Learning Agility of Leadership during the Pandemic: An Empirical Study of Life-Sciences Learning &Development Professionals (Preprint)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
XinYun Peng ◽  
Nicole Wang-Trexler ◽  
William Magagna ◽  
Susan Mary Land ◽  
Kyle Peck

BACKGROUND COVID-19 pandemic has changed organizations around the world in many ways. Learning & Development (L&D) departments within organizations underwent profound changes during the abrupt shift to remote work, and as a result, envisioned and implemented new work and training practices. Given the complex and dynamic situation of the pandemic, both individuals and organizations needed to learn quickly and apply what they learned to solve new, unprecedented problems. This situation presents an opportunity to study how characteristics of learning agility were evidenced by organizations and individual employees during the abrupt shift to remote learning brought about by the global pandemic. OBJECTIVE In collaboration with the StudySite [name blinded], this study investigated the responses and learning agility of L&D professionals and their organizational leadership within the life-sciences sector to the work changes due to the pandemic. METHODS We adopted a mixed methods approach that included a semi-structured interview and a survey. Interviews were conducted through phone or online conferencing and lasted 30-60 minutes each, covering 22 questions to stimulate ideas that could be used in the survey. The subsequent survey consisted of 37 items regarding 4 specific themes. RESULTS Findings reveal generally positive organizational and individual responses towards the changes brought about by the pandemic. Results also indicate that a disruptive crisis, like the abrupt shift to remote working, required professionals’ learning agility to both self-initiate their own learning and to support the learning agility of others in the organization. CONCLUSIONS This is the second study in a series designed to better understand education and training in the life sciences on a macro level. We discussed several important directions for future research on learning agility of L&D professionals in life-sciences organizations.

2013 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
pp. 9
Author(s):  
Jennifer Lee Brady ◽  
Annie Hoang ◽  
Olivia Siswanto ◽  
Jordana Riesel ◽  
Jacqui Gingras

Obtaining dietetic licensure in Ontario requires completion of a Dietitians of Canada (DC) accredited four-year undergraduate degree in nutrition and an accredited post-graduate internship or combined Master’s degree program. Given the scarcity of internship positions in Ontario, each year approximately two-thirds of the eligible applicants who apply do not receive a position XX, XX, XX, XX, XX, XX, in press). Anecdotally, not securing an internship position is known to be a particularly disconcerting experience that has significant consequences for individuals’ personal, financial, and professional well-being. However, no known empirical research has yet explored students’ experiences of being unsuccessful in applying for internship positions. Fifteen individuals who applied between 2005 and 2009 to an Ontario-based dietetic internship program, but were unsuccessful at least once, participated in a one-on-one semi-structured interview. Findings reveal that participants’ experiences unfold successively in four phases that are characterized by increasingly heightened emotional peril: naïveté, competition, devastation, and frustration. The authors conclude that the current model of dietetic education and training in Ontario causes lasting distress to students and hinders the future growth and vitality of the dietetic profession. Further research is required to understand the impact of the current model on dietetic educators, internship coordinators, and preceptors as coincident participants in the internship application process.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Margaret Gullick ◽  
James R. Booth

Crossmodal integration is a critical component of successful reading, and yet it has been less studied than reading’s unimodal subskills. Proficiency with the sounds of a language (i.e., the phonemes) and with the visual representations of these sounds (graphemes) are both important and necessary precursors for reading, but the formation of a stable integrated representation that combines and links these aspects, and subsequent fluent and automatic access to this crossmodal representation, is unique to reading and is required for its success. Indeed, individuals with specific difficulties in reading, as in dyslexia, demonstrate impairments not only in phonology and orthography but also in integration. Impairments in only crossmodal integration could result in disordered reading via disrupted formation of or access to phoneme–grapheme associations. Alternately, the phonological deficits noted in many individuals with dyslexia may lead to reading difficulties via issues with integration: children who cannot consistently identify and manipulate the sounds of their language will also have trouble matching these sounds to their visual representations, resulting in the manifested deficiencies. We here discuss the importance of crossmodal integration in reading, both generally and as a potential specific causal deficit in the case of dyslexia. We examine the behavioral, functional, and structural neural evidence for a crossmodal, as compared to unimodal, processing issue in individuals with dyslexia in comparison to typically developing controls. We then present an initial review of work using crossmodal- versus unimodal-based reading interventions and training programs aimed at the amelioration of reading difficulties. Finally, we present some remaining questions reflecting potential areas for future research into this topic.


