Mara Rojeski Blake and Catherine Morse
Technologies for teaching abound, but many of them are proprietary systems and software that require institutional and individual subscriptions for use. Instructors and librarians…
Abstract
Purpose
Technologies for teaching abound, but many of them are proprietary systems and software that require institutional and individual subscriptions for use. Instructors and librarians in higher education have open source and free options for many types of teaching technologies. While some of these technologies are free to users, open source goes beyond that and makes the source code that runs it available as well. These provide more options to enhance teaching.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper will provide an overview of the open source landscape and evaluate free and open source technologies of potential use in the college or university classroom.
Findings
The paper found a number of free and open source tools appropriate for teaching and learning in higher education. These tools may possibly generate savings over proprietary tools, but could have other costs such as additional learning investment or require hosting. Additionally, free and open source technologies provide students with knowledge about tools that they can continue to access after graduation. Libraries have a role in connecting their constituencies to these tools.
Originality/value
The paper provides descriptive information about a variety of tools for teaching and learning in higher education, as well as examples from the literature of how the tools might be integrated into the classroom and into library instruction.
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Bradley Shrimpton, John McKie, Rosalind Hurworth, Catherine Bell and Jeff Richardson
Faced with an ageing population and newspaper warnings that escalating costs are leading to a health crisis, debate has intensified in Australia and elsewhere on the allocation of…
Abstract
Faced with an ageing population and newspaper warnings that escalating costs are leading to a health crisis, debate has intensified in Australia and elsewhere on the allocation of limited health resources. But whose values should inform decision‐making in the health area, and should the influence of different groups vary with the level of decision‐making? These questions were put to 54 members of the public and health professionals in eight focus groups. Unlike previous studies, participants were not asked if particular groups should be involved in decisions but rather through deliberation and discussion nominated their own potential decision‐makers. This delivered a clear message that participants saw a legitimate role for a broad range of stakeholders in priority‐setting decisions. The results suggest that qualitative methods of investigation have the potential to improve the legitimacy and accountability of policy decisions by contributing to a better understanding of the values of the public and health professionals.
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M. Catherine Cleaveland, Lynn Comer Jones and Kathryn K. Epps
The Compliance Assurance Process (CAP) is a federally funded IRS corporate audit program. The program’s goal is to determine the best tax treatment for complex transactions before…
Abstract
The Compliance Assurance Process (CAP) is a federally funded IRS corporate audit program. The program’s goal is to determine the best tax treatment for complex transactions before a corporation files its tax return. The US Department of the Treasury has voiced concerns regarding resource constraints and whether the program enhances public (nonprofessional investor) and investor confidence. We conduct a behavioral experiment using 176 Master of Business Administration and Master of Accounting students as proxies for nonprofessional investors. In the experiment, we examine the effects of CAP participation and corporate tax risk profile on judgments about financial statement credibility. We use a 2 × 2 experimental design with corporate tax risk profile manipulated as high risk or low risk and participation in CAP manipulated as participatory or non-participatory. This research investigates whether CAP program participation and/or tax risk level influence nonprofessional investors’ perceptions of the certainty and accuracy of the provision for income taxes. The results suggest both CAP program participation and tax risk influence nonprofessional investors’ perceptions of the certainty of the income tax provision; and tax risk also influences nonprofessional investors’ perception of the accuracy of the income tax provision.
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Catherine Cassell, Gillian Symon, Anna Buehring and Phil Johnson
The purpose of this paper is to present a piece of empirical work that investigates the current role and status of qualitative research within the management field.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to present a piece of empirical work that investigates the current role and status of qualitative research within the management field.
Design/methodology/approach
The research is based on 45 in‐depth qualitative interviews with members of a range of different stakeholder groups, including: journal editors; qualitative researchers; Doctoral Programme Leaders; practitioners; and those who fund qualitative management research.
Findings
The findings suggest that there is considerable variety in definitions of qualitative research; that there are still a number of issues surrounding the status and credibility of qualitative research within the field; and there is a need for greater access to researcher training in this area.
Practical implications
The paper is of practical interest to qualitative researchers in that it details some of the issues surrounding publishing qualitative work.
Originality/value
The paper presents original empirical work in this field.
