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Something borrowed, something new: navigating the emerging field of queer disaster studies
No full textThis chapter presents a brief history of the research, policy and practice that have informed the emergence of gender and sexual diversity in disasters, climate change and humanitarian crises, or ‘queer disaster studies’ in short. It explores critiques of the dominance of western terminology and practices in the development of queer disaster studies; the emerging field’s debt to feminist and queer theorists and HIV/AIDS community activists; and the important role played by the queering of human geography. The chapter poses disaster justice as a framework that can draw together the culturally and geographically disparate work that has been conducted on queer disaster studies within and across different sectors and disciplines
A coach’s guide to velocity-based training: definitions and diagnostics
Get PDFVelocity-based training (VBT) utilizes the measurement of velocity to help inform and influence testing, monitoring, programming, autoregulation, and feedback strategies within strength and conditioning (S&C) practice. This review focuses specifically on the definitions and underpinning principles of VBT, as well as load-velocity profiling, while undertaking an in-depth evaluation of the literature and translating this information into practical recommendations for S&C coaches. There is a detailed evaluation of the different ways to construct a load-velocity profile (LVP), providing examples of simplicity, time efficiency, increased accuracy, and optimizing training prescriptions and manipulations. New approaches, such as combining ballistic and non-ballistic exercises and methods of extrapolation have been explored. Additionally, this paper highlights practical considerations regarding data analysis, specific exercises, statistical modeling, number of loads, and extrapolation methods. A worked example of utilizing LVP data within excel has also been presented. Finally, there is a focus on one repetition maximum prediction, the benefits and challenges of implementing such an approach, and the most appropriate ways of collecting reliable and valid data
Navigating cultural collision: onboarding and adaptation of western healthcare professionals as self-initiated expatriates in Qatar and Saudi Arabia
No full textThe purpose of this study is to find and evaluate ways of mitigating the range of cultural-collision challenges faced by new Western expatriate employees adapting to a new working life in Middle Eastern organisations in the healthcare sector. The study also addresses a recognised gap in the literature concerning expatriation, highlighted by Guðmundsdóttir and Lundbergsdóttir (2016) and Chhinzer and Jinuk (2021), namely that which relates to the self-initiated expatriate (SIE). The majority of studies to date have been about in-company expatriates sent abroad on behalf of their company. However, the SIE joining both a new organisational culture and a new national environment is challenged by a range of practical, psychological and cultural issues amounting to what Guðmundsdóttir and Lundbergsdóttir (2016) describe as a ‘stark adaptive challenge’, and a ‘vast disruption to their social support network, and career’ (p 515). This was experienced in reality by the researcher as an SIE himself, and his roles in the HR departments of two different Middle Eastern organisations provided an excellent opportunity to address the following research question:
‘What factors lead to the effective optimisation of newcomer onboarding within a culturally complex, multinational healthcare organisation, and how can the process be improved by additional interventions?’
The study begins by surveying the literature and available models for describing the onboarding process, analysing organisational cultures and contrasting national cultures. From these several propositions are developed concerning the matching of the research findings with predictions arising from these chapters.
The research employed a subjective ontology and constructivist epistemology and itself follows a model of Pragmatic Action Research, appropriate for an embedded researcher. It included four phases of a Cycle – namely, Diagnosis, Action Planning, Implementation, and Evaluation. The research methods employed adopted participant observation, 1:1 interviews, focus groups, and questionnaires. Using a sample of 47 expatriates, divided into Cohort One (35 participants from Qatar) and Cohort Two (12 participants from Saudi Arabia), led to thirteen identifiable factors contributing to what the study calls cultural collision. These were grouped under three main thematic headings, namely: Leadership and Organisational Culture; Management of HR Processes; and Self-Management. The first two phases of the Action Research were done in the first organisation in Qatar. The resulting Actions could not be implemented there due to a career change for the researcher, but he was later given the opportunity to carry them out and evaluate their effectiveness four years later in the second organisation, which was in the same healthcare sector but in the culturally similar Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). Before doing so, the initial diagnosis was confirmed using a briefer approach with Cohort Two.
