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Publication date: 23 July 2016

Andrew Farrant and Maria Pia Paganelli

Can we model politics as exclusively based on self-interest, leaving virtue aside? How much romance is there in the study of politics? We show that James Buchanan, a founder of…

Abstract

Can we model politics as exclusively based on self-interest, leaving virtue aside? How much romance is there in the study of politics? We show that James Buchanan, a founder of public choice and constitutional political economy, reintroduces a modicum of romance into politics, despite claiming that his work is the study of “politics without romance”: Buchanan’s model needs an ethical attitude to defend rules against rent-seeking.

We claim that Adam Smith, more than David Hume, should be considered one of the primary intellectual influences on Buchanan’s public choice and constitutional political economy. It is commonly believed that Hume assumes in politics every man ought to be considered a knave, making him an influence on Buchanan’s idea of politics without romance. Yet, it is Smith who, like Buchanan, describes rent-seeking and suggests that public virtues may be the remedy through which good rules maintaining liberty and prosperity can be generated and enforced. Smith, like Buchanan, rejects sole reliance on economic incentives: the study of politics needs some romance.

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Research in the History of Economic Thought and Methodology
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78560-960-2

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Article
Publication date: 1 March 1982

David A. Buchanan and David Boddy

There has been a lot of speculation about the impact of new information technologies on organisations and their members. But there have been comparatively few empirical studies in…

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Abstract

There has been a lot of speculation about the impact of new information technologies on organisations and their members. But there have been comparatively few empirical studies in this area. Research carried out in the University of Glasgow Department of Management Studies over the past two years has sought to remedy this position.

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Management Research News, vol. 5 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0140-9174

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Publication date: 1 May 1983

In the last four years, since Volume I of this Bibliography first appeared, there has been an explosion of literature in all the main functional areas of business. This wealth of…

16786

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In the last four years, since Volume I of this Bibliography first appeared, there has been an explosion of literature in all the main functional areas of business. This wealth of material poses problems for the researcher in management studies — and, of course, for the librarian: uncovering what has been written in any one area is not an easy task. This volume aims to help the librarian and the researcher overcome some of the immediate problems of identification of material. It is an annotated bibliography of management, drawing on the wide variety of literature produced by MCB University Press. Over the last four years, MCB University Press has produced an extensive range of books and serial publications covering most of the established and many of the developing areas of management. This volume, in conjunction with Volume I, provides a guide to all the material published so far.

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Management Decision, vol. 21 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0025-1747

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Article
Publication date: 2 September 2013

David A. Buchanan, Emma Parry, Charlotte Gascoigne and Cíara Moore

– The purpose of this paper is to explore the incidence of “extreme jobs” among middle managers in acute hospitals, and to identify individual and organizational implications.

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the incidence of “extreme jobs” among middle managers in acute hospitals, and to identify individual and organizational implications.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper is based on interviews and focus groups with managers at six hospitals, a “proof of concept” pilot with an operations management team, and a survey administered at five hospitals.

Findings

Six of the original dimensions of extreme jobs, identified in commercial settings, apply to hospital management: long hours, unpredictable work patterns, tight deadlines with fast pace, broad responsibility, “24/7 availability”, mentoring and coaching. Six healthcare-specific dimensions were identified: making life or death decisions, conflicting priorities, being required to do more with fewer resources, responding to regulatory bodies, the need to involve many people before introducing improvements, fighting a negative climate. Around 75 per cent of hospital middle managers have extreme jobs.

Research limitations/implications

This extreme healthcare management job model was derived inductively from a qualitative study involving a small number of respondents. While the evidence suggests that extreme jobs are common, further research is required to assess the antecedents, incidence, and implications of these working practices.

Practical implications

A varied, intense, fast-paced role with responsibility and long hours can be rewarding, for some. However, multi-tasking across complex roles can lead to fatigue, burnout, and mistakes, patient care may be compromised, and family life may be adversely affected.

Originality/value

As far as the authors can ascertain, there are no other studies exploring acute sector management roles through an extreme jobs lens.

