S. Egersdörfer, D. Dragoi, G.J. Monkman, B. Füchtmeier and M. Nerlich
The application of robotics in manufacturing industry is increasingly spreading to other fields such as service, security and medical, and more recently into orthopedic surgery…
Abstract
The application of robotics in manufacturing industry is increasingly spreading to other fields such as service, security and medical, and more recently into orthopedic surgery. Most research projects to date have concentrated on the lighter side of non‐invasive surgery, camera, laser guidance, light cutting and milling through bone. Just as in industrial production and processing applications, the choice of robot and its accompanying control and programming system is absolutely paramount. This simple fact has been justified in recent research dealing with the heavier forms of fracture repositioning robotics in accident surgery. This paper discusses the development of the complete system including robot, end‐effector and sensors.
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Dennis Schoeneborn, Consuelo Vásquez and Joep P. Cornelissen
This paper adds to the literature on societal grand challenges by shifting the focus away from business firms and other formal organizations as key actors in addressing such…
Abstract
This paper adds to the literature on societal grand challenges by shifting the focus away from business firms and other formal organizations as key actors in addressing such challenges toward the inherent organizing capacity that lies in the use of language itself. More specifically, we focus on the organizing capacities of metaphor-based communication, seeking to ascertain which qualities of metaphors enable them to co-orient collective action toward tackling grand challenges. In addressing this question, we develop an analytical framework based on two qualities of metaphorical communication that can provide such co-orientation: a metaphor’s (a) vividness and (b) responsible actionability. We illustrate the usefulness of this framework by assessing selected metaphors used in the public discourse to make sense of and organize collective responses to the Covid-19 pandemic, including the flu metaphor/analogy, the war metaphor, and the combined metaphor of “the hammer and the dance.” Our paper contributes to extant research by providing a means to assess the co-orienting potential of metaphors in bridging varied interpretations. In so doing, our framework can pave the way toward more responsible use of metaphorical communication in tackling society’s grand challenges.
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Abby Swanson Kazley, Amy C. McLeod and Karen A. Wager
Purpose – Use of telemedicine is increasingly prevalent in order to provide better access to expert care, and we examine telemedicine use internationally.Design/methodology �…
Abstract
Purpose – Use of telemedicine is increasingly prevalent in order to provide better access to expert care, and we examine telemedicine use internationally.
Design/methodology – Using Donabedian's structure, process outcome framework, we conduct an analysis of published studies in the United States, Europe, and Asia to examine the uses, conditions treated, barriers, and future of telemedicine.
Findings – We identify several similarities and challenges to telemedicine use in each region. We find use of videoconferencing between providers or providers and patients for the treatment of acute and chronic conditions. Studies in the United States are more likely to identify applications for the use of chronic conditions, whereas studies in Europe or Asia are more likely to use them for acute access to expertise. Each region reported comparable challenges in reimbursement, liability, technology, and provider licensing.
Research limitations – We compare available research articles from three diverse regions, and many of the articles were merely descriptive in nature. Furthermore, the number of articles per region varied.
Practical implications – Barriers to telemedicine use include a lack of reimbursement, language commonality, technological availability, physician licensure or credentialing, trained support staff and patient privacy, and security assurances. Practitioners and policy makers should work to address these barriers.
Originality/value – Through this work, a summary of the research to date describes telemedicine use in the United States, Asia, and Europe. Identification of use and barriers may provide impetus for improving access to care by finding ways to increase telemedicine use through standardization.
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Tim Knowles, Richard Moody and Morven G. McEachern
This paper aims to chart the wide range of food scares reported throughout the EU over the period 1986‐2006 and explores their impact on EU policy.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to chart the wide range of food scares reported throughout the EU over the period 1986‐2006 and explores their impact on EU policy.
Design/methodology/approach
There is much extant research that solely investigates the occurrences of specific food scares, however; little emphasis is given to the responses of policy makers. This research aims to narrow this gap in the literature by reviewing the major food scares, which have occurred throughout the EU and the subsequent policy responses.
Findings
A number of food scares have dominated media reports over the last two decades, but this study reveals the increasing emergence of rare serotypes of foodborne pathogens, as well as a rising trend of EU‐wide contaminant and animal disease‐related food scares. Simultaneously, there is evidence of evolution from a product‐focused food policy to a risk‐based policy, which has developed into a tentative EU consumer‐based food policy. Inevitably, in a market of 25 member‐states the concept of food quality varies between countries and therein justifies the need for responsive policy development, which embraces the single market philosophy.
Research limitations/implications
A typology of EU food scares is advanced and discussed in detail, with comments being made on their impact. In addition, the paper highlights the complexity of a EU consumer, which has led to a need for research into the maximisation of the satisfaction of purchasers by reinsuring their individual “right to choose”.
Originality/value
This paper provides a unique insight into a wide range of European food scares (e.g. microbiological, contaminants, animal disease‐related) and EU policy makers' responses to such food scares.
