scholarly journals Citius, Altius, Fortius: Managers’ quest for heroic leader identities

Organization ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 135050842110306
Author(s):  
Thibaut Bardon ◽  
Andrew D Brown ◽  
François-Régis Puyou
Keyword(s):  
Human Capital ◽  
Middle Aged ◽  
Senior Managers ◽  
Endurance Sports ◽  
Health And Wellbeing ◽  
Personal Fulfillment ◽  
Discursive Resources

In this paper, we draw on Foucault’s concept “governmentality” to show how a cohort of middle-aged senior managers who engaged in competitive endurance sports fabricated (avowed) “heroic” leader identities drawing on this repertoire of discursive resources. Neoliberalism constitutes a form of governmentality which encourages people to regard themselves as autonomous and to aspire to personal fulfillment by investing entrepreneurially in themselves as “human capital.” Healthism, which requires individuals be responsible for their own health and wellbeing, is one program by which this is accomplished. We analyze managers’ talk about themselves as people who self-examined, and sought continually to transform (improve) themselves, to avow identities as superior (heroic) leaders. Our study contributes to the literature on governmentality by showing how in neoliberalism “healthism” constructs managers as enterprising selves.

Burden of ventricular arrhythmias at 12-lead 24-hour ambulatory ECG monitoring in middle-aged endurance athletes versus sedentary controls

2018 ◽  
Vol 25 (18) ◽  
pp. 2003-2011 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alessandro Zorzi ◽  
Giulio Mastella ◽  
Alberto Cipriani ◽  
Giampaolo Berton ◽  
Alvise Del Monte ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ventricular Arrhythmia ◽  
Ventricular Arrhythmias ◽  
Training Session ◽  
Middle Aged ◽  
Endurance Sports ◽  
Sports Activity ◽  
Premature Ventricular Beats ◽  
Benign Nature ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Electrocardiogram Monitoring

Background Whether prolonged and intense exercise increases the incidence of ventricular arrhythmias in middle-aged athletes remains to be established. Design Prospective, case-control. Methods We studied 134 healthy competitive athletes >30 years old (median age 45 (39–51) years, 83% males) who had been engaged in 9 ± 2 h per week of endurance sports activity (running, cycling, triathlon) for 13 ± 4 consecutive years. One hundred and thirty-four age- and gender-matched individuals served as controls. Both groups underwent 12-lead 24-h ambulatory electrocardiogram monitoring, which included a training session in athletes. Ventricular arrhythmias were evaluated in terms of number, complexity (i.e. couplet, triplet or non-sustained ventricular tachycardia), exercise-inducibility and morphology. Results Thirty-five (26%) athletes and 31 (23%) controls showed >10 isolated premature ventricular beats or ≥1 complex ventricular arrhythmia ( p = 0.53). Athletes with ventricular arrhythmias were older (median 48 versus 43 years old, p = 0.03) but did not differ with regard to hours of training and years of activity compared with athletes without ventricular arrhythmias. Ten (7%) athletes and six (5%) controls showed >500 premature ventricular beats/24 h ( p = 0.30): the most common ventricular arrhythmia morphologies were infundibular (six athletes and five controls) and fascicular (two athletes and one control). Conclusions The prevalence of ventricular arrhythmias at 24-hour ambulatory electrocardiogram monitoring did not differ between middle-aged athletes and sedentary controls and was unrelated to the amount and duration of exercise. These findings do not support the hypothesis that endurance sports activity increases the burden of ventricular arrhythmias. Among individuals with frequent premature ventricular beats, the predominant ectopic QRS morphologies were consistent with the idiopathic and benign nature of the arrhythmia.

