Self‐governance flows from the decision to fund NHS Services on the basis of agreed contracts. A self‐governing trust represents an extension of the accepted principle of maximum…
Abstract
Self‐governance flows from the decision to fund NHS Services on the basis of agreed contracts. A self‐governing trust represents an extension of the accepted principle of maximum devolution; it is not pursuing a separate course. In the South East Thames Region potential first‐wave trust candidates will have decided by the end of September 1989 whether to proceed with a formal bid. The Regional Health Authority has set up a project group to consider how best to take forward proposals for self‐governing trusts.
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Tim Hobbs, Matthew Carr, Marc Holley, Nathan Gray and Nick Axford
The need for randomised controlled trials (RCTs) to support evidence‐based services to improve outcomes for children is increasingly recognised by researchers and policy‐makers…
Abstract
The need for randomised controlled trials (RCTs) to support evidence‐based services to improve outcomes for children is increasingly recognised by researchers and policy‐makers. However, this brings a pressing requirement to build research capacity for conducting RCTs and to address the concerns of practitioners who may be suspicious about the method. This article reviews a variety of texts on the subject, ranging from analyses of the historical and political context of RCTs, to concise introductions of the key methodological and practical issues, to more in‐depth discussions of complex designs and statistics. The article seeks to help readers navigate these resources by focusing on seven questions that seem particularly salient for those considering whether and how to commission, undertake, participate in or use results from RCTs.
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Sara H. Goodman, Matthew Zahn, Tim-Allen Bruckner, Bernadette Boden-Albala, Janet R. Hankin and Cynthia M. Lakon
The study examines health care inequities in viral load testing among hepatitis C (HCV) antibody-positive patients. The analysis predicts whether individual and census tract…
Abstract
Purpose
The study examines health care inequities in viral load testing among hepatitis C (HCV) antibody-positive patients. The analysis predicts whether individual and census tract sociodemographic characteristics impact the likelihood of viral load testing.
Methodology/Approach
This a study of 26,218 HCV antibody-positive patients in Orange County, California, from 2010 to 2020. The case data were matched with the 2017 American Community Survey to help understand the role of neighborhood socioeconomic characteristics in testing for viral load. Multivariable logistic regression was used to predict the probability of ever testing for HCV viral load.
Findings
Thirty-six percent of antibody-positive persons were never viral load tested. The results show inequalities in viral load testing by sociodemographic factors. The following groups were less likely to ever test for viral load than their counterparts: (1) individuals under 65 years old, (2) females, (3) residents of census tracts with lower levels of health insurance enrollment, (4) residents of census tracts with lower levels of government health insurance, and (5) residents of census tracts with a higher proportion of non-white residents.
Research Limitations/Implications
This is a secondary database from public health department reports. Using census tract data raises the issue of the ecological fallacy. Detailed medical records were not available. The results of this study emphasize the social inequality in viral load testing for HCV. These groups are less likely to be treated and cured, and may spread the disease to others.
Originality/Value
This chapter is unique as it combines routinely collected public health department data with census tract level data to examine social inequities associated with lower rates of HCV viral load testing.
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Matthew Gougherty and Tim Hallett
The sociology of education has various traditions which examine the connections between education, culture, and inequality. Two of these traditions, symbolic interactionism and…
Abstract
The sociology of education has various traditions which examine the connections between education, culture, and inequality. Two of these traditions, symbolic interactionism and critical theory, tend to ignore each other. This paper creates a dialogue between these traditions by applying symbolic interactionist (SI) and radical interactionist (RSI) sensibilities to an important study for resistance theory, Paul Willis’ classic ethnography Learning to Labor (1977). The SI reading of Learning to Labor emphasizes the importance of group interactions and the creation of meaning, while the RSI reading highlights how domination unfolds in social interaction. We argue that SI and RSI have much to offer Learning to Labor, as these readings can avoid some of the critiques commonly leveled on the book regarding the linkage between theory and data, structure and agency, and the book’s conceptualization of culture. Likewise, we argue that the data in Learning to Labor have much to offer SI and RSI, as the material provides grist to further understand the role of symbols in domination while identifying escalating dominance encounters that create a set of patterned interactions that we describe as a “grinding” social order.
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A significant anniversary occurred on March 10, 1981! It was 25 years to the day (March 10, 1956) that Britain regained the World Absolute Speed record when Peter Twiss, piloting…
Abstract
A significant anniversary occurred on March 10, 1981! It was 25 years to the day (March 10, 1956) that Britain regained the World Absolute Speed record when Peter Twiss, piloting a Fairey Delta 2 (WG774), attained an average speed of 1,132 mph, pushing the record up by over 300 mph. This four‐figure record was held for 18 months.
Diane Edmondson, Tim Graeff, Lucy Matthews, Don Roy, Raj Srivastava and Cheryl Ward
This study aims to examine consumers’ patriotism, attitudes toward veterans and attitudes and behaviors toward businesses that honor veterans. The goal is to determine if…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to examine consumers’ patriotism, attitudes toward veterans and attitudes and behaviors toward businesses that honor veterans. The goal is to determine if consumers are more or less likely to support businesses that offer veterans preferential treatment.