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Andreas Diermeier, Dirk Sindersberger, Peter Angele, Richard Kujat and Gareth John Monkman
Ultrasound is a well-established technology in medical science, though many of the conventional measurement systems (hydrophones and radiation force balances [RFBs]) often lack…
Abstract
Purpose
Ultrasound is a well-established technology in medical science, though many of the conventional measurement systems (hydrophones and radiation force balances [RFBs]) often lack accuracy and tend to be expensive. This is a significant problem where sensors must be considered to be “disposable” because they inevitably come into contact with biological fluids and expense increases dramatically in cases where a large number of sensors in array form are required. This is inevitably the case where ultrasound is to be used for the in vitro growth stimulation of a large plurality of biological samples in tissue engineering. Traditionally only a single excitation frequency is used (typically 1.5 MHz), but future research demands a larger choice of wavelengths for which a single broadband measurement transducer is desirable. Furthermore, because of implementation conditions there can also be large discrepancies between measurements. The purpose of this paper deals with a very cost-effective alternative to expensive RFBs and hydrophones.
Design/methodology/approach
Utilization of cost-effective piezoelectric elements as broadband sensors.
Findings
Very effective results with equivalent (if not better) accuracy than expensive alternatives.
Originality/value
This paper concentrates on how very cost-effective piezoelectric ultrasound transducers can be implemented as sensors for ultrasound power measurements with accuracy as good, if not better than those achievable using radiation force balances or hydrophones.
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Purpose – Responsible investor (RI) engagement seeks to change corporate strategic priorities while balancing the financial imperative. This chapter uses an…
Abstract
Purpose – Responsible investor (RI) engagement seeks to change corporate strategic priorities while balancing the financial imperative. This chapter uses an institutional theory framework to explore the tension between financial performance and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues in RI engagement.
Methodology – Discourse of the proponent, supporters and opponents of Australia’s first climate change shareholder resolution – a minority proposal, will be analyzed using framing analysis.
Findings – Framing indicated that the discourse emphasized the dominant financial performance logic while often omitting the ESG logic. One possible explanation is that the process of shareholder proposal nomination and the financial imperative of investment organizations effectively co-opted the engagement.
Research limitations – A case of responsible investment engagement is used to illustrate multiple logics in the investment field. Although there are significant limitations to drawing inferences from a single example, the discussion is relevant to RI support for engagement initiatives such as the UN Principles of Responsible Investment clearinghouse and Carbon Disclosure Project Carbon Action. This chapter argues that attempts to change corporate strategic actions on climate change by RI through engagement will be less effective while the financial performance logic provides relatively more legitimacy to investors.
Practical implications – Integrating the ESG logic with the financial logic is vulnerable to co-optation due to incommensurability. Operationalizing both logics requires establishing a boundary between ESG and financial logics to develop legitimacy.
Social implications – RI engagement on climate change has the potential to be an important part of the social response to the sustainability agenda.
Originality – In applying institutional theory to RI climate change activism this chapter presents original insights into the potential of engagement to effect change.
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Community rail is a grassroots movement that spans Britain, made up of hundreds of community groups and partnerships that engage people with their railways and stations and…
Abstract
Community rail is a grassroots movement that spans Britain, made up of hundreds of community groups and partnerships that engage people with their railways and stations and provide a bridge between the rail industry and the public at a local level. The movement has grown up from the grassroots, but it has also been increasingly supported and nurtured by the rail industry, with train operators proactively encouraging its spread and development. They, and national and devolved governments, recognise the value of community rail, and its contribution to social inclusion, sustainable development and the railway’s ability to prosper and serve passengers and communities well, now and in the future. This idea is supported by passenger data showing that railway lines with community rail partnerships – working to enhance, promote and aid access to those lines – outperform comparable lines. A swathe of qualitative evidence shows community rail partnerships and station groups having a demonstrable impact on their localities and people’s lives, and appreciation of this role by industry leaders. The many examples of community rail volunteers and practitioners bringing about positive change resonate with academic research exploring how civic engagement and local efficacy and communications can support change, particularly with regard to sustainable behaviours and development. A range of researchers argue that localised, interactive engagement and communications may be the key, when it comes to bringing about the major shifts in behaviour needed to address the global, existential threat posed by the climate crisis, which unsustainable behaviours and policies have brought about. In this way, evidence suggests that engaging communities with their railways, and local transport networks generally, is critical, both to these networks operating in a truly sustainable manner and to achieving inter- and intra-generational equity within the communities they serve.
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Helen Abdali Soosan Fagan, Brooke Wells, Samantha Guenther and Gina S. Matkin
The impending demographic shift in the United States (Vespa et al., 2020) will require leadership educators to reexamine the relationship between diversity and inclusive…
Abstract
The impending demographic shift in the United States (Vespa et al., 2020) will require leadership educators to reexamine the relationship between diversity and inclusive leadership. Our literature review revealed inclusive leadership has historically not been viewed with a diversity perspective. To better understand the link between diversity and inclusive leadership, we reviewed how leadership scholars, researchers, and authors have described the attributes and impacts of inclusive leaders. Through inductive coding, we identified seven attributes (i.e., characteristics and actions) of inclusive leaders. When these attributes are acted upon, inclusive leaders create various impacts on followers. These impacts are applied to Shore et al.’s (2011) inclusion framework. Both the attributes and impacts are presented to provide information and tools to better equip leadership educators with the knowledge to foster classroom inclusion in diverse classroom environments.