A qualitative exploration: life after the emergency services

2016 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 158-173 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mairéad Bracken-Scally ◽  
Sinéad McGilloway

Purpose Much has been written about the impact of emergency service work on personnel, but very little is known about the lives of personnel once they have retired. The purpose of this paper is to explore the experiences and assess the quality of life (QoL) of emergency service retirees (ESRs) and to ascertain the possible longer term effects of emergency service work. Design/methodology/approach A series of one-to-one interviews was conducted with ESRs (n=10). These were then transcribed and analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis. Findings A number of key emergent themes and associated sub-themes were identified from the analysis including: retirement as a major life change; potential impact of working role and unique aspects of emergency service work; trauma; and health and ageing more generally. Overall, the findings highlight the unique experiences of ESRs and the potential longer term impact of emergency service work on QoL in retirement. Originality/value In an under-researched area, the findings point towards a need to improve the transition to retirement for ESRs and, in particular, to enhance available supports, information and guidance for retirees, both prior to and following retirement.

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 137-150
Author(s):  
Eleanor Burch ◽  
John Rose

Purpose Research suggests that individuals with autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) are inconsistently supported throughout the criminal justice system (CJS) in the UK. Bradley (2009) recommended the introduction of criminal justice liaison and diversion (L&D) teams to bridge the gap between the CJS and mental health services and provide a more consistent and improved quality of support for individuals with vulnerabilities, including those with autism. This study aims to explore the experiences of staff working in L&D teams who encounter individuals with ASD. Design/methodology/approach Interviews were conducted with ten L&D team members. Interpretative phenomenological analysis was used to gain insight into their lived experiences of working with autism in the CJS. Findings Interpretation of individual transcripts resulted in three super-ordinate themes: “feeling helpless and helpful in the system”, “transition to knowing” and “impact on self”. Each theme encapsulated a number of sub-themes depicting the limitations of services, difficult environments, making a difference, lack of understanding, developing understanding and the impact of these experiences on staff’s confidence, attitudes and well-being. Practical implications Criminal justice services are limited for people with autism. There is a lack of autism awareness by staff. Lack of awareness impacts staff attitudes and confidence. Training in autism should be provided to criminal justice staff. Originality/value This research highlights the limitations of services available for individuals with autism and the widespread lack of autism awareness. These concerns directly impacted participants’ confidence, attitudes and well-being. Recommendations are proposed to guide future practice and research including increasing availability of access to ASD services, enforcing mandatory autism-specific training for staff and routinely collecting service-user feedback.


2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 27-34
Author(s):  
Dieu Hack-Polay ◽  
Magdalena Read

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the ramifications of accelerated two-year degrees for student mental health. Since it was legislated in early 2019 in the UK, there has been limited debate in academia and among policymakers about the potential viability and risks of the compressed degree programmes. Design/methodology/approach The paper is based on an analysis of various academic and practitioner viewpoints as well as theoretical perspectives. Findings The paper found a mixed reception of the compressed degree programme among the academic and practitioner communities. In addition to apprehensions about the quality of education, there are concerns raised about the impact of the pressure deriving from the workload of the accelerated degree. The authors’ assessment considers a potential increase in stress and other more acute state of mental health degradation among students, especially international students, as well as students with families. Originality/value This policy analysis paper makes a significant contribution to the debate on the issue of two-year degrees that has not attracted academic scrutiny commensurate with its importance. The authors conclude that two-year degrees will have far-reaching ramifications, locally and internationally as the UK continues to push for its widening participation agenda as well as maintain its position as one of the top three destinations for international students. The authors suggest that wider discussions with stakeholder and some impact studies are needed before the accelerated degrees are further popularised in universities.