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Catherine Mobley, Cindy Lee, John C. Morse, Jeffery Allen and Christine Murphy
The paper aims to report on the experiences moderating an interdisciplinary graduate-level sustainability seminar. Initiated in Fall 2002, the seminar has explored diverse…
Abstract
Purpose
The paper aims to report on the experiences moderating an interdisciplinary graduate-level sustainability seminar. Initiated in Fall 2002, the seminar has explored diverse sustainability topics and reached approximately 150 faculty and students. The paper describes how the course shaped participants' perceptions of sustainability and influenced their viewpoints on interdisciplinarity. The paper discusses the implications of this seminar format for communicating about sustainability and provides suggestions for replicating the course at other institutions.
Design/methodology/approach
Information about the course is complemented by analyses of the results of 15 in-depth interviews of students and faculty who have participated in the course.
Findings
The course facilitated positive outcomes for students and faculty by expanding their familiarity with interdisciplinary perspectives on sustainability and environmental issues, increasing respect for other disciplinary perspectives, learning the basic vocabulary of disciplines outside their area of expertise, and strengthening collaborations between faculty. The course can be strengthened with more involvement from colleagues from the humanities and social sciences, and with attention to equal participation from all involved.
Originality/value
The experience is unique in that it represents a nearly decade-long initiative to teaching about sustainability and biocomplexity from an interdisciplinary perspective. The innovative format, content, and pedagogical approach used for this course can be easily implemented in other disciplines. The learning community has facilitated other teaching and research endeavors. This model of sustainability education can advance understanding of complex environmental issues at a time when both interdisciplinarity and sustainability are becoming more common in higher education.
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Leif Christensen, Pall Rikhardsson, Carsten Rohde and Catherine Elisabet Batt
This paper aims to explore and explain how administrative controls have been changed as a response to a significant crisis, using the transition of the three largest Icelandic…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to explore and explain how administrative controls have been changed as a response to a significant crisis, using the transition of the three largest Icelandic banks from bankrupt to operational entities after the 2008 financial crisis. The Icelandic banks are compared with three Danish banks to separate crisis-driven responses from simple market-driven reactions.
Design/methodology/approach
Empirical data were collected using semi-structured interviews. The participating Icelandic and Danish banks were considered as two units, which formed the basis for a comparative case study between the two countries.
Findings
Driven by an understanding of what is expected by the market rather than the need to inform and guide the employees the Icelandic banks implemented a number of revolutionary and formally documented changes. These changes included significant bigger risk management functions and policies and procedures documenting “everything”. However, in both countries, it seems that new values supported by the “tone at the top”, areas with limited formal documentation, are the most important management tools.
Research limitations/implications
The study relies on interviews with employees, and the actual changes of administrative controls have not been reviewed. The most important implication is that the situated logics in Iceland driven by external institutional pressure initiated a revolutionary implementation of values bypassing existing routines and formalised rules.
Originality/value
Although the use of management controls has been studied intensively, detailed studies of the banking sector have been lacking. Furthermore, there is limited knowledge of how administrative controls changed in response to the financial crisis.
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Robert J. Chandler, Andrew Newman and Catherine Butler
The purpose of this paper is to examine the levels of clinician burnout in a community forensic personality disorder (PD) service, and explores how burnout may arise and be…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the levels of clinician burnout in a community forensic personality disorder (PD) service, and explores how burnout may arise and be minimised within a service of this nature.
Design/methodology/approach
A mixed methods approach was utilised, assessing levels of burnout and making comparisons with a comparable previous study. Focus group data regarding burnout and suggestions for reducing the risk of burnout were analysed using thematic analysis.
Findings
Levels of burnout were generally found to be higher in the current sample when compared with the generic PD services. Qualitative data suggest that working in a forensic PD setting may pose a range of additional and complex challenges; these are explored in detail. Minimising burnout might be achieved by developing resilience, utilising humour, team coherence and ensuring that breaks are taken, and developing one’s own strategies for “releasing pressure”.
Practical implications
The risk for burnout in clinicians working with offenders with PD may be higher than other groups of mental health clinicians. Despite this, attempts to minimise burnout can be made through a range of practical strategies at the individual, team and organisational level.
