6277 research outputs found
Sort by
One myth to rule them all and in the darkness bind them: a critical examination of Joseph Campbell's The Hero's Journey
No full textThis special edition embarks on a critical exploration of Joseph Campbell's The Hero's Journey, challenging its dominance as a universal narrative framework and its implications for contemporary storytelling, particularly in the context of evolving media landscapes. Drawing on C.P. Nield's critique of Campbell's monomyth as a "Hollywood McMyth," the collection of articles within this edition seeks to unravel the monomyth by advocating for a narrative plurality that reflects a more inclusive and diverse spectrum of stories. Contributors to this edition engage with alternative narrative paradigms that emphasise community, companionship, and commonality, moving beyond the individualistic focus of Campbell's framework. This shift is underscored by the rise of interactive and immersive storytelling technologies, such as VR, AR, and XR, which demand a re-evaluation of narrative structures to accommodate the dynamic and fluid nature of contemporary storytelling. Through a decolonial lens, the articles collectively argue for a decentring of narrative meaning, proposing new approaches that embrace the complexities of global challenges and the multiplicity of human experiences. Setting the stage for a critical examination of The Hero's Journey, inviting readers to consider the ethical implications of narratives in shaping socio-cultural values and norms in an era of immersive and participatory media
Research and innovation identified to decarbonise the maritime sector
No full textThe maritime sector requires technically, environmentally, socially, and economically informed pathways to decarbonise and eliminate all emissions harmful to the environment and health. This is extremely challenging and complex, and a wide range of technologies and solutions are currently being explored. However, it is important to assess the state-of-the-art and identify further research and innovation required to accelerate decarbonisation. The UK National Clean Maritime Research Hub have identified key priority areas to drive this process, with particular focus on marine fuels, power and propulsion, vessel efficiency, port operations and infrastructure, digitalisation, finance, regulation, and policy
A systematic review on the determinants of customer relationship quality in agile projects in the IT industry: a social exchange theory perspective
No full textIn recent decades, Sri Lanka's IT industry has thrived, contributing significantly to economic development. Effective project management, especially using Agile methodologies, has been key to this success. Agile, with its customer-centric and flexible approach, has replaced traditional models like Waterfall, emphasizing frequent software delivery and active customer engagement. Customer Relationship Quality is vital for project success, fostering customer satisfaction and loyalty. Agile methods prioritize strong customer relationships through collaboration and customer involvement. However, challenges persist in Sri Lanka due to a lack of understanding among software companies regarding factors crucial for maintaining robust customer relationships, leading to project failures and dissatisfied customers. To address these challenges, this paper undertook a systematic literature review, focusing on Agile project management, Social Exchange Theory, and Customer Relationship Quality. The research question was, "What factors influence Customer Relationship Quality in Agile IT Projects, from a Social Exchange Theory perspective?". Peer-reviewed articles, conference papers, and book chapters from 2012 to 2023 were reviewed, emphasizing human-centered aspects. The study uncovered an overlap in factors affecting both Agile project success and Customer Relationship Quality, highlighting the pivotal role of Customer Relationship Quality. Common factors, such as communication, culture, team capability, and commitment, were identified as crucial elements for project success and relationship quality. Future research should explore these shared factors in-depth to enhance Agile project success and Customer Relationship Quality. This research contributes to a deeper understanding of Agile project management, customer relationships, and their interconnectedness, emphasizing the need for further studies in this evolving field
How do Legal Aid cuts in England and Wales impact LGBTQ+ people seeking asylum? Perspectives from providers and directly affected people