Benefits of volunteerism for middle-aged and older adults: comparisons between types of volunteering activities

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-20
Author(s):  
Alfred H. K. Lam ◽  
Dannii Y. Yeung ◽  
Edwin K. H. Chung
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Life Satisfaction ◽  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Middle Aged ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Health And Wellbeing ◽  
Hand Grip ◽  
Middle Aged Adults ◽  
Main Effects

Abstract Volunteering is a popular activity among middle-aged and older adults as means to contribute to the society and to maintain personal health and wellbeing. While the benefits of volunteering have been well-documented in the current literature, it does not tend to distinguish between various types of volunteering activities. This cross-sectional study aims to compare the effects of instrumental (e.g. food preparation, fundraising) and cognitively demanding volunteering activities (e.g. befriending, mentoring) in a sample of 487 middle-aged and older Hong Kong Chinese adults. Participation in instrumental and cognitively demanding volunteering, life satisfaction, depressive symptoms, cognitive functioning and hand-grip strength were measured. The results of two-way between-subject robust analyses of variance demonstrated significant main effects of volunteering type and their interaction effect with age on life satisfaction and depressive symptoms. Comparisons among four volunteering groups (no volunteering, instrumental volunteering, cognitively demanding volunteering and both types) revealed that individuals engaging in instrumental volunteering exhibited lower life satisfaction and more depressive symptoms compared to those who engaged in cognitively demanding volunteering and those who did not volunteer at all. This detrimental pattern of instrumental volunteering was only seen in middle-aged adults, but not in older adults. Findings of this study revealed distinctive effects of two volunteering types, and provide valuable directions for designing future volunteering programmes.

Living together full time? Middle-class couples approaching retirement

1999 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 161-183 ◽  
Author(s):  
MARION HILBOURNE
Keyword(s):  
Middle Class ◽  
Marital Relationship ◽  
Personal Space ◽  
Research Literature ◽  
Full Time ◽  
Middle Aged ◽  
Senior Managers ◽  
Emotional Quality ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Relationship

A review of the research literature shows that research on the effects of male retirement on the relationship between husbands and wives is largely based on US populations. Moreover, there is a lack of recent empirical evidence on the marital relationship in middle-class, middle-aged couples living in the UK. A study of anticipatory thoughts about retirement voiced by 306 retiring senior managers and their wives is described. The most frequent focus of their hopes and fears was potential change in the marital relationship after retirement. Three times as many wives as husbands referred to their marriages as they speculated about retirement. A content analysis revealed four major themes. The most frequent was change in the emotional quality of the relationship followed by the conflict between spending time together and the loss of personal space. There was less emphasis on the implications for household management and the possibility of widow(er)hood. The verbatim comments also illustrate some other facets of marriage among middle-aged, middle-class UK couples in the 1990s.

scholarly journals Carers’ involvement in telecare provision by local councils for older people in England: perspectives of council telecare managers and stakeholders

2019 ◽  
pp. 1-20
Author(s):  
Nicole Steils ◽  
John Woolham ◽  
Malcolm Fisk ◽  
Jeremy Porteus ◽  
Kirsty Forsyth
Keyword(s):  
Older People ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Senior Managers ◽  
Local Council ◽  
Health And Wellbeing ◽  
Stakeholder Perspectives ◽  
Routine Monitoring ◽  
Hands On ◽  
Carer Support ◽  
Informal Carers

AbstractThis paper explores telecare manager and other ‘stakeholder’ perspectives on the nature, extent and impact of family and other unpaid/informal carers’ involvement in the provision of telecare equipment and services for older people. Data used in the paper are derived from a larger study on telecare provision by local councils in England. The paper aims to add to the growing evidence about carers’ engagement with electronic assistive technology and telecare, and considers this in the context of typologies of professionals’ engagement with carers. How carers are involved in telecare provision is examined primarily from the perspectives of senior managers responsible for telecare services who responded to an online survey and/or were interviewed in 2016 as part of a wider study. The perspectives of three unpaid carers were captured in a separate strand of the main study, which comprised more detailed case study interviews within four selected councils. Thematic and comparative analysis of both qualitative and quantitative survey data revealed the varied involvements and responsibilities that carers assumed during the telecare provision process, the barriers that they needed to overcome and their integration in local council strategies. Findings are discussed in the context of Twigg and Atkin's typology of carer support. They suggest that carers are mainly perceived as ‘resources’ and involvement is largely taken for granted. There are instances in which carers can be seen as ‘co-workers’: this is mainly around responding to alerts generated by the telecare user or by monitored devices, but only in those councils that fund response services. Though some participants felt that telecare devices could replace or ‘supersede’ hands-on care that involved routine monitoring of health and wellbeing, it was also acknowledged that its use might also place new responsibilities on carers. Furthermore, the study found that meeting carers’ own rights as ‘co-clients’ was little acknowledged.

