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A systematic review of occupational safety and health in modular integrated construction
No full textThe construction industry is facing increased pressure to enhance efficiency and safety, owing to its high incident rates. Modular integrated construction (MiC) has gained significant attention from scholars and practitioners as a viable means of enhancing the overall performance of the industry. Despite its numerous advantages, MiC presents occupational safety and health (OSH) challenges due to its unique characteristics, like offsite manufacturing, standardisation, and specialised assembly processes. These complexities necessitate comprehensive management of OSH risks. Although existing studies have addressed OSH issues in MiC, a comprehensive review that thoroughly covers the OSH issues throughout the entire lifecycle of MiC is lacking. To address this gap, a systematic literature review (SLR) following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) approach was conducted, resulting in the identification of 130 relevant articles from Scopus and Web of Science (WoS). This SLR identified the OSH areas addressed by MiC, types of OSH hazards and risk outcomes associated with MiC, hierarchies of control, types of construction work and MiC lifecycle stages, technologies used for OSH management, challenges in OSH management of MiC, and future research directions. The results show that the most commonly researched hazards that have been mitigated and introduced by MiC are fall- and health-related hazards, respectively. Additionally, administrative controls are the most common hierarchy of control in the previous studies. This in-depth knowledge offers practitioners valuable insights into hazards and risk outcomes associated with MiC, while emphasising the technologies used in various studies to mitigate these risks
Working towards an environmentally sustainable and equitable future? New evidence on green jobs from linked administrative data in the UK
Get PDFGiven the urgency of the transition to net-zero, there is a need for a robust evidence base to support an environmentally sustainable and equitable economy. Employing a linked administrative dataset and using both cross sectional and panel estimation techniques, this study examines employment opportunities and estimates the economic benefits of working in green occupations. Consistent with social role theory, the results indicate that individuals are more likely to work in green occupations if they are white, male, full-time, not represented by a collective agreement, and work for a small or foreign owned business.Contributing to the international literature on pay in green jobs, the study reports a pay premium of four percent after controlling for other factors. Employees covered by collective agreements receive additional pay benefits, yet representation is less prevalent in directly green occupations. In line with research into attitude-behaviour gaps, the study demonstrates that while personal travel behaviours and green employment choices are often inconsistent, when they align this yields a pay dividend.The research makes an important and novel contribution by showing that green employment can partially mitigate inter-occupation pay gaps, while identifying that persistent gender and ethnic pay disparities remain within green occupations. Females appear particularly disadvantaged by domestic and childcare responsibilities. This study also reports sector effects, with more traditional industries such as manufacturing and construction exhibiting entrenched gender biases. The results highlight the need to integrate considerations of inequality into theoretical frameworks that aim to understand and conceptualise the uptake of green jobs
What makes a good article for leadership? Thoughts and views from our associate editors, part 2
Get PDFLast year we published an editorial that included thoughts and views about what makes a good article for Leadership from three of our associate editors (see Edwards et al., 2024). As this editorial was so well received, we wanted to do the same this year and publish a part 2. This time we hear from three more associate editors –Sarah Robinson, Richard Bolden and Suze Wilson, as they too respond to the following questions:1. What do you look for in a strong article, suitable for submission to Leadership?2. What do you see as a critical contribution to leadership studies?3. Can you highlight and/or explore some past articles published in Leadership that exemplify your views?As you will see below, the Associate Editors push us towards key thinking around building and traversing bridges in leadership studies to enable areas to be uncovered that have been inaccessible previously. We are also taken back 20 years to the birth of the journal Leadership and are reminded of the original aims; from this we are encouraged to never stop questioning. Lastly, we are also pushed to think differently about leadership with exemplars of critical leadership scholarship. We hope that you enjoy the read once more
Asymmetric relationship between diversification and liquidity creation: Empirical evidence from GCC
No full textThis study examines how bank diversification affects liquidity creation by using the bank level data of GCC countries. We use data from 205 banks in GCC over the period of 2005–2019. To test the hypothesized relationship, we employ the GMM methodological framework. The findings of the study reveal that both income and asset diversification adversely affect the narrow and broad measure of banks' liquidity creation. However, funding diversification positively(negatively) influences the broad(narrow) measure of liquidity creation. The results highlight that bank diversification is a double-edged sword; although it can help in reducing risk, but it also vanishes the banks' ability to create liquidity. However, the in-depth and detailed analyses reveal that the impact is asymmetrical across large, small, well-capitalized, and undercapitalized banks. Furthermore, comparing the normal and crisis periods highlights that banks behave differently in different economic conditions. The results have several implications for the bank managers and decision makers; they must consider the trade-off between liquidity creation and level of diversification. Additionally, the asymmetry in results implies that managers must consider the level/bank's specific characteristics while making such strategic decisions
