Accounting for activity development through perspectives in an inbound call centre

2017 ◽  
Vol 29 (6) ◽  
pp. 428-446 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Ianeva ◽  
Jacqueline Vacherand-Revel ◽  
Christian Licoppe
Keyword(s):  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Ethnographic Study ◽  
Insurance Companies ◽  
Call Centre ◽  
Cultural Resources ◽  
Situated Action ◽  
Relational Context ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Video Recordings ◽  
Health Insurance Companies

Purpose This paper aims to address the methodological and conceptual challenges arising from the use of activity theory as a theoretical framework in empirical studies of work. Design/methodology/approach To grasp the relationship between situated action and activity development, the authors build upon the concept of perspective and suggest that perspectives are grounded on salient configurations, which are both emergent in situ and collectively elaborated cultural resources. Empirical evidence for these theoretical considerations is provided through a two-year ethnographic study of the organizational change and collective activity at an inbound call centre for a number of mutual health insurance companies. This research used several data collection techniques such as ethnographic observation, video recordings and interviews. Findings The presented results highlight that seemingly unskilled routine practices such as opening and sorting the mail rely upon a complex set of informational resources that only have “value” and meaning in a broader relational context, that of the activity. Originality/value The originality of this paper is the use of salient configurations as a basis for the operationalization of the notion of perspective and open new avenues of thought (and action) on situated work practices as embedded within activities.

scholarly journals Police-public interactions: a grid-group cultural theory perspective

2014 ◽  
Vol 37 (1) ◽  
pp. 144-158 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kim Loyens ◽  
Jeroen Maesschalck
Keyword(s):  
Conceptual Framework ◽  
Police Officers ◽  
Cultural Theory ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Ethnographic Study ◽  
Police Culture ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Public ◽  
Professional Groups ◽  
Culture Model

Purpose – The police culture literature suggests that police officers’ attitude towards the public is characterised by suspicion and an “us-vs-them” mentality. It also refers to the moral mission of protecting the public by being tough on crime. The traditional police culture model seems to imply that these aspects are typical for the police. There is, however, a lack of empirical studies to test this proposition. The purpose of this paper is to propose a different conceptual framework, based on grid-group cultural theory (GGCT), which not only broadens the lens of the police culture model, but also allows for comparative research between different professional groups. Design/methodology/approach – The newly developed conceptual framework is tested in an ethnographic study in the Belgian police and labour inspection. The main data collection methods are observation, interview and informal conversation. Findings – The results of this study show that there are similarities in the way in which Belgian police officers and labour inspectors interact with the public, which raises interesting questions concerning the (often implicit) claim of the police culture literature concerning the specificity of police culture. Research limitations/implications – More research is needed to gain deeper insight into similarities and differences of the occupational culture in the police and comparable professional groups. GGCT offers a useful conceptual framework for such a research agenda. Originality/value – This paper addresses a number of criticisms against the classic police culture model and provides an innovative perspective to not only study aspects of police culture, but also compare the police with other professions.

scholarly journals Ideology at work: reconsidering ideology, the labour process and workplace resistance

2017 ◽  
Vol 37 (5/6) ◽  
pp. 266-279 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anthony Lloyd
Keyword(s):  
Alternative Interpretation ◽  
Ethnographic Study ◽  
Primary Data ◽  
Call Centre ◽  
Sociology Of Work ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Workplace Studies ◽  
Labour Process ◽  
North East ◽  
Workplace Resistance

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to consider existing debates within the sociology of work, particularly the re-emergence of labour process theory (LPT) and the “collective worker”, in relation to resistance at work. Through presentation of primary data and a dialectical discussion about the nature of ideology, the paper offers alternative interpretations on long-standing debates and raises questions about the efficacy of workplace resistance. Design/methodology/approach The design of this methodology is an ethnographic study of a call centre in the North-East of England, a covert participant observation at “Call Direct” supplemented by semi-structured interviews with call centre employees. Findings The findings in this paper suggest that resistance in the call centre mirrors forms of resistance outlined elsewhere in both the call centre literature and classical workplace studies from the industrial era. However, in presenting an alternative interpretation of ideology, as working at the level of action rather than thought, the paper reinterprets the data and characterises workplace resistance as lacking the political potential for change often emphasised in LPT and other workplace studies. Originality/value The original contribution of this paper is in applying an alternative interpretation of ideology to a long-standing debate. In asking sociology of work scholars to consider the “reversal of ideology”, it presents an alternative perspective on resistance in the workplace and raises questions about the efficacy of workplace disobedience.

