Katharina K. Pucher, Math J.J.M. Candel, Nicole M.W.M. Boot and Nanne K. de Vries
The Diagnosis of Sustainable Collaboration (DISC) model (Leurs et al., 2008) specifies five factors (i.e. project management, change management, context, external factors, and…
Abstract
Purpose
The Diagnosis of Sustainable Collaboration (DISC) model (Leurs et al., 2008) specifies five factors (i.e. project management, change management, context, external factors, and stakeholders’ support) which predict whether collaboration becomes strong and stable. The purpose of this paper is to study the dynamics of these factors in a study of multiple partnerships in comprehensive school health promotion (CSHP).
Design/methodology/approach
A Dutch two-year DISC-based intervention to support coordinators of five CSHP partnerships in the systematic development of intersectoral collaboration was studied in a pretest-posttest design. To uncover the determinants of sustainable collaboration and implementation of CSHP and to find possible mediators, the authors carried out multi-level path analyses of data on the DISC factors obtained from 90 respondents (response of approached respondents: 57 percent) at pretest and 69 respondents (52 percent) at posttest. Mediation mechanisms were assessed using joint significance tests.
Findings
The five DISC factors were important predictors of implementation of CSHP (explained variance: 26 percent) and sustainable collaboration (explained variance: 21 percent). For both outcomes, stakeholders’ support proved to be the most important factor. Regarding sustainable collaboration, mediation analysis showed that stakeholders’ support fully mediated the effects of change management, project management, external factors and context. This indicates that the extent of stakeholders’ support (e.g. appreciation of goals and high levels of commitment) determines whether collaboration becomes sustainable. The authors also found that the extent of stakeholders’ support in turn depends upon a well-functioning project management structure, the employment of change management principles (e.g. creation of a common vision and employment of appropriate change strategies), a favorable organizational context (e.g. positive experience with previous collaboration) and external context (e.g. positive attitudes of financing bodies and supporting health and educational policies). For the actual implementation of CSHP, partial mediation by the support factor was found. There was a direct positive effect of change management indicating that organizational knowledge is also necessary to implement CSHP, and a direct negative effect of project management, probably pointing to the negative effects of too much negotiation in the collaboration.
Research limitations/implications
A design lacking a control group, a small sample and a relatively early assessment after implementation support stopped limit the generalizability of the results.
Practical implications
Strategies targeting the DISC factors can enhance stakeholders’ support and thereby promote sustainable intersectoral collaboration and the implementation of CSHP.
Originality/value
The DISC model provides a fruitful conceptual framework for the study of predictors and processes in public health partnerships. The importance of stakeholders’ support and other factors in the model are demonstrated.
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Nicole Boot, Patricia van Assema, Bert Hesdahl and Nanne de Vries
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the role of a school health promotion (SHP) advisor in the implementation of the six steps of the Dutch “Schoolbeat” approach, aimed at…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the role of a school health promotion (SHP) advisor in the implementation of the six steps of the Dutch “Schoolbeat” approach, aimed at establishing health promotion policies and activities in secondary schools.
Design/methodology/approach
In total, 80 school board members, and 18 prevention coordinators of 18 schools in the Southern Limburg region in The Netherlands completed a written questionnaire on the implementation of the six steps of the Schoolbeat approach, and on their satisfaction with the practical assistance offered by the SHP advisor in implementing the steps, as well as the advisor's organizational competencies.
Findings
Only one school implemented the Schoolbeat approach completely, and as intended. Schools were generally satisfied with the practical assistance in the process of implementing the Schoolbeat steps and with the organizational competencies of the SHP advisor. Schools which had partly implemented the Schoolbeat steps were more satisfied with the SHP advisor's practical assistance than schools who had not done so at all.
Practical implications
This study showed that the SHP advisor could make a positive contribution to health promotion in schools. Since this role demands new skills, the competencies of health promotion professionals must be further developed.
Originality/value
Structural school health promotion programs and policies are becoming increasingly important in many countries, and not enough is known about the role of health promotion agencies in structuring school health promotion. This paper describes the positive impact of the SHP advisor.
