Sudhir K. Saha, David O’Donnell, Taran Patel and John Heneghan
The purpose of this paper, in the context of the employment equity (EE) field, is to explore the relationship between individual values/beliefs and simulated hiring decisions of…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper, in the context of the employment equity (EE) field, is to explore the relationship between individual values/beliefs and simulated hiring decisions of minority candidates in Canada, France and Ireland.
Design/methodology/approach
Individual values/beliefs were elicited using Likert type scales; subjects responded to a series of simulated hiring scenarios.
Findings
The link between individual value and belief systems and EE‐related HR decision making on recruitment of minority candidates is modestly supported by the findings presented here. The values/beliefs of students from leading business schools influenced, if in part, their simulated hiring decisions on minority candidates presented in the scenarios. National context also matters as EE institutions differ at the societal level of analysis.
Research limitations/implications
The subjects were business school students of limited work experience addressing scenario situations, not practicing managers making real hiring decisions. The use of self‐reports leads to the usual issues related to common method variance, the consistency motif, social desirability bias, and so on and we note the limits due to the reverse ecological fallacy. Research findings provide modest support to this argument but should be treated with caution.
Practical implications
Individual values and beliefs matter in HR decision making on recruitment of minority candidates.
Originality/value
Much EE research focuses on antecedents of values/beliefs; this paper is one of a handful of investigations that attempts to establish possible outcomes of values/beliefs towards EE.
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John Heneghan and David O'Donnell
The objective of this paper is to present an initial evaluation of recent Irish legislation in the area of corporate governance.
Abstract
Purpose
The objective of this paper is to present an initial evaluation of recent Irish legislation in the area of corporate governance.
Design/methodology/approach
The background to the introduction of the 2001 Company Law Enforcement Act, establishing the Office of the Director of Corporate Enforcement (ODCE), and the Companies (Auditing & Accounting) Act of 2003, establishing the Irish Auditing and Accounting Supervisory Authority (IAASA), is first outlined. Some empirical evidence is then presented on how such initiatives are perceived by Irish accountants, auditors and directors.
Findings
The tentative conclusion reached is that these regulatory and legislative changes, particularly the active stance of the ODCE, are contributing positively towards creating a compliance culture among Irish directors and their professional accounting advisers. The most striking aspect of the IAASA is its mere existence at a regulatory level over the main professional bodies for the first time in the history of the Irish state.
Research limitations/implications
Law mediates the relationship between the steering media of economics and politics – and the lifeworlds of accountants, auditors and company directors. This relationship is contextually complex and further research on this institutionalisation process may lead to further insights emerging.
Practical implications
Legislation, if supported with the requisite resources and institutions, can positively impact on business culture through influencing the behaviour of key actors.
Originality/value
This paper is one of the first evaluations of recent Irish responses to enhancing the integrity of its business culture.
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Gavin Dennehy, Bobby Kennedy and John Spillane
The purpose of this study is to identify the factors relating to the integration and compliance of Building Control (Amendment) Regulations 2014 (BC(A)R 2014) in large Irish…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to identify the factors relating to the integration and compliance of Building Control (Amendment) Regulations 2014 (BC(A)R 2014) in large Irish construction organisations.
Design/methodology/approach
To achieve the aim, a mixed method approach is adopted, initially, providing a critique of the literature review, followed by a combination of 7 semi-structured interviews and 30 questionnaires from industry practitioners.
Findings
Findings demonstrate that BC(A)R has had a significant positive effect on the industry, eliminating previous bad practice, by increasing the accountability for professionals signing-off on new buildings, and highlights the emphasis on certification in successfully achieving practical completion on projects.
Practical implications
The findings provide further justification on the need for compliance, and integration, of BC(A)R in the Irish construction sector, offering further evidence, where needed, on the benefit of its adoption.
Originality/value
The originality and value of this research lies in the limited number of studies in the area, particularly in the context of large Irish construction projects, which this study aims to fulfil.
