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1 – 10 of 11Pi-Shen Seet, Janice Jones, Tim Acker and Michelle Whittle
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the reasons managers of non-Indigenous backgrounds move to, stay in, and leave their positions in Indigenous Art Centres in remote…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the reasons managers of non-Indigenous backgrounds move to, stay in, and leave their positions in Indigenous Art Centres in remote areas of Australia.
Design/methodology/approach
This qualitative study used structured in-depth interviews of 21 managers of Indigenous Art Centres to explore their reasons for staying in or leaving their positions.
Findings
The study finds that managers are not drawn to remote Art Centres for financial gain, or career advancement. In contrast, a broader range of pull factors beyond the job – in particular, the Indigenous community/environment and personal/family reasons – influence managers to stay or leave the job. However, the reasons for choosing to leave are qualitatively different from reasons given by managers who stay, pulling some managers to stay, whilst pushing other managers to leave. Significantly, shocks, in the form of threatening and frightening situations were also influential in explaining turnover.
Research limitations/implications
This research was limited to Art Centre managers in remote Australia and may lack generalisability in other countries.
Originality/value
The study adds to the few field studies that have investigated issues related to recruitment and retention of managers in the creative arts sector in remote areas. It contributes to the literature by extending push-pull theory to aspects of the entrepreneurial career process, albeit among “accidental entrepreneurs”. In addition, the authors have also incorporated “shocks” as catalysts to understanding career deliberations, and that threatening and frightening situations were especially influential in explaining decisions to stay or go.
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Richard Whitehead, Liza Hopkins, Michelle Kehoe and Glenda Pedwell
The purpose of this study is to investigate the experiences of staff during the development and implementation of an Australian-first, family-focussed service addressing the…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to investigate the experiences of staff during the development and implementation of an Australian-first, family-focussed service addressing the mental health needs of young people (aged 12–25 years) with an intellectual disability. This study aims to understand the challenges and successes of the staff team when navigating their way in a new program working with a complex client group.
Design/methodology/approach
This study used a thematic analysis on data collected from focus groups at two time points in the implementation phase of the new program. Thematic analysis of the data was conducted to identify important themes relating to the staff’s challenges, successes and learning.
Findings
The findings showed that there was a lot of adaptation needed for staff members trained in either mental health, or disability, but not both. Another key finding was the importance of working with the young person’s family system as well as their existing system of support services. This major focus of the work for staff could be challenging due issues arising in the family unit and a lack of collaboration between services. Working with this complex client group was viewed as challenging and stress inducing; however, the motivation and attitudes of staff were found to be positive factors in the running of the program.
Originality/value
This paper makes an original contribution to the field, as it provides a unique look at staff experiences when needing to adapt to a new and challenging workplace that was the first-of-its-kind in Australia.
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Ian Platt, Claudine McFaul and Michelle Tytherleigh
Parents ‘matter’ to schools for their child’s education and parents ‘matter’ in relation to their child’s wellbeing. Indeed, in his synthesis of over 800 studies, Hattie (2008…
Abstract
Parents ‘matter’ to schools for their child’s education and parents ‘matter’ in relation to their child’s wellbeing. Indeed, in his synthesis of over 800 studies, Hattie (2008) equated the benefits of parental engagement with schools as being equivalent to adding two or three further years to their education. The aim of this chapter, therefore, is to look at parents in relation to wellbeing through positive education and, as part of this, the concept of positive psychology parenting too. Drawing on scientific research, the benefits of positive psychology to parents and families, alongside some of the ‘why’ and ‘how’ parents can better engage with schools, will be presented. A Positive Psychology in Practice case study of Bounce Back, a freely available, online introduction to positive psychology designed to give parents and carers an introduction to several different concepts, approaches, and hands-on techniques, based on the principles of positive psychology, will also be provided. This case study will also present Bounce Back as an intervention, giving parents and carers practical advice on how best to use this online resource, as well as information on how to implement some of the wider ideas from positive education at home to help them better understand, and intervene in, their own and their family’s wellbeing.
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Emna Mnif, Bassem Salhi and Anis Jarboui
The purpose of this paper is to present the Islamic stock and Sukuk market efficiency and focus on the presence of investor herding behaviour (HB) captured by Hurst exponent…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to present the Islamic stock and Sukuk market efficiency and focus on the presence of investor herding behaviour (HB) captured by Hurst exponent estimation.
Design/methodology/approach
The Hurst exponent was estimated with various methods. The authors studied the evolving efficiency of the “Dow Jones” indices from 1 January 2010 to 30 December 2016 using a rolling sample of the Hurst exponent. In addition, they used a time-varying parameter method based on the Hurst of delayed returns. After that, the robust Hurst method was considered. In the next step, the efficiency of the different activity types of Islamic bonds was studied using an efficiency index. Finally, the Hurst exponent estimates were applied to assess the presence of HB.
Findings
The results show that, firstly, there’s a strong correlation between the “DJIM” and “DJSI” prices and returns. Secondly, by using robust Hurst estimate, it is observed that the “DJIM” is the most efficient market. The Hurst exponent estimation results show that HB is more intensive in the Islamic stock market. These results indicate also the inexistence of this behaviour in the studied Sukuk market.