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N.M.W.M. Boot and N.K. de Vries
This case study aimed to examine the factors influencing the implementation of health promotion (HP) policies and programs in secondary schools and the consequences for…
Abstract
Purpose
This case study aimed to examine the factors influencing the implementation of health promotion (HP) policies and programs in secondary schools and the consequences for professional assistance.
Design/methodology/approach
Group interviews were held in two schools that represented the best and worst case of implementation of a health promotion program (“Schoolbeat”) in the Southern Limburg region. Both schools were represented by the school manager, the health care coordinator and their school health promotion (SHP) advisor. The main purpose of the group interview was to describe the organization of HP in the school.
Findings
Efforts to improve organizational aspects like change management, collaborative support and project management contributed to the implementation of HP.
Practical implications
Based on these results the authors advise SHP advisors to focus more on the organizational aspects of HP in schools.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the discussion about the tasks of HP professionals assisting secondary schools. Results show that effective assistance in shaping school health promotion requires competencies that go beyond organizing practical HP activities. HP professionals assisting schools need skills covering many aspects of the field, ranging from professional assistance for the process of implementing HP to organizational skills to advise and guide schools on the organizational changes needed for the implementation of HP.
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The purpose of this paper is to show that, until the 1960s, subsistence hunting, fishing, and gathering were the mainstay of the economy for Inuit in the Eastern Canadian Arctic…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to show that, until the 1960s, subsistence hunting, fishing, and gathering were the mainstay of the economy for Inuit in the Eastern Canadian Arctic. This economy was sustained by the moral imperative that food should be shared with others whenever possible. The article explores the experience of one man in Nunavik (Northern Québec) who has started a business selling food.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper shows that regulatory challenges facing the industry are considered in relation to the moral dilemmas that need to be confronted in moving from an economy based on sharing food to an economy predicated on market exchange.
Practical implications
The paper concludes with a discussion about how this businessman has come to terms with his breaking of social norms about the sharing of food and his understanding of how, in doing so, he is representative of a new economic order amongst Inuit in Nunavik.
Originality/value
The paper shows that this is an original and novel subject for study.
This paper considers how archival accounting records may support truth-telling about past atrocities during Australia's frontier wars.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper considers how archival accounting records may support truth-telling about past atrocities during Australia's frontier wars.
Design/methodology/approach
The study examines two colonial accounting records – military muster payrolls and the ledger statements of a local tax fund – used during the British's punitive expeditions against the Aboriginal peoples of Sydney in 1816.
Findings
The accounting records reveal new information about the full scale of the campaign, the degree to which the violence was formally endorsed and acts of Aboriginal resistance. However, much of the human toll of the campaign remains obscured by the highly structured, monetary lens of financial records authored and archived by the British colonial regime.
Social implications
Australia's First Nations have called for greater truth-telling about the frontier wars to enable meaningful reconciliation and political recognition of Indigenous sovereignty. This study highlights the potential role of accounting records as a resource for contemporary truth-telling processes.
Originality/value
The study contributes to the literature about the dark history of accounting by explicating genre features in the content, form and context of archival accounting records, which can both render past atrocities more visible as well as perpetrate invisibilities, ambiguities and silences.
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Describes the winning formula at Neiman Marcus that has made it the No. 1 luxury retailer in the United States in terms of sales per square foot and profitability. Highlights…
Abstract
Describes the winning formula at Neiman Marcus that has made it the No. 1 luxury retailer in the United States in terms of sales per square foot and profitability. Highlights Neiman Marcus' efforts to define who its customers are and are not and to achieve superior focus on its customers by aligning location, price, service, and merchandise to fulfill these customers' every need. Describes ways in which Neiman Marcus prevents typical silo behavior between merchandising and selling and how it ensures that the right merchandise gets to the right customer, despite the challenge of doing this in 36 micromarkets.
To show how a company integrates two strong high-performance functions—merchandising and sales—to get the right merchandise to each customer in more than 30 diverse selling locations while consistently providing exceptional customer service.