Literacy practices as social: relational-keys in literacy events

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Faythe Beauchemin
Keyword(s):  
Literacy Practices ◽  
First Grade ◽  
Ethnographic Study ◽  
Instructional Conversations ◽  
Relational Context ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Literacy Events ◽  
Subtractive Schooling ◽  
Material Environment ◽  
Intellectual Context

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to work toward more fully conceptualizing literacy practices as social by theorizing the combined relational and intellectual context for learning. This context is created through students’ and their teachers’ uses of language. In particular, the quality of language that creates this intellectual relational context is relational-keys that are inherent to any talk between people. Building upon Hymes (1974) conceptualization of key, relational-keys can be described as the emotional mood or spirit of a conversation, but they are much more than that per se. They are constitutive of the complex, multi-layered relationships that people have with each other, with themselves and with the material environment through their uses of language. Design/methodology/approach Drawing upon a classroom ethnographic study in a first-grade classroom and using discourse analysis of classroom interactions, the author uses data from instructional conversations to illustrate how students and their teachers collaboratively perform relational-keys. Findings Findings reveal that students and their teacher perform relational and intellectual stances toward reading and toward each other through relational-keys, that frame the act of reading and their experience of doing it together. Originality/value The concept of relational-key provides literacy researchers with another tool to analyze what happens in instructional conversations. It also provides teachers with a curricular resource to identify relational-keys that are enacted. Therefore, teachers are able move away from the enaction of relational-keys that contribute to subtractive schooling, and toward relational-keys that nurture empowering stances in students toward reading and their relationships.

Earnings management by health insurance companies in Brazil

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Antonio Lopo Martinez ◽  
Flávio Alves de Carvalho
Keyword(s):  
Health Insurance ◽  
Earnings Management ◽  
Discretionary Accruals ◽  
Insurance Companies ◽  
Financial Risks ◽  
National Agency ◽  
Operational Decisions ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Health Insurance Companies ◽  
Abnormal Behaviors

PurposeThis study examines whether Brazilian health insurance companies (HICs) engage in earnings management through discretionary accruals or operational decisions by refraining from reporting a low indicator of sustainability in the market (IDSM).Design/methodology/approachThe study used the Jones and Modified Jones models to identify earnings management through discretionary accruals and used the model described by Roychowdhury to estimate the abnormal behaviors of operational decisions. Data covering 2012 to 2018 were collected from the ANS website.FindingsThe results show that HICs engaged in earnings management to avoid reporting a low IDSM. The findings should help health insurance clients make decisions regarding the purchase or change of health insurance. The findings should also encourage regulators to improve their evaluation of the economic and financial risks around HICs.Originality/valueThe National Agency of Supplementary Health (ANS) established a qualification program for HICs, monitoring them based on a set of indicators. Managers may have an incentive to use earnings management to obtain indices that meet the requirements of the ANS qualification program in order to avoid showing signs of abnormality.

scholarly journals Video “talks back” in a relational research approach

2016 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 92-109 ◽  
Author(s):  
Clare Mumford
Keyword(s):  
Social Interaction ◽  
Ethnographic Study ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Video Footage ◽  
Video Recordings ◽  
Camera Position ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Original Interpretation ◽  
Dialogic Theory

