NUI Maynooth Eprint Archive
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A cross-national comparative study exploring formative assessment enactment in Ireland and Scotland
No full textHow formative assessment is enacted is not fully understood. This thesis explored formative
assessment enactment in Ireland and Scotland with a specific focus on the factors that promote
or inhibit enactment. The literature review revealed a gap in the research on how formative
assessment is enacted in second level science classrooms, particularly in Ireland. The study
employed a multi-site case study methodology with activity theory providing the theoretical
lens. A sample of four second level schools (two in Ireland and two in Scotland), four school
leaders, and eight science teachers with their lower second level science classes were recruited
to the study. Data were gathered using interview, observation, video data, desk research, and
the Q methodology. Qualitative data were coded using themes relating to formative assessment
(Wiliam and Thompson, 2007) and activity theory (Engeström, 1987). Q data were analysed
quantitively using PQ Method software (Schmolck & Atkinson, 2002). Findings from this
thesis illustrated that in Ireland there is a strong focus on tools for formative assessment without
consideration of its true purpose: improved learning and responsive teaching. While teachers
plan to enact formative assessment, they were not using it to inform teaching and learning. The
cultural context of high stakes examinations in Ireland was also undermining formative
assessment enactment. Scotland had a longer time with formative assessment in their
Curriculum for Excellence (Scottish Executive, 2004). However the data showed teachers were
still not enacting formative assessment effectively. The findings add new knowledge to the
scholarship on formative assessment. Most notably a pair of factors for effective formative
assessment enactment are presented: cultural context and assessment literacy. In addition, this
thesis uncovered a variety of other factors that were influencing formative assessment
enactment including curriculum, whole school initiatives, professional development, school
community, teacher professional identity, and teacher student relationships
How does the COVID-19 pandemic impact on population mental health? A network analysis of COVID influences on depression, anxiety and traumatic stress in the UK population
No full textBackground. The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) emergency has led to numerous
attempts to assess the impact of the pandemic on population mental health. The findings indicate an increase in depression and anxiety but have been limited by the lack of specificity
about which aspects of the pandemic (e.g. viral exposure or economic threats) have led to
adverse mental health outcomes.
Methods. Network analyses were conducted on data from wave 1 (N = 2025, recruited 23
March–28 March 2020) and wave 2 (N = 1406, recontacts 22 April–1 May 2020) of the
COVID-19 Psychological Research Consortium Study, an online longitudinal survey of a representative sample of the UK adult population. Our models included depression (PHQ-9),
generalized anxiety (GAD-7) and trauma symptoms (ITQ); and measures of COVID-specific
anxiety, exposure to the virus in self and close others, as well as economic loss due to the
pandemic.
Results. A mixed graphical model at wave 1 identified a potential pathway from economic
adversity to anxiety symptoms via COVID-specific anxiety. There was no association between
viral exposure and symptoms. Ising network models using clinical cut-offs for symptom
scores at each wave yielded similar findings, with the exception of a modest effect of viral
exposure on trauma symptoms at wave 1 only. Anxiety and depression symptoms formed
separate clusters at wave 1 but not wave 2.
Conclusions. The psychological impact of the pandemic evolved in the early phase of lockdown. COVID-related anxiety may represent the mechanism through which economic consequences of the pandemic are associated with psychiatric symptoms
Assessing the implications of SCHREMS II for EU-US data flow
No full textWith the constant flow of data across jurisdictions, issues
regarding conflicting laws and the protection of rights arise. This article
considers the EU–US data transfer relationship in the aftermath of the
decision in Data Protection Commissioner v Facebook Ireland and
Maximillian Schrems where the Court of Justice of the European Union
(CJEU) invalidated an EU–US data transfer agreement for the second
time in just five years. This judgment continues the line of cases
emphasising the high value the Court places on securing EU personal
data in accordance with EU data protection standards and fundamental
rights. This article assesses the implications of the ruling for the
vulnerable EU–US data transfer relationship
Implementing Artificial Intelligence in Traditional B2B Marketing Practices: An Activity Theory Perspective
No full textAnecdotal evidence suggests that artificial intelligence (AI) technologies are highly effective in digital marketing and rapidly
growing in popularity in the context of business-to-business (B2B) marketing. Yet empirical research on AI-powered B2B
marketing, and particularly on the socio-technical aspects of its use, is sparse. This study uses Activity Theory (AT) as a
theoretical lens to examine AI-powered B2B marketing as a collective activity system, and to illuminate the contradictions
that emerge when adopting and implementing AI into traditional B2B marketing practices. AT is appropriate in the context
of this study, as it shows how contradictions act as a motor for change and lead to transformational changes, rather than
viewing tensions as a threat to prematurely abandon the adoption and implementation of AI in B2B marketing. Based on
eighteen interviews with industry and academic experts, the study identifies contradictions with which marketing researchers
and practitioners must contend. We show that these contradictions can be culturally or politically challenging to confront,
and even when resolved, can have both intended and unintended consequences
The Queer Transnational in Kate O'Brien and Elizabeth Bowen
No full textThe queer experience in Irish writing can be described as an experience of estrangement from
the nation. Disillusion and migration have been the keynotes of the queer literary imagination,
preoccupations that are still visible in the contemporary work of writers such as Naoise Dolan
and Darragh Martin. In the first half of the twentieth century, the pursuit of national
consolidation in the precariously legitimate Irish Free State was a project of entrenching
heterosexism and silencing disruptive erotic possibilities. Queer identifications were exiled,
constructed as foreign, polluting influences in the rigidly bordered nation.1 Feminist and queer
ways of thinking thus pose a potent challenge to the heteronormativity of the modern Irish
nation-state; however, the constitutive role of transnational modes of thought has been
overlooked. In myriad ways, the transnational is interwoven with queer imaginaries; they cannot
be thought without one another. This dualistic contestation of hegemonic sex/gender
conventions can be helpfully drawn together in the term ‘the queer transnational.