Design/methodology/approach
The conceptual model proposed is tested using an online survey with a nationwide sample. Data are analyzed using partial least squares structural equations modeling.
Findings
Results indicate that consumer attitudes toward businesses that honor veterans fully mediate the impact of consumer attitudes toward veterans on behavioral intentions. This suggests that veterans’ discounts or preferential treatments are viewed as a viable means by which consumers can show their support for veterans. Further, results reveal that patriotism has a direct effect on consumers’ behavioral intentions toward businesses that honor veterans.
Practical implications
Businesses routinely offer discounts targeted to specific consumers, such as the elderly and children. These results show that providing discounts to veterans can offer multiple benefits to businesses as well. Positive attitudes toward businesses that honor veterans can lead to positive behavioral intentions from consumers who seek to support veterans.
Originality/value
Despite the existence of businesses honoring veterans by providing discounts or preferential treatment, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, little to no research has investigated the impact that these discounts provide to businesses.
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Matthew J. Bauman, Natalia Velikova, Tim Dodd and Trey Blankenship
The purpose of this study is to examine generational differences in consumer Web 2.0 information source adoption for wine purchasing decisions, particularly social media and…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to examine generational differences in consumer Web 2.0 information source adoption for wine purchasing decisions, particularly social media and internet-based sources.
Design/methodology/approach
An online survey resulted in 276 responses from wine consumers residing in Texas, USA. Information source usage was tested in two common purchasing situations: for casual and formal consumption. Chi-square analyses and ANOVA were used to examine differences among the generational cohorts in their use of information sources, levels of objective and subjective wine knowledge, wine involvement and risk perception for the two purchasing situations.
Findings
Younger consumers were found to be significantly more inclined to use Web 2.0 information sources, such as wine blogs, wine applications, their contacts’ recommendations on social media and wine experts on social media. Older consumers were more likely to use their own wine knowledge. Of greater interest is that in terms of their reliance on various wine information sources, Generation X behaves as the bridge between Generation Y and Baby Boomers. Generational differences regarding wine involvement, wine knowledge and risk perception also support this notion.
Practical implications
The results of this study reinforce the need for wineries to adopt or create strategic initiatives using Web 2.0 elements. This study also suggests that depending on the purchasing context, consumers use certain information sources more than others.
Originality/value
This research extends the understanding of the information acquisition process by expanding the types of information sources, and also yields valuable insights for consumers’ off-premise wine purchasing decisions.
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Richard Cookson, Matthew Robson, Ieva Skarda and Tim Doran
We review quantitative methods for analysing the equity impacts of health care and public health interventions: who benefits most and who bears the largest burdens (opportunity…
Abstract
Purpose
We review quantitative methods for analysing the equity impacts of health care and public health interventions: who benefits most and who bears the largest burdens (opportunity costs)? Mainstream health services research focuses on effectiveness and efficiency but decision makers also need information about equity.
Design/methodology/approach
We review equity-informative methods of quantitative data analysis in three core areas of health services research: effectiveness analysis, cost-effectiveness analysis and performance measurement. An appendix includes further readings and resources.
Findings
Researchers seeking to analyse health equity impacts now have a practical and flexible set of methods at their disposal which builds on the standard health services research toolkit. Some of the more advanced methods require specialised skills, but basic equity-informative methods can be used by any health services researcher with appropriate skills in the three core areas.
Originality/value
We hope that this review will raise awareness of equity-informative methods of health services research and facilitate their entry into the mainstream so that health policymakers are routinely presented with information about who gains and who loses from their decisions.
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This study documents the role of relational trust in an afterschool organization and its influences on young people’s experiences.
Abstract
Purpose
This study documents the role of relational trust in an afterschool organization and its influences on young people’s experiences.
Design/methodology/approach
Through a 10-month ethnographic study of one afterschool program that teaches teens how to make documentaries, I demonstrate that the confluence of blurred organizational goals; weak relational trust among staff; and funding pressures may have the unintended consequence of exploiting students for their work products and life stories.
Findings
The study finds that, while not all organizations function with student work at its center, many afterschool organizations are under increasing pressures to document student gains through tangible measures.
Practical implications
Implications from these findings reveal the need for developing strong relationships among staff members as well as establishing transparency in funding afterschool programs from within the organization and from foundations in order to provide quality programming for young people.
Originality/value
This study informs organizational theory, specifically in terms of measures of variation in relational trust within an organization and its influence on young people. This chapter includes student accounts of experiences with staff to enhance the significance of relational trust.
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Beth Wood and Adelina Broadbridge
This chapter investigates the issue of tattoos and examines whether the presence of visible tattoos still influences front line workers' employment chances. It finds that…
Abstract
This chapter investigates the issue of tattoos and examines whether the presence of visible tattoos still influences front line workers' employment chances. It finds that irrespective of a general societal shift towards greater tattoo acceptance and integration into modern society, negative stereotypes about tattoos still exist. Acceptance of tattoos in the workplace was dependent on the nature, size and location of the tattoo, as well as the occupation in question, and individual customer characteristics. Respondents were generally more accepting of tattoos on people nowadays. However, there was concern that employees with visible tattoos may still face stigma in the workplace. The findings revealed that most people will cover up a tattoo during an interview out of fear of negative discrimination by the interviewer.