There have been many signs of a growing interest in the idea of a national lending library for the humanities. The manifestations of this interest include two articles, by D. J…
Abstract
There have been many signs of a growing interest in the idea of a national lending library for the humanities. The manifestations of this interest include two articles, by D. J. Urquhart and D. J. Foskett, directly on the subject; an article by S. P. L. Filon on the new book‐buying policy of the National Central Library; and the review by I. P. Gibb of the report on the operation of the United States Farmington Plan.
MAURICE B. LINE and A. SANDISON
The term ‘obsolescence’ occurs frequently in the literature of librarianship and information science. In numerous papers we are told how most published literature becomes obsolete…
Abstract
The term ‘obsolescence’ occurs frequently in the literature of librarianship and information science. In numerous papers we are told how most published literature becomes obsolete within a measurable time, and that an item receives half the uses it will ever receive (‘half‐life’) in a few years. ‘Obsolescence’ is however very rarely defined, and its validity, interest, and practical value are often assumed rather than explained. Before reviewing studies on ‘obsolescence’, therefore, it is necessary to look at the concept and to identify the reasons why it should be of interest.
The Farmington Plan, despite much varied criticism, has, as Robert L. Talmadge has written, ‘repeatedly been cited as one of the most important, most enlightened, and hopeful…
Abstract
The Farmington Plan, despite much varied criticism, has, as Robert L. Talmadge has written, ‘repeatedly been cited as one of the most important, most enlightened, and hopeful instances of library co‐operation in the history of American libraries’. The history of its establishment and development, together with the details of its operation, is set out in the Farmington Plan handbook by Edwin E. Williams. It is not necessary to repeat that information here, but it is perhaps useful to quote the opening paragraph of Chapter 1 which distils the spirit of the plan very succinctly: ‘The Farmington Plan is an experiment in specialization by voluntary agreement among American research libraries. Its objective is to make sure that at least one copy of each new foreign book and pamphlet that might reasonably be expected to interest a research worker in the United States will be acquired by an American library, promptly listed in the Union Catalogue at the Library of Congress, and made available by interlibrary loan or photographic reproduction.’ The first acquisitions were of books published in 1948; in 1957 it was decided by the Association of Research Libraries that the purposes, scope, and results of the plan should be re‐examined in the light of the experience of the first ten years. The resultant survey was presented at the Midwinter Annual Meeting of ARL in January 1959, where its main conclusions were adopted. These involve, briefly, the continuing responsibility of ARL for the Farmington Plan, the extension of the Farmington Plan on a world‐wide basis—the Farmington Plan Committee to be responsible for this in co‐ordination with area committees—provision of funds for an office and research assistance for the Farmington Plan, the overhaul of procurement methods, a survey of the adequacy of periodical holdings, more duplication of imports, and propaganda to stress the national importance of the Farmington Plan. It has been described by its co‐author, Robert Vosper, in his paper at the 1959 Aslib Conference, and it is not proposed to repeat what he said then on the organization of the survey.
The importance for our national scientific and industrial future of greatly improved library and information services, to compare with those available in several other countries…
Abstract
The importance for our national scientific and industrial future of greatly improved library and information services, to compare with those available in several other countries, is at last being recognized.
The importance of entrepreneurship education and the lack of studies at the vocational level, have created a need to develop a model of entrepreneurship learning. The purpose of…
Abstract
Purpose
The importance of entrepreneurship education and the lack of studies at the vocational level, have created a need to develop a model of entrepreneurship learning. The purpose of this paper is to determine what vocational college students learn about entrepreneurship from working in a small enterprise, how they learn it and what role the teacher has in the learning process.
Design/methodology/approach
The data used are drawn from discussions between eight students (aged 16-18), where they assessed and developed their business activities conducted over the course of a year. Using qualitative data collection and analysis methods, content connected with entrepreneurship was examined to provide information about activities they undertook and how the learning process occurred.
Findings
The findings indicate that learning in a small enterprise is a continuous process, where content, activities and process are intertwined. The core of learning is reflection-in-action, to develop entrepreneurial skills and behaviour.
Practical implications
This paper may offer a means of applying a small business learning model to entrepreneurship learning. The results can benefit teachers planning entrepreneurship learning.
Originality/value
This paper contributes to the understanding of student learning in small enterprises by empirically examining what learning takes place and how.
Details
Keywords
This paper aims to assess the empirical utility and conceptual significance of distributed leadership.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to assess the empirical utility and conceptual significance of distributed leadership.
Design/methodology/approach
Three main sources of evidence are drawn on. The paper reviews some neglected commentary of an early generation of distributed leadership theorists. It also discusses a strand of social science writings on emergent small number management formations. An alternative interpretation of the findings of three recent empirical studies of distributed leadership is provided. Some unresolved issues are considered.
Findings
Distributed leadership arose in reaction to understandings of leadership that emphasised heroic‐like individual behaviour. It has achieved a high level of theoretical and practical uptake. This paper, however, argues for reconsideration. Distributed leadership is shown to be largely unremarkable, especially in light of the continuity between current writings and those of early generation scholars. This claim is also reinforced by the inability of most current scholars to develop the emergent potential of a tradition of writings on the division of labour in small groups (emanating mainly from the work of Georg Simmel). Finally, the paper argues that a more appropriate descriptor for recent leadership analyses may be “hybrid”, rather than “distributed”.