Purpose – The author argues for the use of unedited, fixed-camera-position video footage in relationally responsive research grounded in Bakhtinian dialogic theory. The purpose of this paper is to offer an empirical example of such a use, and shows how this contrasts with an ethnomethodological interactionist use of similar types of video footage. Design/methodology/approach – The empirical material is taken from an ethnographic study of a project group in the UK, in which video is used alongside other data during the fieldwork period. Findings – The author proposes that the audio-visual detail of social interaction and the sense of experiential immersion upon re-viewing can provide a “talking back” dialogic potential for video recordings, that helps to show multiple narratives in social interaction other than the researcher’s original interpretation, and that points to new ways to engage with research participants. Research limitations/implications – The paper focuses specifically on unedited video footage that is generated through fixed-camera positions. It is also limited to the ethnographic fieldwork period rather than the textual practices of writing up research. Practical implications – The purpose and positioning of unedited, fixed-camera-position video footage in the empirical study is contrasted with other research approaches to video. Through this contrast, the paper offers methodological support for a way of using such footage which brings out a range of voices and alternative perspectives on social interaction. Originality/value – The paper contributes to the methodological literature by discussing a research approach in which both interactionist and phenomenological qualities of video footage were combined to develop a radically reflexive (Cunliffe, 2003) purpose for video in relational research.

Workplace health promotion of large and medium-sized businesses

2016 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 184-201 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stefan Kohler
Keyword(s):  
Health Promotion ◽  
Information Needs ◽  
Workplace Health Promotion ◽  
Insurance Companies ◽  
Information Need ◽  
Workplace Health ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Business Size ◽  
Health Insurance Companies

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between different areas of workplace health promotion (WHP) activities and predictors of the number of areas in which WHP activities are offered. Design/methodology/approach – A questionnaire with ten questions on WHP was mailed to the 478 largest businesses in Berlin and Brandenburg, Germany. The cross-sectional data from this survey are presented and explored using correlation and linear regression analyses. Findings – In total, 30 businesses, of which 90 percent offered WHP activities, participated in the survey. Businesses with WHP were, on average, active in 5.59 (SD=2.24) areas of health promotion. Offering an activity was positively correlated with offering an activity in at least one other area for all WHP areas except ergonomic workplace design (p < 0.05). Among businesses offering WHP, reporting that WHP would be strengthened with more support (−2.02, 95 percent CI: −4.04 to −0.01) and being a medium-sized business with an information need (−3.63, 95 percent CI: −5.70 to −1.57) or an opinion that health insurance companies should offer WHP (−1.96, 95 percent CI: −3.86 to −0.05) were all associated with offering activities in fewer WHP areas. In a multiple regression analysis, the information need of mid-size businesses was the only significant predictor (−5.25, 95 percent CI: −9.41 to −1.08). Practical implications – Addressing the information needs of medium-sized businesses concerning WHP could be an effective strategy for increasing the spectrum of WHP activities offered. Originality/value – This study complements existing studies by assessing associations between WHP activities and predictors of WHP activity emphasizing business size.

Online Patient Consultation

2020 ◽  
Vol 158 (04) ◽  
pp. 345-350
Author(s):  
Christian Juhra ◽  
Jörg Ansorg ◽  
David Alexander Back ◽  
Dominik John ◽  
Andrea Kuckuck-Winkelmann ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
New Technologies ◽  
Communication Technologies ◽  
Phone Call ◽  
Insurance Companies ◽  
Personal Contact ◽  
Software Products ◽  
Patient Consent ◽  
Health Insurance Companies ◽  
Patient Consultation ◽  
Certified Software

AbstractNew communication technologies allow patients to communicate with their physicians from anywhere using computer or smartphone. Adding video to the mere phone call optimizes the personal contact between patient and physicians regardless of distance. Legal and reimbursements requirements must be taken into account, especially only certified software products must be used. In addition, patient consent is needed and confidentiality must be assured. The video patient consultation can be reimbursed by the health insurance companies. As with all new technologies, the introduction of these video consultations faced some challenges. Although patients and physicians have expressed great interest in this technology, it has been rarely used so far. The current COVID crisis increased the need for video consultations resulting in an increasing use of video patient consultation. It can be expected that this demand will still exists after the COVID crisis.

scholarly journals Which health-related reasons lead to prehospital emergency care and how does subjective emergency status connect to subsequent care?

