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Synergies to promote successful PMI in the tourism industry
No full textGlobalisation by its very nature exemplifies acquisition of foreign firms or mergers between organisations, yet high failure of these ventures is also endemic; both national and organisational culture are cited as main reasons for these failures. The key objectives of this chapter are to explore (i) The key frameworks that impact national and organisational culture in a M&A setting, with a focus on the tourism industry, (ii) the link that dynamic capabilities and experiential learning have on success post-merger. The Research Questions are (i) what role do dynamic capabilities play in synergising post-merger successes? and (ii) what impact does experiential learning have on the success of integration after a merger or acquisition
Doing and undoing gender in physical education and youth sport: the potential for practice
No full textThis chapter provides an academic review of the literature on gendered practices in physical education (PE) and explores the concept of doing and undoing gender within this educational setting. The concept of doing gender refers to the process of maintaining, reproducing, and legitimising institutional arrangements and practices based on sex categories. The production and reproduction of gender in PE have been extensively studied, revealing the significant role of pedagogical and organisational practices in conveying and reinforcing dominant gender norms and discourses. The chapter concludes by discussing implications for future PE practices, such as reconfiguring activities traditionally attributed to specific genders, incorporating student voice in curriculum choices, and exploring the potential benefits of coeducational classes. These recommendations aim to foster a more inclusive and equitable PE environment that allows young people to explore and express their gender identities freely
Sport, leisure, and social justice at the neoliberal moment: challenges for integrity and activist scholarship
No full textThe introductory chapter of this handbook serves as a contextual framework for the subsequent sections, highlighting notable recent events that demonstrate the growing influence of sport and leisure in advancing social justice causes. The chapter aims to situate social justice as a political concept typically associated with state intervention in promoting equity, diversity, and inclusion. It documents the dominant leftist perspective that has shaped conventional discourses on social justice, which in turn has strongly influenced political debates within the field of sport and leisure studies. However, the chapter also acknowledges the appropriation of social justice by groups and organisations on the political right, particularly neoliberals, suggesting the need for alternative approaches and a comprehensive understanding of social justice in the specific contexts of sport and leisure studies. It argues for the development and refinement of a more nuanced definition of social justice within these fields as well as developing methodologies that contribute to greater human emancipation
Participation for protection:new perspectives on the value of young people’s involvement in research addressing sexual violence
Get PDFWithin our research to address sexual violence, we have developed an approach supporting collaboration between young people and academic staff called YRAP (Young Researchers Advisory Panel). YRAP exists to support young people’s influence in research addressing sexual violence – both in our university and beyond. In this article, current and former YRAP members, as well as current and former academic supporting staff, reflect on our experiences and learning. We also highlight the importance of finding new ways to explain the value and contribution of our work through the development of an infographic and model called Participation as Protection
Push-pull determinants of livelihood diversification among rural dwellers in oil-polluted communities in Niger Delta, Nigeria
Get PDFLivelihood diversification enables households to participate in multiple activities to widen income sources. This research examined the determinants (push and pull) of livelihood diversification among the rural poor in oil-polluted communities of the Niger Delta. Primary data were used for the study using a well-structured questionnaire from 320 household heads who had a direct impact by the oil spill in Ogoni land. The data collected were analyzed using standard deviation, mean and paired sample tests. The study revealed that the push factors were strong motivation for diversification as the oil spillage in the area was enough distress and necessitated the diversification. However, some households were motivated by pull factors based on available skills to explore off-farm and non-farm activities. It is recommended that training initiatives aimed at equipping rural residents of oil-polluted areas with skills applicable to non-farm occupations should be consistently carried out
Artificial intelligence detects awareness of functional relation with the environment in 3 month old babies
Get PDFA recent experiment probed how purposeful action emerges in early life by manipulating infants' functional connection to an object in the environment (i.e., tethering an infant's foot to a colorful mobile). Vicon motion capture data from multiple infant joints were used here to create Histograms of Joint Displacements (HJDs) to generate pose-based descriptors for 3D infant spatial trajectories. Using HJDs as inputs, machine and deep learning systems were tasked with classifying the experimental state from which snippets of movement data were sampled. The architectures tested included k-Nearest Neighbour (kNN), Linear Discriminant Analysis (LDA), Fully connected network (FCNet), 1D-Convolutional Neural Network (1D-Conv), 1D-Capsule Network (1D-CapsNet), 2D-Conv and 2D-CapsNet. Sliding window scenarios were used for temporal analysis to search for topological changes in infant movement related to functional context. kNN and LDA achieved higher classification accuracy with single joint features, while deep learning approaches, particularly 2D-CapsNet, achieved higher accuracy on full-body features. For each AI architecture tested, measures of foot activity displayed the most distinct and coherent pattern alterations across different experimental stages (reflected in the highest classification accuracy rate), indicating that interaction with the world impacts the infant behaviour most at the site of organism~world connection