2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (6) ◽  
pp. 1344-1361
Author(s):  
Isaiah Oino

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of transparency and disclosure on the financial performance of financial institutions. The emphasis is on assessing transparency and disclosure; auditing and compliance; risk management as indicators of corporate governance; and understanding how these parameters affect bank profitability, liquidity and the quality of loan portfolios. Design/methodology/approach A sample of 20 financial institutions was selected, with ten respondents from each, yielding a total sample size of 200. Principal component analysis (PCA), with inbuilt ability to check for composite reliability, was used to obtain composite indices for the corporate governance indicators as well as the indicators of financial performance, based on a set of questions framed for each institution. Findings The analysis demonstrates that greater disclosure and transparency, improved auditing and compliance and better risk management positively affect the financial performance of financial institutions. In terms of significance, the results show that as the level of disclosure and transparency in managerial affairs increases, the performance of financial institutions – as measured in terms of the quality of loan portfolios, liquidity and profitability – increases by 0.3046, with the effect being statistically significant at the 1 per cent level. Furthermore, as the level of auditing and the degree of compliance with banking regulations increases, the financial performance of banks improves by 0.3309. Research limitations/implications This paper did not consider time series because corporate governance does not change periodically. Practical implications This paper demonstrates the importance of disclosure and transparency in managerial affairs because the performance of financial institutions, as measured in terms of loan portfolios, liquidity and profitability, increases by 0.4 when transparency and disclosure improve, with this effect being statistically significant at the 1 per cent level. Originality/value The use of primary data in assessing the impact of corporate governance on financial performance, instead of secondary data, is the primary novelty of this study. Moreover, PCA is used to assess the weight of the various parameters.


2017 ◽  
Vol 22 (4) ◽  
pp. 198-205 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah Broadhurst ◽  
Keri Landau

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to review whether current learning disability market position statements (MPS) are actually helping to shape the market and explore their implications for people with learning disabilities and their families. Design/methodology/approach Published learning disability MPS were identified via the Institute of Public Care’s MPS database. The quality of the MPS was analysed using a good practice checklist developed by a range of stakeholders. Findings Learning disability MPS are not currently fit for purpose. They demonstrate that local authorities are not fully engaging in their market-shaping duties, as required under The Care Act 2014. It is suggested that this is in part due to the lack of recognition that market shaping is a council-wide responsibility and can only be successful if senior officers across the council (and their partners) acknowledge this and are held accountable. Unless this happens, people with learning disabilities will continue to lack the enablers that support them to lead the lives they choose in their communities. Originality/value This is the first review of the quality and potential impact of learning disability MPS.


2015 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 791-813 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zilia Iskoujina ◽  
Joanne Roberts

Purpose – This paper aims to add to the understanding of knowledge sharing in online communities through an investigation of the relationship between individual participant’s motivations and management in open source software (OSS) communities. Drawing on a review of literature concerning knowledge sharing in organisations, the factors that motivate participants to share their knowledge in OSS communities, and the management of such communities, it is hypothesised that the quality of management influences the extent to which the motivations of members actually result in knowledge sharing. Design/methodology/approach – To test the hypothesis, quantitative data were collected through an online questionnaire survey of OSS web developers with the aim of gathering respondents’ opinions concerning knowledge sharing, motivations to share knowledge and satisfaction with the management of OSS projects. Factor analysis, descriptive analysis, correlation analysis and regression analysis were used to explore the survey data. Findings – The analysis of the data reveals that the individual participant’s satisfaction with the management of an OSS project is an important factor influencing the extent of their personal contribution to a community. Originality/value – Little attention has been devoted to understanding the impact of management in OSS communities. Focused on OSS developers specialising in web development, the findings of this paper offer an important original contribution to understanding the connections between individual members’ satisfaction with management and their motivations to contribute to an OSS project. The findings reveal that motivations to share knowledge in online communities are influenced by the quality of management. Consequently, the findings suggest that appropriate management can enhance knowledge sharing in OSS projects and online communities, and organisations more generally.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mahmoud Fatouh ◽  
Ayowande A. McCunn