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Thomas N. Garavan, Sinead Heneghan, Fergal O’Brien, Claire Gubbins, Yanqing Lai, Ronan Carbery, James Duggan, Ronnie Lannon, Maura Sheehan and Kirsteen Grant
This monograph reports on the strategic and operational roles of learning and development (L&D) professionals in Irish, UK European and US organisations including multinational…
Abstract
Purpose
This monograph reports on the strategic and operational roles of learning and development (L&D) professionals in Irish, UK European and US organisations including multinational corporations, small to medium enterprises, the public sector and not for profit organisations. This paper aims to investigate the contextual factors influencing L&D roles in organisations, the strategic and operational roles that L&D professionals play in organisations, the competencies and career trajectories of L&D professionals, the perceptions of multiple internal stakeholders of the effectiveness of L&D roles and the relationships between context, L&D roles, competencies/expertise and perceived organisational effectiveness.
Design/methodology/approach
The study findings are based on the use of multiple methods. The authors gathered data from executives, senior managers, line managers, employee and L&D professionals using multiple methods: a survey (n = 440), Delphi study (n = 125) and semi-structured interviews (n = 30).
Findings
The analysis revealed that L&D professionals increasingly respond to a multiplicity of external and internal contextual influences and internal stakeholders perceived the effectiveness of L&D professionals differently with significant gaps in perceptions of what L&D contributes to organisational effectiveness. L&D professionals perform both strategic and operational roles in organisations and they progress through four career levels. Each L&D role and career level requires a distinct and unique set of foundational competencies and L&D expertise. The authors found that different contextual predictors were important in explaining the perceived effectiveness of L&D roles and the importance attached to different foundational competencies and areas of L&D expertise.
Originality/value
This is one of the few studies to have investigated the L&D professional role in organisations from the perspective of multiple stakeholders using multiple research methods.
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This paper explores the advertising strategy of crockery importers and dealers in relationship to their origins and backgrounds. This is a departure from earlier ceramic-history…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper explores the advertising strategy of crockery importers and dealers in relationship to their origins and backgrounds. This is a departure from earlier ceramic-history literature which tended to focus on the Staffordshire producers, with limited awareness on how the identity of importers and dealers influenced what products were sold, and their individual approaches to marketing.
Design/methodology/approach
Within a context of historical marketing research, this paper analyses newspaper advertising and commentary. It combines an examination of marketing practices with a wider consideration of the cultural identities of ceramic importers and dealers. The digitalization of historical records, combined with sophisticated search engines, makes it more feasible to examine a broader range of sources. Thus, modern research methods can enhance our understanding of production and demand and reveal how marketing strategy was diverse.
Findings
Awareness on how advertising was influenced by the backgrounds and socio-political views of importers and dealers demonstrates ways in which Anglo-American ceramic trade could be far more market-led. More significantly, marketing approaches were not necessarily responding to American demand, but rather that importers could engage in commissioning goods which reflected their own views on politics, religion or slavery.
Originality/value
Examining the advertising of importers demonstrates the complex relationship between production and ceramic demand. This paper opens up debates as to how far the advertising of other merchandise in the USA shows evidence of taking a more individual approach by the 19th century.
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There are many texts and treatises in the literature of both philosophy and economics which express the apparent theme of this article. Indeed, many of the concepts discussed…
Abstract
There are many texts and treatises in the literature of both philosophy and economics which express the apparent theme of this article. Indeed, many of the concepts discussed, including liberty, justice and rights, have been treated elsewhere. Philosophers, sociologists, theologians and economists have each argued their respective points of view.
This paper aims to examine the transformation of the concept of cultural tourism within the sociopolitical empowerments, changes of visual realms and normative contexts, which is…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to examine the transformation of the concept of cultural tourism within the sociopolitical empowerments, changes of visual realms and normative contexts, which is embedded within museums as institutions.
