Allard E. Dembe, Jamie S. Partridge, Elizabeth Dugan and Diane S. Piktialis
This study aims to evaluate whether employees consider employer‐sponsored elder‐care programs to benefit aging family members and whether those programs help employees with…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to evaluate whether employees consider employer‐sponsored elder‐care programs to benefit aging family members and whether those programs help employees with caregiving needs, stay productively employed.
Design/methodology/approach
A nationwide internet‐based survey was conducted between December 2008 and May 2009, eliciting information from 447 users of employer‐sponsored elder‐care services. Survey participants were employed individuals who had requested assistance from one of five national elder‐care service provider organizations (SPOs) during the preceding two years.
Findings
A majority of respondents reported that the services helped them to keep working productively (74.0 percent), avoid job absences (65.5 percent), stay employed (58.0 percent), and maintain a good family life at home (72.1 percent). Respondents were generally satisfied with the services provided by SPOs. However, most respondents did not feel that the services help minimize caregiving expenses.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first US study evaluating the usefulness of employer elder‐care programs, based on the perspectives of employees who have used the programs.
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SO much controversy has raged around the subject of newsrooms in the past two years, that librarians are, as a rule, utterly tired of it, and the appearance of still another…
Abstract
SO much controversy has raged around the subject of newsrooms in the past two years, that librarians are, as a rule, utterly tired of it, and the appearance of still another article upon the subject is not calculated to tone down the general spirit of vexation. It requires no little courage to appear in the arena in this year of Grace, openly championing those departments of our institutions which were originally intended to convey the news of the day in the broadest manner.
Geoff Walton and Jamie Cleland
The purpose of this paper is to present a qualitative investigation into whether online textual postings, produced by undergraduate students as part of an undergraduate module…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to present a qualitative investigation into whether online textual postings, produced by undergraduate students as part of an undergraduate module, can demonstrate their information literacy (IL) capabilities as a discursive competence and socially enacted practice. It also asks whether these online postings embody power relations between students, tutors and librarians.
Design/methodology/approach
Foucault’s notion of discursive competence and the separate but complementary concept of practice architectures (specifically focussing on “sayings”) devised by Lloyd were used as thematic lenses to categorise online discussion board postings from a formative online peer assessment exercise created for first-year UK undergraduate students. Online postings were the node of analysis used to identify patterns of language across online conversation. These postings were inductively analysed through manual content analysis. Subject’s responses were initially categorised using open coding.
Findings
Postings appeared to embody student’s discursive competence and information practice in IL, especially their level of information discernment and what constituted a quality “reference” for an assignment. However, they also demonstrated that the notion of “references” (information artefacts such as a journal article) perform a certain function in reproducing the discursive practices of an academic discipline as an agreed construct between tutor, student and librarian.
Practical implications
Students were engaged in the process of becoming good scholars by using appropriate online postings to create valid arguments through assessing other’s work, but what they did not do was question received meanings regarding the quality of information they used as evidence. Far from exhibiting the desired outcome of critical thinking (a cornerstone of IL) students who appeared most articulate in discussion tended to emulate the “strong discourse” put forward by their tutors and librarians.
Originality/value
This research uses practice architectures and discourse analysis to analyse students’ IL capabilities and the context in which they are developed. An approach not employed hitherto. This has practical implications for the ways in which academics and librarians introduce students to the academic discourse of their discipline and the ways in which the production, communication and exchange of information in academic contexts is characterised.
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The paper outlines and examines a social‐institutional conception of income inequality or economic distribution. The fundamental proposition of this conception is that income…
Abstract
The paper outlines and examines a social‐institutional conception of income inequality or economic distribution. The fundamental proposition of this conception is that income inequality/distribution is far from being the outcome of the operation of strictly market laws or economic forces but rather one of institutional arrangements or social structures. Of the latter particularly important have shown to be the institutional structure of the economy, particularly labour markets, as well as the degree of democracy of political systems. The results suggest transcending single‐factor economic explanations and predictions of income inequality, as implied in the Kuznets curve and its ramifications, in favour of an alternative multilevel sociological approach.