How to extend pilot innovation in public services: a case of children's social care innovation
Get PDFThere is considerable investment by government policymakers in supporting pilot innovation in public services, following which pilots prove difficult to sustain. Our 4-year longitudinal study of three pilot innovations in England, which seek to support the transition of care leavers into adulthood, provides insight into how such pilots can be sustained. Conceiving innovation as a journey, our study first identifies the dynamics of innovation around five key ingredients: the role of senior managers in cultivating a receptive context for innovation, distributed leadership, user co-production, measurement of outcomes, and innovation adaption. Second, our study highlights some ingredients are more important as implementation of innovation is initiated and may fade in importance as the innovation journey proceeds. Third, our study shows innovation ingredients are shaped by organizational contingencies of performance and financial pressures. Finally, we suggest a need for a contextualized implementation science framework to examine innovation in social care
Exploring the impact of business analytics on strategic decision-making in uncertain environments
No full textBusiness analytics presents significant opportunities for enhancing strategic decision-making (SDM), yet a significant knowledge gap exists in our understanding of the interplay among environmental dynamism, business analytics use, environmental scanning, and rational and intuitive SDM. This paper aims to address this gap by leveraging the information processing view. Analyzing 218 survey responses using partial least squares (PLS) path modeling, the study underscores the influence of environmental dynamism on both business analytics use and environmental scanning. Furthermore, it reveals that while business analytics positively influences rational SDM, it exerts a negative effect on intuitive SDM. Additionally, environmental scanning partially mediates the link between business analytics use and rational SDM. Moreover, rational SDM exhibits a negative correlation with intuitive SDM. This study contributes to the literature by introducing a novel theoretical framework, enriching the information processing view, and deepening our understanding of how strategic information processing capabilities influence nonroutine and crucial SDM. Furthermore, it furnishes practical insights for organizations employing business analytics within dynamic contexts to enhance their SDM processes
Effects of continuous cropping of Codonopsis pilosula on rhizosphere soil microbial community structure and metabolomics
Get PDFCodonopsis pilosula is an important medicinal plant in China. Continuous cropping of C. pilosula affects crop quality and yield. However, comprehensive research on the impacts of continuous cropping on soil properties, microbial community structures, and soil metabolites is lacking. This study involved collecting rhizosphere soil samples from C. pilosula monocropped for 1 to 4 years to analyze variations in soil properties, microbial community structure, and metabolites across different continuous-cropping years (CCYs) through metabolomic and microbiomic analyses. Significant variations in the soil properties were observed; total phosphorus (TP) and available potassium (AK) in the rhizosphere soil increased with the number of CCYs, and pH declined. The microbial community structure significantly changed with continuous cropping. Overall, the soil bacterial diversity decreased with increasing CCY. The abundances of Proteobacteria and Firmicutes significantly decreased with increasing CCY, whereas the abundance of Acidobacteria significantly increased. The fungal diversity tended to decrease, with an increase in the abundance of beneficial Basidiomycota and an increase in potentially pathogenic Rozellomycota. Metabolomic analysis revealed 101 metabolites and significant changes in lipid compounds, organic acids, phenols, and carbohydrates. Notably, autotoxic substances such as 2,6-di-tert-butylphenol accumulated with increasing CCY. The results indicated that the main factors causing continuous-cropping obstacles in C. pilosula were soil nutrient imbalance and autotoxic substance accumulation. Continuous cropping of C. pilosula significantly altered the microbial community structure and metabolomic profile of rhizosphere soils. Effective management practices are needed to mitigate soil acidification, nutrient imbalances, and autotoxic substance accumulation during continuous cropping. Future research should focus on integrated soil management strategies to maintain soil health and crop productivity in C. pilosula continuous-cropping systems
High-resolution precipitation prediction in Bangladesh via ensemble learning
Get PDFAs a developing agricultural country, Bangladesh is vulnerable to the effects of climate change, so accurate precipitation prediction is of great value to Bangladesh in achieving sustainable development. Traditional climate simulation models and prediction tools find it challenging to meet the growing needs on high spatial resolution. In this paper, we developed a XGBoost-based spatio-temporal precipitation prediction model and then generated high-resolution precipitation distribution maps in Bangladesh from 2025 to 2035, where the spatial resolution can reach 0.1° latitude and longitude. Finally, the EOF analysis reveals three leading modes in high-resolution precipitation evolution during 2025–2035
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