the gas and liquid phases determine many phenomena in bubbly flow. For the interphase forces in a multiphase rotodynamic pump, the magnitude analysis was carried out within the framework of two-fluid model. The purpose of this paper is to clarify the relative importance of various interphase forces on the mixed transport process, and the findings herein will be a base for the future study on the mechanism of the gas blockage phenomenon, which is the most challenging issue for such pumps.
Design/methodology/approach
Four types of interphase forces, i.e. drag force, lift force, virtual mass force and turbulent dispersion force (TDF) were taken into account. By comparing with the experiment in the respect of the head performance, the effectiveness of the numerical model was validated. In conditions of different inlet gas void fractions, bubble diameters and rotational speeds, the magnitude analyses were made for the interphase forces.
Findings
The results demonstrate that the TDF can be neglected in the running of the multiphase rotodynamic pump; the drag force is dominant in the impeller region and the outlet extended region. The sensitivity analyses of the bubble diameter and the rotational speed were also performed. It is found that larger bubble size is accompanied by smaller predicted drag but larger predicted lift and virtual mass, while the increase of the rotational speed can raise all the interphase forces mentioned above.
Originality/value
This paper has revealed the magnitude information and the relative importance of the interphase forces in a multiphase rotodynamic pump.
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Tatiana Anisimova, Soniya Billore and Philip J. Kitchen
Via the lens of the ego-depletion phenomenon (Baumeister et al., 1998) and Higgins' (1998) regulatory focus theory, this paper seeks to explain why current controlled…
Abstract
Purpose
Via the lens of the ego-depletion phenomenon (Baumeister et al., 1998) and Higgins' (1998) regulatory focus theory, this paper seeks to explain why current controlled communications are failing to achieve coherence between people's free will and their actions pursuing sustainable goals in a society. This paper explains how ego-depletion triggered by controlled communications can lead to confusion and decision fatigue in a society, thus potentially sabotaging people's participation in sustainable behaviour.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors applied Jaakkola's (2020) theory synthesis approach to integrate concepts from previously unconnected disciplines in order to generate novel insights in the area of controlled communication management.
Findings
The authors develop a theoretical framework and present research propositions that can help advance research and the discourse at the intersection of controlled communication and self-regulation theories.
Research limitations/implications
This paper possesses the limitations associated with conceptual papers, e.g. the lack of empirical support of the study’s conceptual arguments.
Practical implications
This paper generates novel insights to assist communication practitioners and policymakers to improve vehicles and mechanisms of controlled communication with the public regarding sustainable goals pursuit.
Originality/value
To the best of authors' knowledge, this is one of the first papers that has merged the domains of self-regulation, ego-depletion, and controlled communication in an integrative framework in order to explain the mechanisms of how to enhance the effectiveness of controlled communication associated with sustainable goals pursuit.
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Swechchha Subedi and Marketa Kubickova
This study explores how institutional and cultural factors influence political trust among hotel employees and its impact on support for local government actions, with…
Abstract
Purpose
This study explores how institutional and cultural factors influence political trust among hotel employees and its impact on support for local government actions, with implications for hotel leadership and regulatory compliance.
Design/methodology/approach
Employing a quantitative approach and structural equation modeling (SEM-PLS), the study integrates institutional and cultural theories of trust. Data were collected from 444 frontline hotel employees via mTurk in May 2021.
Findings
The research reveals insights into the significant role of institutional and cultural factors in shaping political trust among hotel employees. Moreover, it demonstrates a positive correlation between political trust and support for local government actions.
Research limitations/implications
This research has limitations to acknowledge. The sample size may restrict generalizability, and data from May 2021 might not capture long-term trends. Furthermore, relying solely on quantitative data may overlook individual nuances and complexities.
Practical implications
Hotel leadership can leverage these findings to prioritize building political trust among employees, leading to better support for government actions and regulatory compliance.
Social implications
Fostering trust between hotel employees and governing bodies can foster more effective collaboration, benefiting the hotel industry and the broader community.
Originality/value
This research contributes to the existing body of knowledge by presenting a novel conceptual model that integrates institutional theory and cultural theory of trust to examine the formation of political trust in the context of hotel employees. The application of this model to the hospitality industry adds to the limited research available in this area.