The diagnostic conclusions led to an Action Plan of four specific interventions which could be managed in the timescale available. That timescale meant that the factors to do with Leadership and Organisational Culture had to be treated as a given. Two of the interventions related to the HR processes surrounding Onboarding and two to Self-Management and the development of Cultural Intelligence (CQ) and personal resilience and adaptability. Each was thoroughly evaluated for its effectiveness in easing the onboarding journey. This demonstrated a significant positive impact on SIEs’ socialisation and cultural adaptation, with success in all the interventions made.
The focus on Self-Management proved particularly effective and led to the development of a process given the name of the Pathway Method, which provides a disciplined and personalised approach to cultural adaptation. Time did not permit moving into a second research cycle, and whereas some small improvements might be made to the interventions already undertaken, some longer-term and more complex changes could be envisaged. These are discussed at the end of the thesis.
Of the five propositions proposed, the theoretical models of organisational and international cultures were generally of value, but did not account for all the findings. Three others related to the interventions and were confirmed as correct.
The thesis concludes with a chapter reflecting on the methods and tools, and the value of the study. It does contribute to the sparseness of studies on the SIE coming fresh into both a new organisation and a new culture at the same time, and has potential value to other organisational practitioners in different cultures and sectors.
The study was limited by the sample size (35 participants in Qatar and 12 in KSA) and the timescale for making changes. Future research should test the interventions longitudinally, expand to other sectors, and refine the framework for wider use.
However its strengths lie in its focus on a neglected category of expatriate that experiences both cultural and organisational “collisions” and in its novel use of Action Research. The flexible research design demonstrated agility in responding to disruptions, highlighting the methodology’s robustness. The findings provide HR professionals and organisations with practical support and help build resilience for self-management. This enhances cultural intelligence (CQ), a valuable asset for future use and assisting others
Sensing, weathering, making, mushrooming: ecopedagogies with student teachers
No full textThrough multisensory ecopedagogies, models of environmental land art and place-responsive or ‘part of the place event’ art-making in outdoor spaces or the ‘outerness’ (Cobbs), this article explores the importance of student teacher engagement outside comfort zones and shedding their schooled baggage into the ‘existential territories of childhood’ (Traffi-Plats). Taking up feminist materialist practices such as Haraway’s inseparable ‘natureculture’ and ‘kinship affinities’ and that of ‘childing’ -where getting down on the ground is both literal and methodological (Osgood)- it reveals how the ecopedagogies of weathering, observing, mushrooming, storytelling, recording and making can lead to engaged, unforced and aesthetic learning about playful arts practices through and with the natural environment. Following Braidotti’s ‘micro-narrative’, or small stories and observations that may not have large research significance but as a method tend to nurture educational values, the article includes ecocritical analysis of student experience of an art session held outdoors on their university campus in London, UK, along with micro-narratives of the artists’ work featured as models, notes from the sessions’ observers (Victoria and Clare) and Fiona the session teacher’s reflections, within Primary (ages 4–10) teacher education art programme as a whole. Observing the student teacher’s walks and spirals of growing understanding, an eco- pedagogy or teaching/learning sympoesis becomes possible, as creative methods of accumulative making-with and reflecting-with allow for deeper understandings of the mycelium entanglements involved in making art with children with the environment
“Green conditionality” in the EU’s Trade and Investment Policy: Quo vadis?
Get PDFFollowing the implementation of the Lisbon Treaty, the external dimension of the European Union’s (EU) trade and investment policy has prominently emphasized sustainable development as a pivotal component of its external agenda. This emphasis has solidified over the years through the negotiation of various treaties and has received legal support from the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU). Nevertheless, there exist significant variations and subtleties in how sustainability is conceptualized and incorporated into the EU’s post-Lisbon Treaty agreements.
A pivotal moment in this context was the Advisory Opinion 2/2015 concerning the Free Trade Agreement between the European Union and the Republic of Singapore. This opinion offered critical insights into the scope and character of sustainable development chapters within the framework of trade and investment policy, taking into consideration key EU Constitutional Law provisions such as Article 218(11) TFEU, Articles 3(5) and 21 TEU, and Articles 11 and 191 TFEU. Subsequent agreements have embraced distinct approaches to sustainability, particularly within the realm of environmental protection, where provisions range from general principles to comprehensive regulations governing specific aspects.