Purpose This paper aims to present a model of shareholders’ willingness to exert effort to reduce the likelihood of bank distress and the implications of the presence of contingent convertible (CoCo) bonds in the liabilities structure of a bank. Design/methodology/approach This study presents a basic model about the moral hazard surrounding shareholders willingness to exert effort that increases the likelihood of a bank’s success. This study uses a one-shot game and so do not capture the effects of repeated interactions. Findings Consistent with the existing literature, this study shows that the direction of the wealth transfer at the conversion of CoCo bonds determines their impact on shareholder risk-taking incentives. This study also finds that “anytime” CoCos (CoCo bonds trigger-able anytime at the discretion of managers) have a minor advantage over regular CoCo bonds, and that quality of capital requirements can reduce the risk-taking incentives of shareholders. Practical implications This study argues that shareholders can also use manager-specific CoCo bonds to reduce the riskiness of the bank activities. The issuance of such bonds can increase the resilience of individual banks and the whole banking system. Regulators can use restrictions on conversion rates and/or requirements on the quality of capital to address the impact of CoCo bonds issuance on risk-taking incentives. Originality/value To model the risk-taking incentives, authors generally modify the asset processes to introduce components that reflect asymmetric information between CoCo holders and shareholders and/or managers. This paper follows a simpler method similar to that of Holmström and Tirole (1998).


2021 ◽  
pp. 25-27
Author(s):  
Umesh kr. Mishra ◽  
Sunita Tiwari ◽  
Sumit Rungta ◽  
Pooja Mishra ◽  
Gulam Akhtar

Background: Night time reux has been shown to be associated with fragmented sleep. However, few studies have assessed the quality of sleep on gastroesophageal reux and the impact of gastroesophageal reux on reported quality of sleep and quality of sleep on gastroesophageal reux. The aims of this study were to evaluate the quality of sleep and other parameters in patients with gastroesophageal reux disease.50 Subjects with typical GERD symptoms ≥3 times a week and All subjects were administered 3 questionnaires: PSQI , ESS, GERD-HRQL . All the subjects underwent nocturnal polysomnography and completed a all 3 questionnaire before NPSG. Results: Overall ,the mean percentage of N1 was 9.10±9.74 ,N2 was 83.97±13.81 , N3 was 3.44±4.16 , N4 was 0.60±2.04 , REM was 2.14±3.79 , PSQI was 12.48±1.23 , ESS was 11.80±0.76 , TST (hr) was 5.19±0.74 , SPT(hr) was 6.58±0.77 , sleep efciency(%) was 52.50±27.16 , Latency (mint) was 22.79±30.85 , REM Latency (mints) was 96.99±151.86 ,and Microarousal index was 36.05±25.93 . To assess the potential impact of sleep quality via nocturnal polysomnography on severity of gastroesophageal reux , we performed correlations between the GERD questionnaire and nocturnal polysomnography reports . We observed that PSQI(r= -0.285, p<0.045) , ESS(r=0.206, p=0.05) , N1(r=0.202 , p>0.160) , N2(r=- 0.045 ,p>0.758) , N3(r=-0.079, p>0.583) , N4(r-0.209 ,p>0.145),REM(r=0.045 ,p>0.756) , TST(r=0.036 ,p>0.803), SPT(r=0.015,p>0.917) , Sleep Efciency (r=-0.113,p>0.435) , Sleep Latency (r=-0.045 ,p>0.756), REM Latency (r=0.165, p >0.253), Microarousal index (r=0.058 , p>0.683). Conclusions: Gastroesophageal reux disease and sleep disorders are extremely prevalent conditions, and it seems intuitive that there must be some overlap between the two. Sleep disorders may in fact be one of the most prevalent of the extraesophageal complications of GERD and often goes unrecognized.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sunaina Shrivastava ◽  
Gaurav Jain ◽  
JaeHwan Kwon ◽  
Dhananjay Nayakankuppam