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Silke Piedmont ◽  
Anna Katharina Reinhold ◽  
Jens-Oliver Bock ◽  
Enno Swart ◽  
Bernt-Peter Robra
Keyword(s):  
Health Insurance ◽  
Emergency Care ◽  
Third Party ◽  
Insurance Companies ◽  
Prehospital Emergency Care ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Life Threatening ◽  
Prehospital Emergency ◽  
Health Insurance Companies ◽  
Reported Data

Abstract Objectives/Background In many countries, the use of emergency medical services (EMS) increases steadily each year. At the same time, the percentage of life-threatening complaints decreases. To redesign the system, an assessment and consideration of the patients’ perspectives is helpful. Methods We conducted a paper-based survey of German EMS patients who had at least one case of prehospital emergency care in 2016. Four health insurance companies sent out the questionnaire to 1312 insured persons. We linked the self-reported data of 254 respondents to corresponding claims data provided by their health insurance companies. The analysis focuses a.) how strongly patients tend to call EMS for themselves and others given different health-related scenarios, b.) self-perceived health complaints in their own index case of prehospital emergency care and c.) subjective emergency status in combination with so-called “objective” characteristics of subsequent EMS and inpatient care. We report principal diagnoses of (1) respondents, (2) 57,240 EMS users who are not part of the survey and (3) all 20,063,689 inpatients in German hospitals. Diagnoses for group 1 and 2 only cover the inpatient stay that started on the day of the last EMS use in 2016. Results According to the survey, the threshold to call an ambulance is lower for someone else than for oneself. In 89% of all cases during their own EMS use, a third party called the ambulance. The most common, self-reported complaints were pain (38%), problems with heart and circulation (32%), and loss of consciousness (17%). The majority of respondents indicated that their EMS use was due to an emergency (89%). We could detect no or only weak associations between patients’ subjective urgency and different items for objective care. Conclusion Dispatchers can possibly optimize or reduce the disposition of EMS staff and vehicles if they spoke directly to the patients more often. Nonetheless, there is need for further research on how strongly the patients’ perceived urgency may affect the disposition, rapidness of the service and transport targets.

scholarly journals How does career guidance at schools encounter migrant young people? Interactional practices that hinder socially just guidance

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sanna Vehviläinen ◽  
Anne-Mari Souto
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Young People ◽  
Career Guidance ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Ethnographic Study ◽  
School Career ◽  
Interaction Research

AbstractThe aim of this article is to show how interaction research can contribute to the understanding and praxis of socially just guidance. The article is theoretical, but it makes use of our previous empirical studies. We combine the ethnographic study of school and racism, and interactional research on guidance. We define guidance for social justice, explaining how this translates to the level of interactional practices. We show two empirical examples of interactional phenomena hindering socially just praxis. We lastly discuss our practical conclusions on how to help school career counsellors change their interactional practices.

Integrated quality environmental management implementation in food processing SMEs

2019 ◽  
Vol 31 (5) ◽  
pp. 740-757 ◽  
Author(s):  
Syed Ali Raza Shah ◽  
Khairur Rijal Jamaludin ◽  
Hayati Habibah Abdul Talib ◽  
Sha’ri Mohd Yusof
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Management ◽  
Food Processing ◽  
Success Factors ◽  
Process Management ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Sampling Technique ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
Operational Performance ◽  
Snowball Sampling ◽  
Content Type

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to identify the critical success factors (CSFs) of integrated quality environmental management (IQEM) and analyze their impact on operational performance (OP) and environmental performance (EP) in food processing Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Pakistan. Design/methodology/approach The study is based on collecting data using a survey questionnaire through snowball sampling technique. A total of 302 food processing SMEs operating in Punjab, Pakistan, responded to the survey. SPSS version-23 and SmartPLS-3 were used for data analysis. Findings The literature review identified leadership (LS), employee management (EM), strategic planning (SP), information management (IM), process management (PM), supplier management (SM) and customer focus (CF) as CSFs of IQEM. The results of this study found a significant relationship of all identified CSFs with operational performance in food processing SMEs whereas EM, IM, PM and SM were insignificant with the EP in the food processing SMEs. Research limitations/implications Although this study has collected data from one province, the Punjab province, it still relevant in identifying the CSFs for IQEM implementation within food processing SMEs to improve performance. Originality/value Despite the wide spread of integrated systems practices in the developed countries, little attention has been placed to implement and assess the IQEM initiatives by organizations in the developing countries. Thus, this study identified CSFs of IQEM based on empirical studies and analyzed their impact on OP and EP of food processing SMEs.

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