James Wan, Raafat Saade and Ling Wang
A consequence of the UN general assembly resolution calling for increased efficiency and better utilization of resources in all its agencies, is a mandate for change. As a…
Abstract
Purpose
A consequence of the UN general assembly resolution calling for increased efficiency and better utilization of resources in all its agencies, is a mandate for change. As a response to this resolution, the purpose of this paper is to identify the key factors for managing change.
Design/methodology/approach
A survey methodology approach was used where officials representing department heads, middle managers, professionals and specialists were the target participants. Exploratory factor analysis was done for factor validation and reduction, followed by confirmatory factor analysis to identify the relationships between those factors.
Findings
Three significant factors, communication, temporal sensitivity and knowledge were found to represent a shared common theoretical propositions from Kotter’s, Lewin’s and ADKAR models. Extracted factor explain the proposed United Nations (UN) model.
Research limitations/implications
Due to political and cultural reasons, characteristics of participants could not be revealed. Also, a larger pool of participants spanning across all the UN agencies would provide more comprehensive view. The final UN model proposed herein would need to be further validated and tested within each agency as well as across them.
Practical implications
The study urges the UN to utilize its findings, with the hope of standardizing an effective change management model for all its agencies.
Originality/value
While change management literature primarily focuses on the private sector, few are applicable in the public sector. Research effort on managing change in UN is scarce. This study advocates the need for UN research to fill this very important gap. As such, the authors test existing theoretical model and then adapt it for the UN context.
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Man has been seeking an ideal existence for a very long time. In this existence, justice, love, and peace are no longer words, but actual experiences. How ever, with the American…
Abstract
Man has been seeking an ideal existence for a very long time. In this existence, justice, love, and peace are no longer words, but actual experiences. How ever, with the American preemptive invasion and occupation of Afghanistan and Iraq and the subsequent prisoner abuse, such an existence seems to be farther and farther away from reality. The purpose of this work is to stop this dangerous trend by promoting justice, love, and peace through a change of the paradigm that is inconsistent with justice, love, and peace. The strong paradigm that created the strong nation like the U.S. and the strong man like George W. Bush have been the culprit, rather than the contributor, of the above three universal ideals. Thus, rather than justice, love, and peace, the strong paradigm resulted in in justice, hatred, and violence. In order to remove these three and related evils, what the world needs in the beginning of the third millenium is the weak paradigm. Through the acceptance of the latter paradigm, the golden mean or middle paradigm can be formulated, which is a synergy of the weak and the strong paradigm. In order to understand properly the meaning of these paradigms, however, some digression appears necessary.
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Juliet D’Souza and Atul K. Saxena
Reviews previous research on dividend policy, most of which is US‐based, and presents a worldwide study of the relationship between dividend payout, agency costs, market risk and…
Abstract
Reviews previous research on dividend policy, most of which is US‐based, and presents a worldwide study of the relationship between dividend payout, agency costs, market risk and investment opportunities. Finds that the dividend payout ratio is significantly negatively related to institutional ownership of a firm’s shares (i.e. agency costs) and its beta value (i.e. market risk) but independent of investment decisions. Discusses consistency with other research, recognizes that other factors are also likely to influence dividend policy and calls for further research.
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The horror genre is and always has been populated by women, who can be seen to be at once both objectified and empowered. Building off the preexisting gender hierarchies and…
Abstract
The horror genre is and always has been populated by women, who can be seen to be at once both objectified and empowered. Building off the preexisting gender hierarchies and dynamics embedded in the history of horror cinema, this chapter looks at a number of New French Extremity films that assault audiences with unrelenting scenes of violence, torture and self-mutilation, which are performed almost exclusively upon or by women. Although the films of the New French Extremity have been dismissed as exploitative in their representations of wounded and suffering female bodies, their narratives also offer internal criticisms of the misogynistic portals of victimhood that are prevalent in the genre. Through a close analysis of the films Inside (Bustillo & Maury, 2007) (French title: À L’intérieur) and Martyrs (Laugier, 2008), this chapter will examine how both films deviate from the male monster/female victim dichotomy. Although the women of these films may start off vulnerable, they take charge of their situations, while also compacting the nature of feminine identity.
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Since the turn of the Millennium, horror has had a resurgence both in cinema and in television. With programmes like The X-Files and Buffy the Vampire Slayer paving the way for…
Abstract
Since the turn of the Millennium, horror has had a resurgence both in cinema and in television. With programmes like The X-Files and Buffy the Vampire Slayer paving the way for other horror shows such as The Walking Dead, American Horror Story and Penny Dreadful, this introduction discusses the way that TV has become a bedrock of new, exciting, vibrant and bold horror productions.
This chapter considers the influence of horror on the production of commercial gay pornography. I see this influence reflected especially in the production and popularity of gay…
Abstract
This chapter considers the influence of horror on the production of commercial gay pornography. I see this influence reflected especially in the production and popularity of gay pornographic films inspired by horror franchises from the slasher and ‘torture porn’ cycles that have been remade in recent decades. Nine texts are selected for analysis – from the slasher genre: Bryan Kenny’s 2010 A Nightmare on Twink Street (inspired by the A Nightmare on Elm Street series), Andy Kay’s 2012 Black XXXmas (inspired by Black Christmas), Frank Fuder and Angel Skye’s 2009 Halloweiner: Friday the Fuckteenth and Chi Chi LaRue’s 2016 Scared Stiff (both inspired by the Friday the 13th series), Bromo’s 2017 Cream for Me (Scream series); and from the torture porn genre: Jett Blakk’s 2006 Bonesaw, John Bruno’s 2006 Rammer and Bryan Kenny’s 2010 Raw I and 2011 (with Andy Kay) Raw II (inspired by the Saw franchise). The specificity of the horror genre is addressed, as is the importance of gender. But particular focus is directed toward the structural aspects of gay porn parodies and the degree to which horror parodies in particular have the potential to blend pornographic homosex with graphic violence, perhaps most extreme in the slasher and torture porn horror variants. Other potentialities are also explored, such as for the easing of narrative/sex porn tensions.
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Harold A. Black, M. Cary Collins and Breck L. Robinson
Outlines the US development of the “too‐big‐to‐fail” (TBTF) doctrine following the collapse of the Continental Illinois Bank, reviews relevant research and explores the impact on…
Abstract
Outlines the US development of the “too‐big‐to‐fail” (TBTF) doctrine following the collapse of the Continental Illinois Bank, reviews relevant research and explores the impact on the efficiency of the banking system. Uses 1983‐1985 call report data, explains the methodology and presents the results, which analyse economies and diseconomies of scope and scale between different types of loans; and levels of inefficiency for TBTF and non‐TBTF banks. Shows that TBTF banks had the greatest increase in inefficiency following Continental’s failure but reduced this in the following year, as did small banks which did not benefit from complete depository coverage. Confirms that the TBTF doctrine increased stability for all banks, but particularly those covered by the doctrine.