This chapter aims to examine the concept of “green conditionality” within the Sustainable Development Chapters of the EU’s Trade and Investment Agreements, with a particular focus on the environmental provisions. Through an in-depth analysis, it seeks to shed light on the extent to which these agreements prioritize and enforce environmental sustainability, thus contributing to a nuanced understanding of the EU’s evolving approach to green conditionality within its trade and investment policy framework
Live from Moorgate: entrepreneurs, COVID, and food fusion - 'The Gaze' exhibition launch event and panel discussion
No full textThis week James and Luke were in Moorgate as panelists for 'The Gaze', organised by Middlesex University in collaboration with Small Business Research + Enterprise Centre and the HOMELandS Research Centre at the University of Westminster. They were there to discuss the often-hidden lives of immigrant food entrepreneurs in London. Through oral histories, memories and everyday business, the event explores how entrepreneurship becomes more than a means of survival. It is a way to build belonging, community, and city’s cultural and economic fabrics.
The event was chaired by Dr. Rui Su, Senior Lecturer in Tourism and Middlesex Universiy.
Panelists:
Abdul Komor, Street Trading Service Manager, London Borough of Waltham Forest.
Baron Deschauer, Market Manager, Tooting Market.
So Mang Ham, Founder of the SoJ
How to succeed in nursing assessments
No full textThroughout your nursing degree you will need to undertake a broad range of assessments, each requiring a different skill set in order to pass. Taking an assessment literacy approach that explains the purpose and process behind each assessment, this book offers practical tips and guidance to help you feel confident, demonstrate learning and application to practice and achieve success.
Key features:
• Advice for a wide variety of assessments that you’ll encounter during your training – from essays and oral presentations to quality improvement projects and OSCEs.
• Case studies and activities take you through each aspect of the assessment from start to finish and allow you to practise as you learn.
• Practical tips and guidance for success, including how to overcome exam anxiety and how to utilise and make the most of simulation
Classroom deliberation as one possible way forward
Get PDFA recent survey of teachers’ experiences of conspiracy theories in schools suggests that they are widespread but that teachers do not feel they have access to a range of successful strategies to deal with them. Many of these issues are simultaneously sensitive, polarising, controversial, and overtly political, but the meagre evidence base suggests that challenging such views head on can be counter-productive. Many of the beliefs of those advocating conspiracy theories are based on misinformation but simply teaching skills for media literacy seems an unlikely solution because these beliefs are also integrally bound up with a political world-view and an emergent political identity. Some critics have observed that conspiracy theories represent a form of ‘crippled epistemology’ and this chapter develops the argument that part of the educational solution is to engage afresh with questions of epistemology, to help young people think critically about what constitutes a useful set of criteria for evaluating conflicting political beliefs. The chapter suggests that part of the solution is to build routines in the classroom where the whole class takes responsibility for pursuing a deliberative culture, so that students become as familiar with challenging and critiquing one another as they are with the more traditional skills of speaking and listening. By testing, exploring and evaluating arguments collaboratively in the context of building knowledge of politics and the nature of political knowledge and beliefs, students can become familiar with the epistemological foundations of political knowledge and the pragmatic refinement of political positions through democratic processes of deliberation
The impact of attempted suicide on young adults: learning from the lived experiences of students in UK in further and higher education
Get PDFBackground/Objectives: A need for suicide prevention and postvention strategies in Higher Education was identified in the United Kingdom and has more recently been addressed with policies that provide national guidance for organisations. However, a paucity of qualitative research related to the lived and living experiences of attempted suicide in young adults remains. The experts in attempted suicide are those who have experienced it and the objective of our study was to learn from these lived experiences, with a particular focus on 16–25-year-olds in Further and Higher Education. Methods: The research presented in this article was part of a nationwide study in the UK which included 21 semi-structured interviews with young adults who met these criteria on the impact of attempting suicide on a personal, interpersonal, and institutional level, and support service experiences and engagement. It aimed to answer two key questions: 1. What can we learn from the lived