taxMyPhage: Automated taxonomy of dsDNA phage genomes at the genus and species level
Get PDFBackground: Bacteriophages are classified into genera and species based on genomic similarity, a process regulated by the International Committee on the Taxonomy of Viruses. With the rapid increase in phage genomic data there is a growing need for automated classification systems that can handle large-scale genome analyses and place phages into new or existing genera and species.Materials and Methods: We developed taxMyPhage, a tool system for the rapid automated classification of dsDNA bacteriophage genomes. The system integrates a MASH database, built from ICTV-classified phage genomes to identify closely related phages, followed by BLASTn to calculate intergenomic similarity, conforming to ICTV guidelines for genus and species classification. taxMyPhage is available as a git repository at https://github.com/amillard/tax_myPHAGE, a conda package, a pip-installable tool, and a web service at https://phagecompass.ku.dk.Results: taxMyPhage enables rapid classification of bacteriophages to the genus and species level. Benchmarking on 705 genomes pending ICTV classification showed a 96.7% accuracy at the genus level and 97.9% accuracy at the species level. The system also detected inconsistencies in current ICTV classifications, identifying cases where genera did not adhere to ICTV’s 70% average nucleotide identity (ANI) threshold for genus classification or 95% ANI for species. The command line version classified 705 genomes within 48 h, demonstrating its scalability for large datasets.Conclusions: taxMyPhage significantly enhances the speed and accuracy of bacteriophage genome classification at the genus and species levels, making it compatible with current sequencing outputs. The tool facilitates the integration of bacteriophage classification into standard workflows, thereby accelerating research and ensuring consistent taxonomy
"How can you think about losing your mind?": A reflexive thematic analysis of adapting the LivDem group intervention for couples and families living with dementia
Get PDFIntroduction: Despite the psychological challenges that dementia creates, comparatively little attention has been paid to how individuals or families can be helped to adjust to dementia. One of the few interventions to do this is the Living well with Dementia (LivDem) post-diagnostic course. LivDem focuses on supporting individuals to talk more openly about their dementia. However, while family supporters attend preliminary and follow up sessions, their role is limited and finding a way for them to be more actively involved might enhance the impact of the intervention and make it more flexible. We therefore set out to explore how the current LivDem intervention could be adapted for couples and families.Method: We completed eleven semi-structured interviews and focus groups with four groups of stakeholders: people living with dementia and their families: LivDem facilitators; researchers in this area; and psychotherapists with experience of working with couples or families living with dementia. Interviews were transcribed and analysed using reflexive thematic analysis.Results: Four main themes were generated: “Hear the impact on everybody”; People who are “ready to do that”; “It’s such a fine line”; and “You deal with it in your family”. Participants emphasised that the intervention needs to be delivered by willing and skilled facilitators to people who are ready to talk in their family context; and this intervention needs to be embedded within connected services. Conclusions: Stakeholders felt that it would be possible to adapt the LivDem model for couples and families so long as a number of conditions were met. An adapted family or couple version of LivDem has the potential to facilitate improved adaptation to dementia and to be incorporated into dementia pathways and delivered with the NHS and the voluntary sector. Further research is needed to establish the feasibility of such an intervention
Injury risks for different road users in Nepal: a secondary analysis of routinely collected crash data
No full textBackground: Road traffic injuries are the twelfth leading cause of mortality globally. Nepal, one of the least developed countries in the world, has a rapidly rising rate of road traffic related morbidity and mortality. There is incomplete reporting of traffic crashes in Nepal in the last three WHO global status reports on road safety. Together with poor-quality coding of crashes, essential information to inform prevention interventions or make international comparisons is lacking.Objectives: The study aimed to critically analyse routinely collected traffic police data in Makwanpur District, Nepal, to identify the road user groups most likely to be involved and injured in traffic crashes in this part of the country.Design: Secondary data analysisSetting: Makwanpur district, NepalData sources: Road traffic crash records from the District Traffic Police Office, Makwanpur over two years (April 2017 – March 2018 and May 2019 – April 2020). Data were extracted from paper-based records onto an electronic database, and data analysed descriptively using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 