Artificial boundaries? Shaping policy through empowering research
No full textThis paper is about the politics of policy knowledge production. It calls for spaces to be forged to allow teachers’ voices to have centre stage in knowledge creation and production. Specifically, this paper discusses the need for alternative ways of conducting educational research so that power in research design is utilised as a capacity for change. First, the politics of knowledge production is explored. The second and most central task of this paper is to highlight the role that teachers’ knowledge can play in shaping education policy through emancipatory research practices. Overall, this paper advocates that the time has arrived for a fresh look at teachers’ participation in the production and validation of knowledge. Valuing teachers’ embodied knowledge and the unique position teachers hold within the education system, this paper is a window on the present, and suggests the direction the conversation should take in order to move education policy beyond the endless accumulation of evidence towards impactful change
How to avoid others and influence people: Attachment orientations predict leader prototypicality in ad hoc teams
No full textThe existing literature has explored the role and importance of personality traits in leader prototypicality. However, limited research exists concerning the link between personality traits and leader emergence or prototypicality in ad hoc teams. Based on the relational leadership and attachment literature, we examine whether leader attachment orientations can serve as antecedents of leader prototypicality in ad hoc teams. Utilizing an ad hoc problem-solving task featuring a round-robin design in a sample of 197 participants, we find that individuals with a dominant avoidant attachment orientation were more likely to be perceived as leader-like or leader prototypical. In comparison, individuals with a dominant anxious attachment orientation were much less likely to emerge as leader prototypical. We interpret these findings in alignment with attachment theory and relational leadership and discuss the role of relational personality traits in ad hoc teams with no formally appointed leader
Do CMIP models capture long-term observed annual precipitation trends?
No full textThis study provides a long-term (1891–2014) global assessment of precipitation trends using data from two station-based gridded datasets and climate model outputs evolved through the fifth and sixth phases of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP5 and CMIP6, respectively). Our analysis employs a variety of modeling groups that incorporate low- and high-top level members, with the aim of assessing the possible effects of including a well-resolved stratosphere on the model’s ability to reproduce long-term observed annual precipitation trends. Results demonstrate that only a few regions show statistically significant differences in precipitation trends between observations and models. Nevertheless, this pattern is mostly caused by the strong interannual variability of precipitation in most of the world regions. Thus, statistically significant model-observation differences on trends (1891–2014) are found at the zonal mean scale. The different model groups clearly fail to reproduce the spatial patterns of annual precipitation trends and the regions where stronger increases
or decreases are recorded. This study also stresses that there are no significant differences between low- and high-top models in capturing observed precipitation trends, indicating that having a well-resolved stratosphere has a low impact on the accuracy of precipitation projections
A Systematic Text-Analytics-Based Meta-Synthesis Approach for Smart Urban Development
No full text‘Smart’ has become a leitmotif that is widely assumed to reach the goals of urban sustainability and improve the living standards of people. Though there is an exponential increase in the smart cities' research during the last two decades, the concept is still silent about the importance of existing cities and communities to achieve Smart Urban Development (SUD). Authors propose a Systematic Literature Search and Review framework, coupled with deductive text computational and inductive grounded theory methods for the meta-synthesis. This study contributes to the present research landscape by facilitating urban professionals for framing integrated strategies, instead of blindly fixing the urban spaces with technological components. The automated text analysis for meta-synthesis is a novel approach for analyzing a diverse concept like Smart City, by eliminating chances of human errors. The findings conclude that the three-dimensional objectives of SUD are achieving sustainable development, high quality of life, and inclusive development
Paranoid beliefs and conspiracy mentality are associated with different forms of mistrust: A three-nation study
No full textParanoia and conspiracy are terms typically used interchangeably. However, although the underlying content of these types of beliefs might be similar (e.g., seeing others as powerful and threatening), recent research suggests that these constructs differ in important ways. One important feature shared by both constructs is excessive mistrust but this aspect might play different roles in each belief system. In this study we explored the strength of associations of different trust predictors (i.e., trust in institutions, trust in sources of information, perceptual trust, and interpersonal trust) between conspiracy mentality and paranoid beliefs. We tested this association in a large representative multinational sample (United Kingdom n = 2025; Spain n = 1951; and Ireland n = 1041). Confirmatory factor analysis supported a two-factor model of conspiracy and paranoid beliefs in each nation sample. Path and equality of constraints analysis revealed that paranoia was more strongly associated with perceptual mistrust (bias towards mistrusting unfamiliar faces) whereas conspiracy was more strongly associated with mistrust in political institutions. Although interpersonal mistrust and trust in social sources of information were associated significantly with conspiracy their association with paranoid beliefs was stronger. These findings clarify the role of different trust processes in both belief systems. Limitations of this study are discussed