Originality/value
This is the first project to assess levels of burnout specifically in a team of clinicians working with offenders with PD, and offers an exploration of how burnout may manifest and how it can be managed in this unique area of mental health.
Virpi Timonen, Geraldine Foley and Catherine Conlon
Demonstrating quality in qualitative research is challenging. Excessive reliance on checklists can lead to poor quality qualitative research masquerading as high quality. We seek…
Abstract
Purpose
Demonstrating quality in qualitative research is challenging. Excessive reliance on checklists can lead to poor quality qualitative research masquerading as high quality. We seek to equip readers with foundational understanding of how to ensure quality of their qualitative research by emphasizing a relational approach to research.
Design/methodology/approach
We outline existing paradigm-specific and cross-paradigm accounts of the constituents of quality in qualitative research and identify credibility and relevance as the shared criteria. We define quality in qualitative research as a relational process wherein the relations constitutive of credibility and relevance are actively constructed throughout the research process.
Findings
Quality cannot be ensured with the help of checklists alone. Quality arises from formulating a research question that is relevant; sampling for (or accessing) data through a credible process pertaining to the relevant concern; engaging analysis in a credible manner and doing justice to the data while continuing to remain relevant to the studied concern. Quality in qualitative research is a set of relationships, threaded through the entire research process, between the researcher and the researched concern, participants, data, data analysis and audience. The foundations of qualitative inquiry, across all paradigms, demand an engaged, committed researcher attending iteratively and with care – relationally – to every stage of the research process in pursuit of quality.
Originality/value
We elaborate parsimonious quality criteria that are specific to qualitative research. Adopting a relational ethic of commitment to quality at each stage of the research process is conducive towards high-quality qualitative research.
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Due to the country’s most recent wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and the enactment of the Post 9/11 GI Bill, colleges and universities across the United States have experienced a…
Abstract
Due to the country’s most recent wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and the enactment of the Post 9/11 GI Bill, colleges and universities across the United States have experienced a remarkable increase in student veteran enrollment. As a result, many college campuses have been challenged with knowing how to effectively support veterans as they transition from military life to college life. Although there is notable good intention, this challenge can impact an institution’s ability to offer adequate support. Consequently, many student veterans remain at the margins of the college experience, often affected by their distinct circumstances and a campus that may not be fully prepared to support them. This is a matter of equity and inclusion at its core. Students who are not well understood are likely to be underrepresented and underserved. Therefore, veterans must be included in the equity and inclusion conversation. A review of the literature confirms that student veteran support must involve a greater understanding of the student veteran experience, address institutional barriers to access, replace deficit models of support with more equitable practices, and challenge the dominant paradigm of student success that overemphasizes students’ individual and group characteristics and overlooks the role educators play in student achievement.
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David Phillip Wood, Catherine A. Robinson, Rajan Nathan and Rebecca McPhillips
Despite repeated policy initiatives, progress in improving patient safety in the National Health Service (NHS) in England over the past two decades has been slow. The NHS Patient…
Abstract
Purpose
Despite repeated policy initiatives, progress in improving patient safety in the National Health Service (NHS) in England over the past two decades has been slow. The NHS Patient Safety Strategy (NHS England and NHS Improvement, 2019), which is being implemented currently, aims to address this problem. The purpose of this study is to identify learning from the implementation of past patient safety policies and thereby suggest means of supporting the NHS in delivering the current policy initiative successfully.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors identified key health policies in the domain of patient safety, published since 2000, by searching the United Kingdom (UK) government website. Discussion papers from the research literature concerning these policies were collated and reviewed. The authors then used a thematic analysis approach to identify themes discussed within these papers. These themes represent factors that support the effective delivery of patient safety policy initiatives.
Findings
Within the discussion papers the authors collated, concerning 11 patient safety policies implemented between 2000 and 2017, five inter-related core themes of capability, culture, systems, candour and leadership were identified. By evaluating these themes and identifying composite sub-themes, a conceptual framework is presented that can be used to support the delivery of patient safety policy initiatives to maximise their impact.
Originality/value
The conceptual framework the authors illustrate, arising from this new contribution to the body of knowledge, can be translated into a novel self-assessment for individual NHS trusts to understand organisational development areas in the domain of patient safety improvement.