24.0.Results: There were 291 crashes recorded in 2017/2018 and 435 crashes in 2019/20. Two-wheeled vehicles (motorcycles/scooters) were the most frequently involved in police-reported crashes (35.5%). For most crashes (419/726, 58%), no cause was documented in the police record. Road users involved in crashes were mostly riders or passengers of motorized two/three-wheelers (33.4%), four-wheeled vehicles (19.9%) or buses (16.7%). Of fatal injuries, 31.2% were riders or passengers of motorized two/ three-wheelers, and 24.8% were pedestrians.Limitations: The data used represent crashes reported to the traffic police and therefore underestimate the true number of crashes and injuries. At the end of the second period of study, local movement restrictions associated with the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown limited the traffic on the roads, resulting in fewer crashes in March and April 2020. In most crash records, there were missing data, limiting the ability to determine contributory factors with confidence.Conclusion: This study contributes to the evidence gap by describing crashes and mortality data by vehicle type and road user category. The findings suggest that the number and rates of crashes may be increasing over time. Action to improve the quality and completeness of data routinely collected by the traffic police is needed; a piloted web-based Road Accident Information Management System has the potential to support improved routine data collection. Future work: The data indicate crashes occurring in one district over two years. To better understand the apparent increase in crashes an analysis over a longer period, and over multiple districts, would be necessary
The Miracle of Morgan's Creek (1944): Three perspectives on Preston Sturges and the Production Code
No full textIn this hybrid article, the authors examine Preston Sturges’s ability to outmanoeuvre the Production Code Administration (PCA), specifically in relation to the handling of sex, pregnancy and childbirth in The Miracle of Morgan’s Creek. Our approach is intersubjective, fitting the Special Issue’s interest in the relationship between “history” and “criticism”, with each author using different methods to explore (and even experiment with) the different forms such criticism can take: Glitre closely compares PCA correspondence, the script and the finished film, to analyse Sturges’s creative strategies of substitution, omission and elision; Gibbs employs videographic approaches to address the complexity of Sturges’s long takes and how their varied and pervasive use relates to the constraints of the Production Code; Pye investigates questions of intent and the self-conscious decisions that shape the film’s extraordinary ending. Each develops critical understanding of specific filmmaking decisions and their ramifications, particularly in relation to performance, framing, movement and editing. Ultimately, the combination of sustained close textual analysis with archival research reveals the intrinsically dynamic process that underpinned the PCA’s regulation of content, and the importance of irony and pace to Sturges’s creative approach
Solar-integrated biogas reactor for efficient kitchen waste conversion to biogas
Get PDFThis study aimed to improve biogas production by co-digesting kitchen waste and animal manure in a solar-integrated biogas reactor. The panel then heated the substrate mixture to the right temperature for the reactor after turning solar energy into electricity. The experiment was conducted at mesophilic (37°C) and thermophilic (40°C) conditions. After 45 days of co-digestion of animal dung, kitchen trash, cow manure, and grasses, the solar-integrated biogas plant generated 1,445 mL of biogas with 60% CH4, 14% CO, and 21% other gases; in comparison, the conventional biogas digester produced 501 mL, 479 mL, and 525 mL, respectively, with 35-50% Methane, 18% CO, and 22% other gases. The data show that a solar-integrated biogas plant may react faster produce more gas, and have a higher methane concentration using kitchen waste and animal manure. An environmental effect analysis and prediction of biogas plant construction has been accomplished. The proposed biogas plant, supported by a solar-integrated reactor strategy, appears economically viable, projecting a five-year payback period. This research evaluates efficient biogas production techniques, emphasizing their importance in advancing engineering sustainability. It promotes the role of renewable energy, energy efficiency, and environmental sustainability in solving global energy problems and reducing climate change
Income and balance sheet diversification effects on banks' cost and profit efficiency: Evidence from the United States
No full textUsing two-step system generalized method of moments approach, we provide empirical evidence on the impact of income, asset, and funding diversification on the cost and profit efficiency of US commercial banks from 2002 to 2019. Furthermore, we use two-stage least squares to examine the interdependence between cost efficiency and profit efficiency. Our results show that funding and income (assets) diversification has a positive (detrimental) effect on the cost efficiency of banks, whereas funding (income and assets) diversification has a significantly negative (positive) effect on profit efficiency. Our findings reveal that during the global financial crisis, asset diversification is not beneficial for banks, whereas funding diversification has a positive effect on cost and profit efficiency. Our results confirm bidirectional causality between cost and profit efficiency in US commercial banks. Our mixed results on the influence of income, asset, and funding diversification on the cost and profit efficiency of banks with varying characteristics have useful implications for policymakers and regulators