No full textIntroductionLGBTQ+ people seeking asylum in England and Wales may experience disproportionate risk due to recent cutbacks in legal aid services, including inconsistent standards for determining the credibility of asylum claims and the inability to obtain essential resources.MethodsInterviews were conducted with legal, social care, and mental health professionals (n = 17) and directly affected people (n = 9) from January to April 2023 to explore how legal aid cuts shape the experiences of LGBTQ+ people seeking asylum in England and Wales.ResultsGuided by the concept of structural violence and employing constructivist grounded theory analysis, this qualitative study identified four themes demonstrating the impact of legal aid cuts: making it difficult to find solicitors with expertise in working with LGBTQ+ people seeking asylum; forcing solicitors to make difficult choices about the clients they accept; compromising the ability of solicitors to build the trust needed to work with LGBTQ+ people seeking asylum; and compounding life instabilities for LGBTQ+ people seeking asylum.ConclusionsFindings reveal that legal aid cuts contribute to structural violence against LGBTQ+ people seeking asylum by constraining the ability of solicitors to properly represent their asylum claims and thus prolonging the deleterious conditions faced by this population.Policy ImplicationsEfforts are needed to ensure access to legal aid services for LGBTQ+ people seeking asylum in England and Wales. Adequately funding legal aid services would also better enable solicitors to apply trauma-informed legal practices, which is imperative for effectively engaging with and representing LGBTQ+ people seeking asylum
The city as escape room: place, participation, meaning, and affect
No full textThrough the lens of ecologies of belonging, The City as Escape Room transfers a simple and commonly held understanding of the escape room into a metaphor that reveals a complex layering of place, participation, and affect in meaning-making for transmedia storytellers. It situates the city as a play space where community participation, meaning-making, and co-creation are interwoven as meaningful story experiences. By mirroring the practice of urban foraging, the discussion explores transmedia storytelling as a form of sympoiesis that brings into being a shared memory, a becoming-with the city for the community that resides within. Avoiding the common placemaking tropes associated with public sector marketing and economic (re)generation, city-wide transmedia storytelling is instead considered a form of speculative fabulation that can defamiliarize the familiar and generate affective story experiences. The offering of a case study that contrasts commercial and community-driven transmedia experiences further illuminates how immersive experience design can take hold of a city as a play space and render it as a meaningful story experience
Purity and pollution: faith vegans’ categorizations of plant-based foods as pure and animal-derived foods as polluting
No full textVeganism has increased exponentially in the UK in recent years and whilst studies have attended to the redefinition of edibility and the adoption of new relationships with foodstuffs, one area that is noticeably absent from academic scholarship is the intersection with religion. Considering the influence that religion has on understandings of edibility, permissibility, and consumption, research gaps emerge pertaining to how religion and veganism come together to reshape the perceptions and categorizations of food types by vegans of faith. This article draws on a sociological study which recruited 12 Muslim vegans, 12 Jewish vegans, and 12 Christian vegans in the UK and conducted semi-structured qualitative interviews, diary methods, and virtual participant observation to gain a holistic understanding of the faith vegan experience. This article?s main finding is a dichotomous categorization of food types by faith vegans, with plant-based foods being seen as pure and animal-derived products being seen as polluting and inedible. Further, these understandings are intertwined with religious ethics, principles, and teachings in order to construct veganism as both God?s ideal diet and correct religious observance, whilst animal consumption is constructed as human greed, weakness, and a violation of what is perceived to be the ethical spirit of religion
Demanded Scale for Modern Numerical Optimisation
No full textModern online services facilitate many aspects of the human lifesuch as goods and food shopping and delivery. The number of requested services is growing fast and at the same time can be seen growth of unattendedconstraints, unforeseen limitations and accidental events which affect the quality and feasibility of the service. Efficient management of online delivery requires optimisation at appropriate scale. This article discusses examples ofonline delivery services, which require optimization, points out advantages, andlimitations, highlights their scale and the role of numerical methods for reducing the cost and time for delivery. Initial investigation illustrates algorithms capabilities to resolve such tasks and discusses current issues. Experimental results on high dimensional tests and consideration of further work conclude thearticle
Data sources:
Access Repository Dashboard
Do you manage Solent University Research Portal? Access insider analytics, issue reports and manage access to outputs from your repository in the CORE Repository Dashboard!