scholarly journals Influences of Weight Loss and Physical Exercise on Lipid Panel in Overweight Middle-Aged Men

2020 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohammadreza Rezaeipour ◽  
Apanasenko Gennady Leonidovich
Keyword(s):  
Weight Loss ◽  
Reduction Rate ◽  
Diet Group ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Restricted Diet ◽  
Middle Aged ◽  
Endurance Sports ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Lipid Panel ◽  
And Control

Background: Cardiovascular risk is reduced by weight loss and exercise, but their relative effects and independent significance are unclear. Objectives: The effect of weight loss and the implementation of an exercise strategy on the lipid panel of overweight middle-aged men, who lead a sedentary lifestyle, was investigated. Methods: Eighty four men participated in this 12-week cross-sectional study. Participants were randomly assigned to the four study groups: endurance sports, energy-restricted diet, endurance sports with boosted nutrition, and control. The energy reduction rate was the same (approximately 15% of the daily calorie requirement) for the group involved in endurance sports and for the group with an energy-restricted diet. The participants in the endurance sports with boosted nutrition performed the same exercises but remained in energy balance due to a 15% increase in calories during training. Participant lipid panel profile and weight loss parameters were measured once at the start of the study, and again at the end. Results: Weight loss was the same between the endurance sports (-6.5 ± 0.6 kg) and energy-restricted diet (- 6.2 ± 0.5 kg) groups. Whereas in the endurance sports with boosted nutrition (-0.8 ± 0.4 kg), and control (-0.1 ± 0.7 kg) groups, weight remained constant. Levels of TC and LDL-C decreased in the endurance sports compared to the control group (P < 0.001 for both). This change was not observed in the energy-restricted diet group (P > 0.11). Differences in TC and LDL-C levels were connected with changes in body mass (P < 0.01). In the endurance sports with boosted nutrition group, we noted a rise in HDL-C (P < 0.001). Conclusions: A decrease in body weight caused by exercise reduced pro-atherogenic lipoproteins, while physical activity compensated with energy consumption increased HDL-C.

scholarly journals Japanese managers’ experiences of neuro-linguistic programming: a qualitative investigation

2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 174-185 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yasuhiro Kotera ◽  
William Van Gordon
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Health Training ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Senior Managers ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Work Related ◽  
Health And Wellbeing ◽  
The Mind ◽  
Employee Mental Health

Purpose Though several work-related mental health training initiatives have been implemented in Japan, the effectiveness of such approaches remains unclear. Consequently, some Japanese corporations prefer using interventions such as neuro-linguistic programming (NLP) to improve employee mental health and wellbeing. This language-based development methodology has been the subject of debate in terms of the quality of the underlying empirical evidence. However, a perspective missing from this debate is an evidence-based understanding of the first-hand experiences of employees that have undertaken NLP training. The purpose of this paper is to inform this debate by conducting a rigorous qualitative examination of the experiences of Japanese senior managers who had recently received training in NLP. Design/methodology/approach Semi-structured interviews attended by 11 Japanese NLP master practitioners were analysed using thematic analysis. Findings Four themes emerged from the data set: improving work-related mental health, NLP fosters a better understanding of the mind, NLP helps to reframe perspectives relating to work and mental health, and challenges of NLP training. Originality/value While managers found NLP training skills such as reframing and neuro-logical levels useful to their managerial practice and mental health more generally, they raised concerns about NLP’s reputation as well as the utility of some of the techniques employed in NLP.

scholarly journals Perceived discrimination, health and wellbeing among middle-aged and older lesbian, gay and bisexual people: A prospective study

PLoS ONE ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (5) ◽  
pp. e0216497 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah E. Jackson ◽  
Ruth A. Hackett ◽  
Igor Grabovac ◽  
Lee Smith ◽  
Andrew Steptoe
Keyword(s):  
Prospective Study ◽  
Perceived Discrimination ◽  
Middle Aged ◽  
Health And Wellbeing ◽  
And Bisexual ◽  
A Prospective Study ◽  
Bisexual People
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