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Public strategic leaders and their reflective practice in accelerated times:a narrative exploration of a utopic story
No full textPurpose – In the leadership debate, one of the questions for public leaders nowadays is how to reflect and experience meaning in these complex and accelerated times. This article compares three dominant theoretical narratives with the narratives of public strategic leaders in practice. The statement in literature is that leaders in organisations need to create time to reflect on “creating meaning” with others as an answer to the adaptive challenges. The limitation of these studies is that they do not explore leaders’ experiences in practice. We fill this gap by examining the experiences of public strategic leaders and exploring the implications.Design/methodology/approach – We qualitatively explore the narratives of 25 public strategic leaders using interviews, group dialogues and surveys.Findings – The central finding is a problematic gap between theory and practice. This is a concern because of the utopic ideology of reflectivity, which does not consider the forces present in political and bureaucratic organisations and the leaders’ perceptions of their role and position. The narrative exploration shows a pattern of leaders trying “to do good”, avoiding disruptions caused by doubts, emotions or intuitions.Practical implications – The narratives of public strategic leaders show three persistent ideologies putting pressure on their reflective space in daily practice. These narratives offer a starting point for public organisations regarding the reflective practices of strategic leaders.Originality/value – This article opens a debate about leadership and reflectivity paradigms in theory and practice. It offers a reality check for leaders’ and coaches’ daily practices, as opposed to the often utopic theories
Opening up the black box of chaplaincy:a qualitative study into the reported workings of a narrative and interfaith spiritual care intervention in palliative care at home
No full textThis study investigated the reported workings of a narrative and interfaith spiritual care intervention in palliative care at home called “In dialogue with your life story.” It was developed to address clients’ spiritual needs in the religious plural context of the Netherlands. Thus far, how the intervention impacted clients’ spiritual well-being remained a black box. A thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews with and workbooks of clients (N = 75) and chaplains (N = 33) indicated seven intervention elements that promoted clients’ spiritual well-being in four ways: (1) they offered new insights and a better overview, (2) provided a place to connect and share experiences, (3) helped to reach deeper layers of meaning, and (4) brought out feelings of calmness and gratitude. The findings shed light on the intervention’s black box and encourage further exploration of associations between chaplaincy goals, processes, and outcomes
Validating the socio-spiritual items of the Utrecht Symptom Diary-4 Dimensional:Content and construct validity
No full textBACKGROUND: The Utrecht Symptom Diary-4 Dimensional (USD-4D) is a multidimensional Patient-Reported Outcome Measure to monitor symptoms and needs and increase patients' self-efficacy. Assessing the content and construct validity of the USD-4D ensures it accurately measures the intended construct and is contextually relevant.AIMS: This study aimed to assess the content and construct validity of the socio-spiritual items of the USD-4D in a population of Dutch patients in the palliative phase of their illness.DESIGN: A multiple method study was performed consisting of a cross-sectional survey and an observational cohort study.PARTICIPANTS: The study population consisted of (a) healthcare providers working with patients in the palliative phase and (b) a cohort of patients with a life limiting illness in all settings supplemented by a cohort of hospice patients.RESULTS: At least 80% of participants positively assessed the items comprehensibility and relevance. About half of the respondents indicated that certain items are missing from the USD-4D. A qualitative analysis of missing topics revealed either topics for monitoring over time or topics underlying the constructs included. For every item, at least 75% of hypotheses were confirmed. One hypothesis for the item "I can let my loved ones go" was rejected.CONCLUSIONS: This study confirmed the content and construct validity on the socio-spiritual items of the USD-4D. Hence, the USD-4D is a validated PROM suitable to be structurally used in clinical palliative care to signal, monitor and to go into dialogue about social and spiritual aspects of patients' values, wishes, and needs.</p
Holocaust Reparations:Scrutinizing ‘the model’ of Transitional Justice
No full textThe German Wiedergutmachung has become a model for dealing with post-conflict situations worldwide, also an ideal in the field of Transitional Justice, a field that studies the long-term effects of human rights violations and instruments to deal with them. Its comprehensiveness embodies the idea of “having worked through one’s difficult past effectively” and is therefore often used as a reference by groups that have not yet been acknowledged. Susan Neiman’s book Learning from the Germans is a provocative call for the United States to do more to address its own history of slavery. This referencing to Germany is a powerful tool in current reparation movements; however, as some of the more anthropological and conceptual literature shows, often reparation instruments have felt less reparative as assumes. This chapter will argue that we have missed out by not learning more from these models’ deficits – learning from those for whom reparations programs were conceptualized in the first place. This chapter aims to bring insights from Holocaust Studies to the field of Transitional Justice and thus pursues a normative approach grounded in empirical data