Details
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Keywords
Jane Boyd Thomas, Cara Okleshen Peters and Holly Tolson
Virtual communities are increasing in popularity and changing the way apparel fashion information is learned and shared by consumers. According to Agins, consumers, as opposed to…
Abstract
Purpose
Virtual communities are increasing in popularity and changing the way apparel fashion information is learned and shared by consumers. According to Agins, consumers, as opposed to élite designers, are now dictating fashion trends and pinpointing the ideal places of distribution. The purpose of this exploratory study is to examine the fashion‐related discussion which is taking place on perhaps the best known of these communities, MySpace.com. The three research questions driving this study include: “What are consumers saying about fashion within this particular virtual community?”; “What commonalities exist among the plethora of fashion‐related information available in this context?”; and “What kinds of insights can marketers draw from the categories of fashion‐related information being presented in MySpace.com?”
Design/methodology/approach
Content analysis was selected as the method for investigation. Within the forum Fashion and Style, the subgroup FashionLOVERS was selected for investigation because it represented a general discussion of fashion. The first 200 forum topical areas with five or more posts were selected for analysis. A total of 6,623 individual posts were examined and each of the three authors independently reviewed the posts noting the general topical categories of content. Interrater reliability for the coders was computed.
Findings
Eight recurring categories of fashion related information were identified in the study. The four most popular discussion categories were personal style, brands and designers, tips and advice, and retailers. The prevalence of these four topics suggests that consumer driven marketing is a growing and influential component of fashion marketing.
Research limitations/implications
This study makes an important contribution to the study of virtual communities. Results provide insight into the complex, multi‐layered, interactive fashion‐related communication that occurs within virtual communities.
Practical implications
Fashion marketers and retailers are encountering an untapped resource with these virtual communities. Findings highlight the power of consumers in virtual communities and suggest a need for fashion marketers and retailers to closely monitor communication within virtual communities.
Originality/value
This research is particularly valuable because it provides insight into the popular virtual community, MySpace.com. Detailed investigation into types of fashion information that are shared with community members is presented and discussed.
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Sedigheh Moghavvemi, Lee Su Teng and Huda Mahmoud
This chapter will introduce the concept of the gig economy. It begins with a brief discussion of technological changes and their impact on the workforce and labour market…
Abstract
This chapter will introduce the concept of the gig economy. It begins with a brief discussion of technological changes and their impact on the workforce and labour market, demonstrating how the trend shifts towards the gig economy. It then examines the trends that are influencing this transformation and discusses various perspectives and the attractiveness of the gig economy for workers and businesses. This chapter will also discuss the gig economy, platform economy, digital platform, and gig worker categories. It concludes with a brief discussion of some of the opportunities, issues, and challenges associated with the gig economy.
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This chapter explores military women’s fear of sexual assault, especially while deployed overseas, the strategies they use to manage those fears, and the health consequences of…
Abstract
Purpose
This chapter explores military women’s fear of sexual assault, especially while deployed overseas, the strategies they use to manage those fears, and the health consequences of both their fears and their strategies for reducing them.
Methodology/approach
Data come from 25 in-depth, semi-structured qualitative interviews conducted in 2012 and 2013 with women veterans and military members. All participants were under age 45 and had deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan at some point.
Findings
Surprisingly, 44% reported neither concern about sexual assault nor any special strategies taken to prevent it. In contrast, another 44% reported both concern about sexual assault and special strategies taken to prevent it. Finally, 12% reported no special concerns about sexual assault due to the strategies they took to prevent it. For these latter two groups, rape-preventions strategies and the fears that led to them could contribute to lack of exercise, sleep difficulties, anxiety, depression, or post-traumatic stress disorder.
Research limitations/implications
This research is based on a small and non-random sample which over-represents southwestern residents, whites, Army members, and commissioned officers, and under-represents African Americans, Navy members, noncommissioned officers, and enlisted personnel. As a result, it cannot be used to extrapolate to the population more generally. It also focuses solely on women’s experiences, due to their greater risk of assault, although men’s experiences with sexual trauma certainly deserve further study. Finally, the research relied on only one coder, which may have reduced reliability. However, it is less likely to have reduced validity compared to studies utilizing multiple coders, since such studies typically use coders who either share or have been trained to use the main authors’ intellectual perspectives.
Originality/value
Previous research has looked at the effect of sexual assault on female military members. This chapter extends that research by exploring how fear of rape can affect female military members even if they are not themselves assaulted, with a special focus on its health effects. In addition, previous research on fear of rape in the general population has focused on its social effects. This chapter suggests the need for further research on potential health effects of fear of rape in the general population.