Originality/value
Conceptually and empirically, there is still work to do. First, leadership's distributed status now aligns it with power and influence, each for some time recognised as distributed, although the preference for leadership as a vehicle of analysis ahead of power and influence still lacks sufficient justification. Second, while distributed leadership is sometimes thought of as synonymous with democratic organisational leadership, the latter is shown to be conceptually distinct.
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This research examines micro‐enterprises pursuing gradual growth. While very little research has been targeted specifically at the growth of micro‐enterprises, there are a host of…
Abstract
This research examines micro‐enterprises pursuing gradual growth. While very little research has been targeted specifically at the growth of micro‐enterprises, there are a host of possible influencing factors suggested by the rather broader small business literature. Less research has attempted to integrate the factors that influence growth of small firms into some form of model. Those models that were found had a number of shortfalls when it came to understanding the development of micro‐enterprises. A framework has been developed through this research that addresses these shortfalls. First, it has targeted specifically gradual growth micro‐enterprises; secondly, it is rigorously under‐pinned through empirical research; thirdly, it attempts to comprehensively cover the range of factors that influence development; fourthly, it focuses on the complex interaction of factors that may influence development. The research findings and implications are presented in two parts. Part 1 develops an empirically verified framework that explains how growth is influenced by a myriad of interacting factors. This leads to a discussion of the policy implications of the framework. Part 2 is presented in the next edition of the Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development (JSBED) and will explore the managerial implications of the framework. This will provide a diagnostic toolkit to help micro‐enterprise owner‐managers and advisers pursue growth. The paper is derived from research conducted initially for the submission of a PhD thesis at the University of Brighton (Perren, 1996).
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Allan A. Gibb and Henry Durowse
The support for local initiatives by large organisations has become substantially institutionalised in the UK through Business in the Community. How much further it will go, and…
Abstract
The support for local initiatives by large organisations has become substantially institutionalised in the UK through Business in the Community. How much further it will go, and how much it will be supported by government, is the subject of debate and conjecture. An overview of how large firms support small and medium enterprise development — the motivations and how they are changing — is provided. The problems in evaluation and a case study of Shell UK Ltd are provided, and future directions, possible shifts and influences are considered.
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With numerous and ambiguous sets of information and often conflicting requirements, construction management is a complex process involving much uncertainty. Decision makers may be…
Abstract
With numerous and ambiguous sets of information and often conflicting requirements, construction management is a complex process involving much uncertainty. Decision makers may be challenged with satisfying multiple criteria using vague information. Fuzzy multi-criteria decision-making (FMCDM) provides an innovative approach for addressing complex problems featuring diverse decision makers’ interests, conflicting objectives and numerous but uncertain bits of information. FMCDM has therefore been widely applied in construction management. With the increase in information complexity, extensions of fuzzy set (FS) theory have been generated and adopted to improve its capacity to address this complexity. Examples include hesitant FSs (HFSs), intuitionistic FSs (IFSs) and type-2 FSs (T2FSs). This chapter introduces commonly used FMCDM methods, examines their applications in construction management and discusses trends in future research and application. The chapter first introduces the MCDM process as well as FS theory and its three main extensions, namely, HFSs, IFSs and T2FSs. The chapter then explores the linkage between FS theory and its extensions and MCDM approaches. In total, 17 FMCDM methods are reviewed and two FMCDM methods (i.e. T2FS-TOPSIS and T2FS-PROMETHEE) are further improved based on the literature. These 19 FMCDM methods with their corresponding applications in construction management are discussed in a systematic manner. This review and development of FS theory and its extensions should help both researchers and practitioners better understand and handle information uncertainty in complex decision problems.
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To investigate possible connections between the ways in which university lecturers define the term “entrepreneurship” and the pedagogical methods they apply when teaching the…
Abstract
Purpose
To investigate possible connections between the ways in which university lecturers define the term “entrepreneurship” and the pedagogical methods they apply when teaching the subject.
Design/methodology/approach
In total, 141 lecturers on entrepreneurship courses completed a questionnaire concerning meaning of the term “entrepreneurship”; the pedagogical techniques they employed when delivering entrepreneurship units; and their commitment to entrepreneurship as an academic discipline. The sample was analysed with respect to the respondents' subject areas (marketing, organisational behaviour, economics, etc.), amounts of business experience, types of employing institution, and socio‐demographic characteristics. An emerging model was tested using the technique of partial least squares.
Findings
Lecturers' definitions of entrepreneurship were indeed influenced by their backgrounds and by the number of years they had worked in businesses. Few of the sample had ever owned an enterprise and, in general, respondents' operational management experience was limited. There was no consensus as to how the word entrepreneurship should be interpreted or how the subject should be taught.
Research limitations/implications
Only a minority of the sampling frame (29 per cent) returned the questionnaire. The model that was tested had to be constructed ab initio due to the paucity of prior research in the field. Hence the study was wholly exploratory and could not test hypotheses explicitly derived from pre‐existing literature.
Practical implications
A consistent theory of entrepreneurship needs to be developed, to be disseminated among and accepted by lecturers who actually teach the subject, and then be incorporated into the curricula and syllabuses of entrepreneurship courses.
Originality/value
This research is the first to examine the perceptions of the nature of entrepreneurship held by lecturers on entrepreneurship programmes and to relate these perceptions to their antecedents and pedagogical consequences.