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TO those who have been accustomed to think of Newcastle only as the home of coal and “The Keel Row,” its general aspect will be found disappointingly clean and brisk. Although…
Abstract
TO those who have been accustomed to think of Newcastle only as the home of coal and “The Keel Row,” its general aspect will be found disappointingly clean and brisk. Although there is a lively air of business about the place, yet its crowds of pretty and well‐dressed women, its fine shops, and imposing institutions, all contribute towards removing the wholly‐erroneous impression which most strangers cherish, that Newcastle is the home of dirt and smoke and general unloveliness. Indeed, we know of only one other town of similar size, which has been visited by the L. A. which can be compared to it for the energetic bustle of its streets, keenness of its air, and good looks of its women, and that is Aberdeen, where, if possible, the energy is more energetic, and the air even more keen. We shall not compare the ladies! Leaving the Tyne to trace its unlovely course to the sea, and dealing only with that part of the town which, for one busy week, formed the camp of all kinds of librarians, it maybe stated that the institutions of Newcastle which possess interest for librarians are many and varied. The Lit. and Phil. is one of the principal centres of literary and social activity, and its library, lecture rooms, social departments, and other features make it one of the most influential institutions in the town. Its appearance is impressive, and its well‐ordered and well‐classified shelves appeal to every librarian who has the slightest progressive instinct. It has historic memories over a century old, and in many ways attracts readers and supporters in a manner which no municipal library can as yet pretend to emulate. Perhaps the secret lies in the amount of selectness which such an institution can afford its members, and the feeling that one can mix with other subscribers without any fear of accidentally consorting with a slum‐dweller or ambitious pitman ! With all its merits, and they: are many, the Lit. and Phil. has not yet learned the supreme secret of making a conversazione attractive and bright. But this slight criticism applies to other Newcastle institutions visited by the L. A. No doubt the failures arose from a misunderstanding on the part of the local committee, in assuming too confidently that Librarians could amuse themselves. They cannot. They are the dullest dogs on earth, unless someone takes them in hand and amuses them. But this is all by the way, and may seem a little ungracious, though it is only meant as a guide for the future.
Ted Brown, Stephen Isbel, Alexandra Logan and Jamie Etherington
Academic integrity is the application of honest, ethical and responsible behaviours to all facets of students’ scholarly endeavours and is the moral code of academia. The…
Abstract
Purpose
Academic integrity is the application of honest, ethical and responsible behaviours to all facets of students’ scholarly endeavours and is the moral code of academia. The international literature reports the prevalence of academic dishonesty in higher education across many disciplines (including the health sciences), and there is evidence linking academic dishonesty in health professional students with future unprofessional behaviour in the workplace. International students are reported to be a particularly vulnerable group. This paper aims to investigate the factors that may be predictive of academic honesty and performance in domestic and international occupational therapy students.
Design/methodology/approach
In total, 701 participants (603 domestic students; 98 international students) were recruited from five Australian universities, and data were collected via a two-part self-report questionnaire. ANOVA and multi-linear regression analyses with bootstrapping were completed.
Findings
Tendency towards cheating and self-perception tendency towards dishonesty in research, gender, age and hours spent in indirect study were found to be statistically significant predictors of academic integrity and performance.
Research limitations/implications
Limitations of this study were the use of convenience sampling and self-report scales which can be prone to social desirability bias. Further studies are recommended to explore other potential predictors of academic honesty and performance in occupational therapy students.
Originality/value
A range of predictors of academic honesty and success were found that will assist educators to target vulnerable domestic and international occupational therapy students as well as address deficiencies in academic integrity through proactive strategies.
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Isabelle Cuykx, Caroline Lochs, Kathleen Van Royen, Heidi Vandebosch, Hilde Van den Bulck, Sara Pabian and Charlotte de Backer
This scoping review aims to explore how “food media”, “food messages” and “food content” are referred to in scholarly writing to enhance a shared understanding and comparability.
Abstract
Purpose
This scoping review aims to explore how “food media”, “food messages” and “food content” are referred to in scholarly writing to enhance a shared understanding and comparability.
Design/methodology/approach
Following the PRISMA, ScR-guidelines, four scientific databases were screened on published manuscripts in academic journals, books and doctoral theses mentioning food media, content and messages within the prevalent meaning as in human communication.
Findings
Of the 376 included manuscripts, only a small minority (n = 7) provided a conclusive definition of at least one of the three earlier-mentioned concepts; 40 others elucidated some aspects of food media, messages or content; however, they emphasized different and, sometimes even, contrasting aspects. In addition, the review explores in which disciplines the manuscripts mentioning food media, messages or content occur, which methodologies are used and what target groups and media are most common.
Originality/value
Based on this aggregated information, a definition of food media, messages and content is proposed, aiming to enhance the comparability of diverse academic sources. This contribution invites scholars to critically reflect on the included media and content types when comparing studies on food media, messages or content.