Design/methodology/approach
These discussions will be conceptualized through investigating the shifts in the metamorphosis of the architectural vocabulary of Egypt's museums between nineteenth and twentieth centuries. This analysis will be highlighted through connecting both the notion of the “tourist reflexivity” of John Urry and Jonas Larsen in The Tourist Gaze 3.0 (2011) and the notion of the “interstitial spaces” and “new internationalism” of Homi Bhabha in The Location of Culture (1994). The analysis expands to interrogate these two notions as prelude for reflecting on representations of colonial and postcolonial museums in Egypt, starting from the Museum of Egyptian Antiquities, Cairo (c. 1863) to the most recent, the Egyptian Grand Museum, Cairo (c. 2002).
Findings
The analysis revealed that while colonial museums endeavored to stage external cultural authority and postcolonial ones staged traditions' liminality through “New internationalism”, they created spatiotemporal interstices. This finding, while is a timely example with the rising global cultural encounters that emerged during this transformative age, it challenges the collective imaginations of architects to liberate from traditional nationalism.
Originality/value
The paper offers novel theoretical and architectural analysis of Egypt's museums through the exigency of nationalism and “new internationalism”. The encounter between both notions is a timely example given the recent involvements by the “Modern State” and the recent pandemic upheaval that revealed the inevitability of globalism and the discursivity of such notions.
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Corinne Green and Reed Cappleman
Although it is recommended that reflective practice groups (RPGs) are used to support staff in inpatient intellectual disability (ID) services, there is to date no research on…
Abstract
Purpose
Although it is recommended that reflective practice groups (RPGs) are used to support staff in inpatient intellectual disability (ID) services, there is to date no research on their effectiveness or how staff perceive RPGs in these settings. This paper aims to evaluate staff perceptions of the RPGs in an assessment and treatment unit for people with ID and to ascertain the nature of any barriers for staff in attending the group.
Design/methodology/approach
Thirteen staff completed questionnaires ascertaining their views on the purpose, process and impact of the RPG run within the service. Questionnaires included a version of the clinical supervision evaluation questionnaire (CSEQ; Horton et al., 2008) adapted for this context and a questionnaire designed by the authors examining barriers to attending the group.
Findings
Staff responses indicated that they valued the group and perceived it as improving their clinical practice and their self-awareness. Staff did not always perceive group sessions as having clear aims and did not perceive the group as enhancing their well-being or their awareness of gaps in their skills. RPGs may be most effective if they form part of a service-wide approach to staff support and development.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first evaluation of RPGs in inpatient ID services. The adapted CSEQ was found to be an easily implemented method of evaluating RPGs in an inpatient ID setting.
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Adam Polnay, Helen Walker and Christopher Gallacher
Relational dynamics between patients and staff in forensic settings can be complicated and demanding for both sides. Reflective practice groups (RPGs) bring clinicians together to…
Abstract
Purpose
Relational dynamics between patients and staff in forensic settings can be complicated and demanding for both sides. Reflective practice groups (RPGs) bring clinicians together to reflect on these dynamics. To date, evaluation of RPGs has lacked quantitative focus and a suitable quantitative tool. Therefore, a self-report tool was designed. This paper aims to pilot The Relational Aspects of CarE (TRACE) scale with clinicians in a high-secure hospital and investigate its psychometric properties.
Design/methodology/approach
A multi-professional sample of 80 clinicians were recruited, completing TRACE and attitudes to personality disorder questionnaire (APDQ). Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) determined factor structure and internal consistency of TRACE. A subset was selected to measure test–retest reliability. TRACE was cross-validated against the APDQ.
Findings
EFA found five factors underlying the 20 TRACE items: “awareness of common responses,” “discussing and normalising feelings;” “utilising feelings,” “wish to care” and “awareness of complicated affects.” This factor structure is complex, but items clustered logically to key areas originally used to generate items. Internal consistency (α = 0.66, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.55–0.76) demonstrated borderline acceptability. TRACE demonstrated good test–retest reliability (intra-class correlation = 0.94, 95% CI = 0.78–0.98) and face validity. TRACE indicated a slight negative correlation with APDQ. A larger data set is needed to substantiate these preliminary findings.
Practical implications
Early indications suggested TRACE was valid and reliable, suitable to measure the effectiveness of reflective practice.
Originality/value
The TRACE was a distinctive measure that filled a methodological gap in the literature.