Research limitations/implications
Sukuk as Islamic financial assets is recent. Their relative time series are not long enough to apply the long memory approach. Furthermore, this work can be extended to study other Islamic financial markets.
Practical implications
Herding affects risk-return characteristics of assets and has an impact on asset pricing models. Practitioners are interested in understanding herding and its timing as it might create profitable trading opportunities.
Social implications
This work analyses the impact of Islamic principles on the financial markets and their ability to understand some behavioural biases.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the literature by identifying the efficiency and the presence of HB with Hurst exponent estimation in Islamic markets.
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This chapter focuses on the culturally assumed link between femininity and pregnancy. It situates itself using the feminist theories of performativity (Butler, 1990), female…
Abstract
This chapter focuses on the culturally assumed link between femininity and pregnancy. It situates itself using the feminist theories of performativity (Butler, 1990), female masculinity (Halbertstam, 1998) and the queer art of failure (Halberstam, 2011). The chapter is based on ethnographic research with butch lesbians and genderqueer individuals in British Columbia, Canada. It focuses on these individuals’ desires to experience pregnancy, find appropriate clothes to wear when pregnant, and not being simultaneously socially recognized as both pregnant and masculine. It argues that feminism is still needed to broaden how we gender pregnancy, and to challenge the assumptions and social pressures that link individuals with uteruses to female to femininity to pregnancy and motherhood.
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Michael Clark, Michelle Cornes, Jill Manthorpe, Catherine Hennessy and Sarah Anderson
The purpose of this paper is to discuss “system transformation” in the context of different workforces and organisations seeking to support people experiencing multiple exclusion…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to discuss “system transformation” in the context of different workforces and organisations seeking to support people experiencing multiple exclusion homelessness (MEH). From a relational and integrated care perspective it aims to identify barriers to achieving more effective ways of working in the prevailing context of “managerial domination”. Communities of practice (COPs) are evaluated to identify their potential to overcome some of these barriers.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper presents a theoretical and conceptual discussion of a project in which a number of COPs were established and evaluated to ascertain their value in developing more relational ways of working in the context of MEH. Case studies of COPs operating in the context of MEH are explored and discussed.
Findings
It is concluded that COPs have the potential to deliver small-scale changes (“little miracles”) which are characteristically more subversive than transformative. Nevertheless, the authors still see these small gains as significant when compared to the inertia that is often found in local systems of care where more traditional management techniques (such as “payment by results”) prevail. The authors also draw attention to the scope for much improved service quality which flows from moving beyond the “tick box” and into the realms of what it really takes to tackle homelessness and multiple exclusion. In other words, although often requiring considerable amounts of “craft and graft” to deliver seemingly very small amounts of change, these “little miracles” may actually be more conducive in the long run to delivering the kind of tangible “real” change that is often aspired to by both workers and service users and their carers.
Research limitations/implications
The COPs project was limited in terms of time and scale and, hence, further research would be needed to, for example, ascertain their longer-term potential.
Practical implications
There is merit in the theoretical perspectives discussed and, from these, of understanding how best to establish and operate COPs as a vehicle for achieving better outcomes through integrated or collaborative working.
Social implications
There is much scope for better integrated or more collaborative working in the context of MEH and this paper draws attention to how COPs could be one means of achieving better outcomes for people experiencing MEH.
Originality/value
This is the first paper to set out the theoretical analysis of COPs as a means of achieving better integrated or collaborative working.
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Harvey Arbeláez and Rie Tanaka
Governance and opacity issues have increased since the early 1990s and several governance indicators are introduced by international organizations and NGOs. The governance…
Abstract
Governance and opacity issues have increased since the early 1990s and several governance indicators are introduced by international organizations and NGOs. The governance indicators have been used in various sectors, directly affecting a nation's political reputation. This study analyzes the context of governance and opacity in Argentina and Chile and assesses the relationship between the cultural pattern and the functioning of institutions. A first approximation to the analysis of Argentina and Chile seems to lead to the conclusion of the existence of homogeneity between them as a result of a similar background. However, differences in geography and history generate different societal norms, and functioning of institutions within them. Chile's geographical isolation and limited natural resources leads the country toward economic growth and political stability. By contrast, in Argentina, populist regimes undermine the foundations of its economy while its middle class struggles and loses public trust. The various factors interactively affect quality of public policies and governance and, consequently, are conducive to differences in the perceived and real levels of opacity between both countries. Is corruption a culture-specific issue? If yes, then, is governance a consequence of culture too? Therefore, it is important to interpret a context behind governance in order to establish appropriate anticorruption reform in practice. This chapter seeks to address some of these issues by means of a case study comparison between Argentina and Chile and contribute to the understanding of the context in which negotiations may occur when FDI and M&A deals take place.
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A brief historical account of women in science is given as introduction to discussion of their present situation in the USA. Factors affecting female achievement and interest in…
Abstract
A brief historical account of women in science is given as introduction to discussion of their present situation in the USA. Factors affecting female achievement and interest in science and in scientific careers include education, socio‐cultural and personal factors. Obstacles and constraints for women during preparation for scientific professions are also described together with myths about women and recent trends. Strategies for increasing their participation are proposed.
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