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Journal of Health Organization and Management, vol. 27 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1477-7266

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Article
Publication date: 1 February 1990

James McCalman and David A. Buchanan

How the boundaries of what management once considered acceptablework redesign have been expanded by new competitive pressures isdemonstrated. Research evidence based on the…

670

Abstract

How the boundaries of what management once considered acceptable work redesign have been expanded by new competitive pressures is demonstrated. Research evidence based on the experience of American multinational corporations shows how the approaches now being developed give employees considerably greater discretion and opportunities for skills development and improved performance than conventional “job enrichment” techniques. The sample of Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) at its Ayr site in Scotland is used and the effects of high performance work systems examined.

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International Journal of Operations & Production Management, vol. 10 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0144-3577

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Article
Publication date: 3 July 2007

David Buchanan, Raymond Caldwell, Julienne Meyer, John Storey and Charles Wainwright

The purpose of this paper is to examine critically the concept of “leadership transmission”, considering what theoretical and practical value this metaphor brings to the…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine critically the concept of “leadership transmission”, considering what theoretical and practical value this metaphor brings to the healthcare modernization agenda.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper develops understanding of the transmission metaphor, whilst theoretical perspectives on leadership are reviewed, including debates, which shed light on the concept by focusing on the phenomenon of distributed or dispersed leadership.

Findings

The transmission metaphor is perhaps misleading, by implying that “leadership can be caught” like a disease. However, defining leadership in terms of influence, a novel typology of transmission processes is introduced; top down (one‐way), inter‐organizational (bi‐lateral), and dispersed (multi‐directional). Recent research suggests that organizational changes are often led by the spontaneous concertive action of staff at all levels, not just by senior élite groups. The way in which dispersed influence processes arise, unfold, and are transmitted into organizational outcomes can be understood through theoretical narratives, which capture event sequences and combinations of factors unfolding over time in a given context. Given the scale and pace of the change agenda, healthcare modernization may indeed depend on widely dispersed leadership.

Practical implications

It is therefore necessary to establish the conditions in which leadership transmission is encouraged, to recognize, support, and develop the “unsung heroes” who assume change leadership positions, and to widen the agenda and coverage of NHS leadership development programmes.

Originality/value

There is currently no other commentary, empirical or theoretical, academic or professional, which examines critically the concept of leadership transmission, while exploring the nature of this perspective, and its theoretical and practical value.

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Journal of Health Organization and Management, vol. 21 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1477-7266

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Article
Publication date: 10 August 2010

David A. Buchanan and John Storey

This paper aims to explore the theoretical and practical management implications of a case involving the falsification of hospital patient waiting lists for elective orthopaedic…

951

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to explore the theoretical and practical management implications of a case involving the falsification of hospital patient waiting lists for elective orthopaedic surgery.

Design/methodology/approach

This case study is based on qualitative schedule‐structured interviews with 20 senior hospital staff (managerial and clinical), including the head of the investigation team, downloads from the hospital website, and internal hospital documentation. Those data were used to construct an event narrative exploring the underlying causes and implications of the incident.

Findings

The blame for misconduct pointed at three surgeons, a senior manager, a general manager, an assistant general manager, one administrative staff member, and several organizational factors. In addition to censuring some of those involved, an investigation recommended changes to training and working practices, policies and procedures, governance arrangements, and organization culture, and led to an external evaluation of the hospital board. However, one year later, another similar incident occurred.

Research limitations/implications

This is a single case, and events are viewed through a management lens, the individuals concerned being protected by research ethics considerations.

Practical implications

By detailing the sequence of events, surrounding conditions, and the reactions of multiple players, this analysis reveals typified responses to incidents of this kind, and the limitations inherent in post‐event investigations. If the benefits derived from national targets are to be realized in a manner which commands support from staff at all levels, then greater attention should be paid by managers and regulators to issues of transparency, responsiveness, and honesty. As core dimensions of good governance, managers must be accountable for helping to meet targets, and also for tracking how targets are met, ensuring that resources are made available, and that problematic issues raised are promptly and effectively addressed.

Originality/value

Studies of organizational misbehaviour are rare in healthcare where the focus often lies with patient deaths and injuries arising from system failures and gross individual misconduct. The analysis in this case explores the organizational conditions that contribute to such incidents.