experiences of young adults who have attempted suicide? and 2. How can these findings be applied to better meet the needs of young adults experiencing suicidal thoughts/behaviour in Further and Higher Education? Results: Reflexive Thematic Analysis was used to analyse the data, and four main themes were identified: firstly, the impact on ‘self’, including emotional and psychological impact; secondly, ‘others’, revealing the impact of and on relational factors, stigma, and judgement; thirdly, ‘systemic’, which highlighted support service experiences and barriers to accessing and engaging with possible support, and, fourthly, ‘what helps or could help’ on a relational, educational, and institutional level. Conclusions: The findings from this study generate new insights into this under-explored and stigmatised area and point to key barriers to support and gaps in service provision. Attempting suicide is one of the highest risk factors for a death by suicide and this study highlights the need for additional policy and support guidance for attempted suicide in Further and Higher Education
Betriebswirtschaftliche Erfolgsfaktoren des strategischen Managements börsennotierter Klinikunternehmen unter besonderer Berücksichtigung einer finanzwirtschaftlichen Perspektive. Eine explorative Analyse des strategischen Managements privatwirtschaftlicher Gesundheitsunternehmen
No full textThe present study addresses a notable gap in the German-speaking hospital management literature, which predominantly emphasizes operational concerns within individual hospital entities or macro-level concerns such as cost efficiency and allocative justice. Strategic management aspects receive insufficient attention, both at the hospital and hospital group levels, mirroring similar neglect in Anglo-Saxon management literature. Despite a relative abundance of literature on operations management, quantitative investigations into strategic management's impact on hospital business success remain scarce, with a predominance of operation-centric empirical studies.
Consequently, this study endeavors to explore the performance-relevant dimensions of strategic management activities within hospital groups, supplementing existing literature. Through an explorative analysis of financial data from listed hospital groups, the study aims to address two key research questions employing a mixed-methods approach: (1) discerning disparities in investment, financing, and operational activities between successful and unsuccessful companies, and (2) identifying management activities correlating with firm performance metrics such as revenue growth, profit growth, and profitability.
The second part of the thesis delves into various models of corporate growth and strategic management, establishing a conceptual framework for empirical research. The ensuing research, detailed in the third part, unfolds in distinct phases: qualitative analysis encompassing company profiling, extreme value assessment, and descriptive examination of financial data from 77 listed global hospital groups; quantitative analysis utilizing t-tests and multiple regression to pinpoint performance predictors; and case studies based on financial and content analysis of high-performing companies' annual reports. Finally, this mixed-methods approach is extended and refined by through a questionnaire, followed by qualitative examination, aiming to expand the primarily used secondary statistical data. The need for this extension, integrating explorative qualitative dimensions, aligns with the research objectives and has the potential to complement the dominant quantitative findings.
The concluding chapters elucidate and deliberate on empirical findings and also formulate success factors for each performance indicator through triangulating quantitative and qualitative analyses. This includes the results the extended data collection and qualitative data analysis indicating, for example, that growth is linked to increased cash flow and liquidity, but higher growth also reduces free cash flow. Profit growth correlates with revenue growth and capital structure, with higher debt indicating greater profit growth. Profitable companies show higher revenue and operational profit.
As a whole, the study confirms hypotheses regarding hospital company performance. Regression models demonstrate strong explanatory power, supporting limited management activities (AH1) and minimal research activity (AH2). Partial support is found for the influence of capital structure on growth (AH3), while hypothesis AH4 lacks confirmation, except in a single case study. Revenue growth analysis reveals significant predictors, including operational cash flow and investment ratios. Profit growth is influenced by leverage and continuous investment, as evidenced by case studies. Profitability depends significantly on company size, with specific determinants identified. Business model scoring highlights the importance of operational cash flow growth. Overall, the study underscores the critical role of various management activities in hospital company performance, emphasizing strategic diversification and financial management for sustainable growth and risk mitigation