Jane Ireland and Christina Power
This study explores the association between fear of bullying and psychological distress. Participants were 293 adult prisoners, including men (n = 169) and women (n = 124), split…
Abstract
This study explores the association between fear of bullying and psychological distress. Participants were 293 adult prisoners, including men (n = 169) and women (n = 124), split into groups of ‘pure bullies’ (ie. solely reporting perpetration), ‘bully/victims’ (reporting perpetration and being victimised), ‘pure victims’ (reporting being victimised) and those ‘not‐involved’. All completed the Direct and Indirect Prisoner Behaviour Checklist ‐ Revised (DIPC‐R), a measure of psychological health (General Health Questionnaire: GHQ‐28) and the Fear of Bullying Scale (FBS). The FBS was piloted on a sample of adult male prisoners (n = 69) prior to the main study. It was hypothesised that experience of victimisation would associate with higher levels of fear; that bully/victims would present with higher levels of fear than pure bullies (perpetrators); that fear would be associated with increased levels of psychological distress; and, finally, that women would report higher levels of fear than men. Pure victims reported higher levels of fear than pure bullies and those not‐involved, with bully/victims reporting increased levels of fear in comparison to those not‐involved. These findings did not, however, hold across sex, with women overall reporting higher levels of fear than men. Structural equation models indicated no direct relationship between experiencing victimisation and psychological distress, but rather an indirect relationship through fear of victimisation. The results are discussed with reference to the association between victimisation and psychological distress and the importance of this finding to the wider research field.
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Jane L. Ireland, Carol A. Ireland and Christina L Power
The purpose of this paper is to examine attitudes towards prisoner-to-prisoner bullying, further considering the association between attitudes and characteristics of the prison…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine attitudes towards prisoner-to-prisoner bullying, further considering the association between attitudes and characteristics of the prison environment thought to promote prisoner bullying.
Design/methodology/approach
Questionnaires were administered to 423 adult male prisoners and 195 correctional officers from three prisons in Canada. Participants completed the Prison Bullying Scale and the Prison Environmental Scale.
Findings
Convergence in attitudes between prisoners and officers were noted although staff were more likely to consider bullies to be skilled, whereas prisoners were more likely than officers to feel that victims of bullying should be supported. Associations between attitudes supportive of bullying and environmental characteristics likely to promote prison bullying were found primarily among prisoners; the strongest predictors of such attitudes were poor relationships (e.g. prisoner to officer; prisoner-to-prisoner).
Research limitations/implications
The study highlights the importance of the social aspect of the prison environment. It further provides an outline of two measures that could have utility in evaluating interventions designed to reduce prisoner-to-prisoner bullying.
Practical implications
Interventions into prisoner-to-prisoner bullying should attend to the wider environment and not focus solely on individual pathology approaches. A “whole prison” approach to intervention should be adopted, with recognition that officers and prisoners are part of the community. A focus on the perceived relationships between all those in this community requires consideration, with a community centred approach recommended for intervention. A concentrated effort is needed on evaluating and publishing interventions into prisoner-to-prisoner bullying.
Originality/value
The study is the first to examine attitudes in a combined sample of prisoners and officers and focuses on the role of the wider prison environment. It also utilises a sample from three prisons as opposed to focusing on a single establishment.
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Jane Ireland, Nicola Graham‐Kevan, Michelle Davies and Douglas Fry
Additive manufacturing, that is, layer-based manufacturing technologies, is thought to change supply chain operations from global to local, while also affecting design processes…
Abstract
Purpose
Additive manufacturing, that is, layer-based manufacturing technologies, is thought to change supply chain operations from global to local, while also affecting design processes and product structures. As this transformation happens, a power struggle among various actors relating themselves to additive manufacturing has emerged. The purpose of this paper is to discuss and explain the development of additive manufacturing from a power dependence point of view.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper is based on data collected from a number of seminars hosting a total of 620 industry experts representing 102 companies in the area, and reflecting every step of the supply chain.
Findings
The paper points out how measures to deal and create power imbalances occur also related to indirect parties, and how the disruptive character of the supply chain leads to exercised power.
Originality/value
The power struggle provides new insights into how an emerging technology is realised and the effect of protectionism on such attempts. Specifically related to additive manufacturing, the paper illustrates the business side from various actors’ point of view, which adds to technological perspectives on additive manufacturing, as well as studies viewing the supply chain from a bird’s-eye perspective.
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Ruchi Sinha and Christina Stothard
This paper aims to understand the effects of team power asymmetry (hierarchy) on team learning.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to understand the effects of team power asymmetry (hierarchy) on team learning.