Purpose Traditionally, it has been held that strong attitudes are a result of the conscious cognitive process of elaboration where one engages in effortful issue-relevant thinking. The purpose of this study is to show that attitude strength can follow from processes not just limited to elaboration – as a function of certain embodied states. This study examines bodily manipulations that could alter perceptions about the quality of the information describing a target (e.g. notion of “hard/soft” evidence), and, find that such an embodiment leads one to have strong attitudes toward the target object. This study proposes an attitude-rehearsal-based mechanism to explain the phenomenon. Design/methodology/approach This study have relied on lab experiments as a methodology – undergraduate students and American residents served as participants. This study have conducted a pre-registered study as well. Findings In the work, the study shows that strong attitudes can result from processes not just limited to elaboration, as a function of certain embodied states. This paper examines bodily manipulations that could alter perceptions about the quality of information describing the target (e.g. notion of “hard vs soft”; “converging vs diverging” information), and, find that such an embodiment leads one to have strong attitudes toward the target. This study consistently observed that the bodily manipulations influence attitude accessibility, a direct and operational indicator of attitude strength. This study further validates an attitude-rehearsal-based mechanism to explain the observed phenomenon. Originality/value While much work has investigated the impact of embodiment on attitudes, little attention has been paid to whether, and, how embodied states can impact the “strength” of the attitude without impacting the attitude itself – to the knowledge, this paper is the first to document this. Moreover, traditionally, it has been held that strong attitudes are a result of the conscious cognitive process of elaboration where one engages in effortful issue-relevant thinking. This study however shows that attitude strength can follow from processes not just limited to elaboration – as a function of certain embodied states.


2019 ◽  
Vol 37 (3) ◽  
pp. 418-435 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew M. Cox ◽  
Stephen Pinfield ◽  
Sophie Rutter

Purpose The last few years have seen a surge of interest in artificial intelligence (AI). The purpose of this paper is to capture a snapshot of perceptions of the potential impact of AI on academic libraries and to reflect on its implications for library work. Design/methodology/approach The data for the study were interviews with 33 library directors, library commentators and experts in education and publishing. Findings Interviewees identified impacts of AI on search and resource discovery, on scholarly publishing and on learning. Challenges included libraries being left outside the focus of development, ethical concerns, intelligibility of decisions and data quality. Some threat to jobs was perceived. A number of potential roles for academic libraries were identified such as data acquisition and curation, AI tool acquisition and infrastructure building, aiding user navigation and data literacy. Originality/value This is one of the first papers to examine current expectations around the impact of AI on academic libraries. The authors propose the paradigm of the intelligent library to capture the potential impact of AI for libraries.


2015 ◽  
Vol 115 (8) ◽  
pp. 1457-1480 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dagmara Lewicka ◽  
Katarzyna Krot

Purpose – It is worth focusing on the examination of factors influencing the quality of the work environment. The purpose of this paper is to verify the influence of the HRM system and organisational trust on employee commitment. Design/methodology/approach – The survey was conducted in Poland among 370 employees in organisations from two sectors of the economy: services and industry. The verification of the theoretical model was performed based on structural equation modelling. Findings – Research findings made it possible to successfully verify the model of the relationship between the HRM system (practices, process), organisational trust and commitment. The starting point for trust in an organisation followed by commitment is the HRM system. It seems that the impact of the HRM process on creating organisational trust is higher. Research findings have also confirmed a relationship between each type of organisational trust and calculative commitment based on benefits, which is a strong determinant of affective commitment. Organisational trust is, therefore, an intermediary factor because the organisation must build trust in employees first before they become affectively committed. Originality/value – Current studies have not examined the issue of a mutual relationship between three constructs: perceived HRM practices and process, organisational trust and commitment. What is more, previous research was confined to the constructs analysed holistically without considering their complexity (different types of trust and commitment). In addition, the authors attempted to enrich Allen and Mayer’s (1991) model with a new aspect of the commitment – calculative, which is linked to the benefits received by employees. The authors also identified the mediating influence of the trust and calculative commitment onto the affective commitment.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document