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Journal of Health Organization and Management, vol. 24 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1477-7266

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Article
Publication date: 1 December 1998

David Buchanan

The first aim of this paper is to bring empirical evidence from an atypical organizational setting to the debate surrounding the currency of business process re‐engineering, which…

1702

Abstract

The first aim of this paper is to bring empirical evidence from an atypical organizational setting to the debate surrounding the currency of business process re‐engineering, which some commentators have dismissed as a damaging “fad”. The second aim is to suggest how the process orientation advocated by re‐engineering can facilitate a creative visualization of organizational process and a participative approach to redesign. The paper is based on the experience of an acute teaching hospital seeking to reduce patient delays affecting the work of the operating theatres department. The project began towards the end of 1994, was overseen by a hospital steering committee, was conducted by a small internal project team (with researcher as member), and was based initially on a process mapping exercise. The elective surgical in‐patient process (one of the hospital’s “core processes”), from referral to discharge, was mapped using the knowledge of project team members, interview and survey data from 39 respondents, informal discussions with over 50 other hospital staff, and from a photo‐documentation and photo‐elicitation procedure. Interviews, survey questionnaires, informal discussion and the photo‐elicitation sessions were also used to develop a wide series of recommendations from staff with respect to redesigning the patient process and reducing theatre delays.

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International Journal of Operations & Production Management, vol. 18 no. 12
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0144-3577

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Article
Publication date: 31 October 2008

John Storey and David Buchanan

The purpose of this article is to advance critical debate in relation to a very critical issue in current healthcare management – namely “patient safety”. This is currently a very…

4500

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this article is to advance critical debate in relation to a very critical issue in current healthcare management – namely “patient safety”. This is currently a very high profile issue. In its various guises such as clinical governance, integrated governance and healthcare governance the question of avoiding or at least minimising harm to patients is attracting a huge amount of attention. Considerable resources especially within the acute sector are allocated to the problem. But, despite the systematic attention, progress in healthcare compared with certain other sectors is slow and mistakes continue to occur. Hospital acquired infections and clinical errors have become a matter of acute public concern. Evaluations of the health service are critically influenced by adverse judgements on this dimension of care.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors draw primarily upon relevant literature in order to make sense of recent empirical research in eight acute hospital trusts in the UK. The analysis, however, is relevant to healthcare systems around the world.

Findings

The authors reveal how the massive investment in systems, service improvement mechanisms and clinical government regimes may not in themselves be enough. One reason why they may not be enough is that there can be a problem of gaining acceptance and legitimacy. Staff may see such managers as “policing” and “interfering”. There is then the danger of a vicious circle – more control but less effective control because of a feeling of alienation. The policing element is at best a final safety net not the prompt for improvement. They then identify six barriers and each is accompanied by a recommendation for its resolution.

Practical implications

There are a number of implications for practice and for systems reform, which stem from the analysis. Two main recommendations stand out: they need to be handled together. First, the traditional model of the autonomous professional needs to be challenged by subjecting clinical practice to shared clinical governance procedures. Second, and simultaneously, there is a need to attend to underlying values. There is a need to revisit the issue of underpinning values so that clinical values and system‐wide/managerial values are congruent rather than separate or even in conflict. At this point, governance and leadership should come together.

Originality/value

This paper provides useful information from the literature on current healthcare management.

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Journal of Health Organization and Management, vol. 22 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1477-7266

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Article
Publication date: 1 August 1927

HIS holidays over, before the individual and strenuous winter work of his library begins, the wise librarian concentrates for a few weeks on the Annual Meeting of the Library…

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Abstract

HIS holidays over, before the individual and strenuous winter work of his library begins, the wise librarian concentrates for a few weeks on the Annual Meeting of the Library Association. This year the event is of unusual character and of great interest. Fifty years of public service on the part of devoted workers are to be commemorated, and there could be no more fitting place for the commemoration than Edinburgh. It is a special meeting, too, in that for the first time for many years the Library Association gathering will take a really international complexion. If some too exacting critics are forward to say that we have invited a very large number of foreign guests to come to hear themselves talk, we may reply that we want to hear them. There is a higher significance in the occasion than may appear on the surface—for an effort is to be made in the direction of international co‐operation. In spite of the excellent work of the various international schools, we are still insular. Now that the seas are open and a trip to America costs little more than one to (say) Italy, we hope that the way grows clearer to an almost universal co‐working amongst libraries. It is overdue. May our overseas guests find a real atmosphere of welcome, hospitality and friendship amongst us this memorable September!

Details

New Library World, vol. 30 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0307-4803

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