Professional guidelines for social work:A study of the current state, practice and further development of guidelines for social work in the Netherlands
Get PDFIn Nederland is al geruime tijd discussie over de wenselijkheid en noodzaak van professionele richtlijnen voor het sociaal werk. Richtlijnen kunnen sociaal werkers ondersteunen bij het maken van afwegingen in de praktijk, door wetenschappelijke kennis, best practices en ethische normen samen te brengen. Tegelijkertijd bestaat er aarzeling, omdat richtlijnen ook geassocieerd worden met controle en standaardisering, wat kan botsen met de nadruk op maatwerk en ontextgevoeligheid die het sociaal werk kenmerkt.In the Netherlands, there has been considerable debate about the desirability and necessity of professional guidelines for social work. Guidelines can support social workers in making practical decisions by bringing together scientific knowledge, best practices, and ethical standards. At the same time, there is hesitation because guidelines are also associated with control and standardization, which can conflict with the emphasis on customization and context-sensitiveness that characterizes social work
Interactionist youth work
Get PDFVeel jongeren hebben het zwaar. Jeugdprofessionals helpen hen meestal zich aan te passen aan hun omstandigheden. Sebastian Abdallah pleit voor een andere manier van werken met jongeren: de ‘interactionistische’ benadering. Deze benadering is holistisch, belichaamd, dynamisch en transformatief.Many young people are struggling. Youth professionals usually help them adapt to their circumstances. Sebastian Abdallah advocates for a different way of working with young people: the "interactionist" approach. This approach is holistic, embodied, dynamic, and transformative
Unveiling life stories about social justice for individuals with intellectual disabilities:A case study of Nazi’s eugenic practices
No full textThis paper unveils the story of Wilhelm, an individual with intellectual and physical disabilities in the context of eugenics practices during the Nazi regime. The findings of the singular case study are presented in a storytelling format, for contextual understanding, and to help everyone better comprehend the challenges faced by individuals with intellectual disabilities. Wilhelm’s story has been discussed through the lens of social justice shaping his world into one in which violence was justifiable. Lessons have been drawn to advocate for ongoing evaluation of social justice concepts, guided by criteria that reflect the realities and voices of the individuals involved. Additionally, we seek to enhance possibilities to unveil stories and honor the memory of individuals with intellectual disabilities who endured the atrocities of the Nazi era
Let’s Talk about Climate Justice in Higher Business Education:Narrating Business Students’ and Teachers’ Climate (Justice) Emotions
No full textBetekenisvol ouder worden:Over het grijze gebied tussen ouder worden en samenleven
No full textIn the light of increasing appeals to consider meaningful ageing as a societal rather than a personal issue, both in public discourse and in academia, this paper discusses how De Beauvoir recasts life in society through the prism of ageing. I argue that De Beauvoir herewith provides an important corrective to tendencies to ‘under-socialize’ or ‘over-socialize’ meaning in later life. These tendencies can be traced back to the traditional conceptualization of old age as decline but also play out in recent critical phenomenologies of ageing. Through a critical discussion of the problems hereof, I elucidate how we can address these problems by articulating with De Beauvoir the grey area between ageing and life in society. By juxtaposing De Beauvoir with Arendt, I flesh out the implications for the politics of meaningful ageing
Spiritual Needs and Concerns of Infertility Patients:A Literature Review
No full textUndergoing infertility treatment greatly impacts people in every dimension of life, including their spiritual existence. Spirituality is an intrinsic part of human existence and comprises three essential attributes and two common qualities. The three key attributes are: (I) transcendence, (II) connectedness to self, others and the world, and (III) the human search for meaning and purpose. The two qualities that distinguish spirituality are (1) the capability for change and evolvement and (2) a personal way of ‘being in the world.’ However, very little attention has been paid in research to the specific spiritual needs of infertility patients. We conducted a narrative literature review to examine what is known, with the aim of coming to a thorough understanding of the spiritual concerns of patients of fertility clinics. Based on the search criteria, 48 studies from around the world were included. We found that spiritual concerns of infertility patients occur in the midst of life as it is lived. Analyzing the literature shows how the three attributes of patients’ spirituality change profoundly, while the two qualities are revealed in the fluidity and open-ended nature of this change. We describe this change as the unraveling of the experienced unity of life. We conclude that current literature lacks a framework that looks at humanity as existing in and through relations. This would enhance the understanding of the spiritual needs of infertility patients