Design/methodology/approach
Literature suggests that power asymmetry can hurt team learning due to unequal interactions. The authors integrate the situated focus theory of power and the theory of adversarial growth to propose that environmental hardship can moderate this relationship. Such that, under environmental hardship there is a shift in power relations within hierarchical teams, such that power asymmetry positively relates to team learning via increased team egalitarianism (interactional equality).
Findings
The study is presented in two parts. Part 1 reviews the literature and builds the theoretical arguments for the conceptual model, while Part 2 empirically examines the model on a sample of military teams. In Part 1, the authors propose a theoretically derived model and directions for future research in team power, dynamics and learning.
Research limitations/implications
It provides directions to empirically validate a contingency-based model to resolve the dilemma of creating equality and high levels of team learning in hierarchical teams.
Originality/value
The conceptual model and hypotheses contribute to the team learning literature by theoretically clarifying the conditions under which power asymmetry is likely to improve team learning.
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Ruchi Sinha and Christina Stothard
This paper aims to clarify under which conditions, and via what mechanisms, power asymmetry is likely to affect team learning. This work is part of a two-paper series. Part I…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to clarify under which conditions, and via what mechanisms, power asymmetry is likely to affect team learning. This work is part of a two-paper series. Part I presents the theoretical arguments linking power asymmetry to team learning via egalitarianism and the moderating role of environmental hardship. In Part II, the authors provide an empirical evaluation of the conceptual model presented in Part I.
Design/methodology/approach
Data was gathered on 4,637 military personnel nested in 143 ongoing teams. Multiple regression analysis was used to analyze the proposed moderated mediation model. The results show that under higher levels of environmental hardship, teams with higher power asymmetry (greater hierarchy) show greater team egalitarianism and higher team learning.
Findings
The results show that under higher levels of environmental hardship, teams with higher power asymmetry (greater hierarchy) show greater team egalitarianism and higher team learning.
Research limitations/implications
The empirical examination of the proposed relationships is based on a large sample of military teams in the real world. Future research would benefit from testing the model on different samples across industries and adopting different operationalizations for environmental hardship relevant to each industry.
Originality/value
This work provides insights to help practitioners to preserve the coordination benefits of hierarchy, while still promoting more egalitarianism and team learning in hierarchical teams.
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Gender diversity is extensively debated and researched in relation to corporate boards. The focus on the gender composition on single boards neglects an important issue: that of…
Abstract
Purpose
Gender diversity is extensively debated and researched in relation to corporate boards. The focus on the gender composition on single boards neglects an important issue: that of how the power of board members is impacted by their representation on other boards. Board interlocks refer to how a board member is also represented on other companies’ boards, and such representation expectedly makes the individual board member more influential in the boardroom than non-connected board members. The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether and how female board interlocks are considered in previous research on gender diversity on boards.
Design/methodology/approach
A systematic literature review was conducted. It comprised 71 highly cited articles. The articles were analyzed to grasp their content, and specifically, female influence in the boardroom related to power.
Findings
The literature review reveals that the interlock perspective is rare in studies on women’s board representation. This is so, even while evidence is provided that females often need companions to get their meanings across on the boards, despite how interlocks would create one link of such power, and although the literature points to how female board representation plays a part to explain performance, social responsibilities and overall strategic directions of firms.
Originality/value
Contributions are made to previous research by indicating the potential of further research in a largely neglected area of research while also summarizing the previous reporting on women on boards.
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Emma Davidson and Christina McMellon
Practices of reflexivity have encouraged youth researchers to discuss ethical dilemmas encountered in the field more openly. Whilst this has afforded a departure away from…
Abstract
Practices of reflexivity have encouraged youth researchers to discuss ethical dilemmas encountered in the field more openly. Whilst this has afforded a departure away from abstracted accounts of practice, published work tends to focus on self-oriented reflexivity and the emotional response of the ethnographer. Participants’ own emotions, and the emotional relationships between researcher and participant, have received less consideration. Not only can this result in adversarial, challenging or ‘controversial’ encounters being sanitised or even avoided in written accounts, but also the possible processual, individual or social benefits of a relational ethnography can be downplayed. This chapter uses cross-cultural ethnographic research involving young people in Laos, Southeast Asia and in Scotland, to expose some of the ethical dilemmas that can emerge from researcher–participant relationships. Reflecting and writing about these events deliberately places the researchers in a position of vulnerability by demonstrating the diverse ways emotional connections can shape and direct ethics in practice. The chapter concludes that a balanced approach to ethics, with attention to honesty and relationality, is key to realising a more considerate, authentic ethnographic account.