Author(s):  
Tera D. Letzring

This chapter identifies several well-established findings and overarching themes within personality trait accuracy research, and highlights especially promising directions for future research. Topics include (1) theoretical frameworks for accuracy, (2) moderators of accuracy and the context or situation in which judgments are made, (3) the important consequences of accuracy, (4) interventions and training programs to increase judgmental ability and judgability, (5) the generalizability of previous findings, and (6) standardized tests of the accuracy of judging personality traits. The chapter ends by stating that it is an exciting time to be a researcher studying the accuracy of personality trait judgments.


2021 ◽  
pp. 193672442110356
Author(s):  
Elmira Jangjou

In response to students’ food insecurity, a number of colleges and universities have taken action and established campus food pantries as part of their intervention plans. However, many of these pantries ceased operation due to COVID-19 campus shutdowns. The purpose of this study is to illustrate the short-term impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on postsecondary students, who use a university-provided food pantry. Drawing from semi-structured interviews with 12 participants, the thematic analysis explored the initial coping strategies these students used to endure the pandemic. Findings revealed that many students experienced the immediate effects of the pandemic in the form of income loss, self-isolation, anxiety, and appetite change. Although the pandemic interrupted these students’ journeys to continue their studies and become independent in various ways, the affected students implemented various coping strategies, including seeking help from family or friends, using available resources, cooking at home, and even trying to save money. However, considering that the targeted population in this study was already at risk because of their basic needs insecurity, these postsecondary students require extra attention from their higher education institutions in the case of emergencies, such as a global pandemic. In addition to its timely and relevant findings, this study provides important avenues for future research and intervention efforts.


Healthcare ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 528
Author(s):  
Cristian Lieneck ◽  
Brooke Herzog ◽  
Raven Krips

The delivery of routine health care during the COVID-19 global pandemic continues to be challenged as public health guidelines and other local/regional/state and other policies are enforced to help prevent the spread of the virus. The objective of this systematic review is to identify the facilitators and barriers affecting the delivery of routine health care services during the pandemic to provide a framework for future research. In total, 32 articles were identified for common themes surrounding facilitators of routine care during COVID-19. Identified constructed in the literature include enhanced education initiatives for parents/patients regarding routine vaccinations, an importance of routine vaccinations as compared to the risk of COVID-19 infection, an enhanced use of telehealth resources (including diagnostic imagery) and identified patient throughput/PPE initiatives. Reviewers identified the following barriers to the delivery of routine care: conservation of medical providers and PPE for non-routine (acute) care delivery needs, specific routine care services incongruent the telehealth care delivery methods, and job-loss/food insecurity. Review results can assist healthcare organizations with process-related challenges related to current and/or future delivery of routine care and support future research initiatives as the global pandemic continues.


2018 ◽  
Vol 30 (8) ◽  
pp. 1186-1203 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael R. Smith ◽  
Matthew Petrocelli

In 2010, the Arizona legislature effectively deregulated concealed handgun carry in the state by passing Senate Bill (SB) 1108, which eliminated licensing and training requirements for concealed carry. Although researchers have extensively examined the impact of state adoption of concealed carry laws, almost nothing is known about the effects of deregulating concealed carry altogether. This study contributes to the more guns, less crime debate by examining the impact of Arizona’s decision to deregulate concealed carry. Using a multiple time-series research design with an experimental (Tucson) and control city (El Paso), the present study examines the impact of deregulation on handgun-related violent crime and gun larcenies in Arizona’s second largest city—Tucson. We find that the passage of SB 1108 had no impact on handgun-related offenses that could be expected to change following deregulation. The implications of these findings for policy making and future research are discussed.


2020 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. 541-548
Author(s):  
Lee D. Parker

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to critique the accounting and financial orientation of Australian universities’ business model to identify the future university financial management and accounting role in universities’ strategic trajectory responding to COVID-19. Design/methodology/approach Informed by Habermasian perspectives on change, it uses published research into university commercialisation and media commentaries on COVID-19 impacts. Findings Australian universities have aggressively pursued an accounting-based private sector business model. Their revenue generating reliance on international student revenues has been undermined by the COVIS-19 crisis. Nonetheless, university management clings to their commercialised university identity and role colonised by the accounting structures. Fundamental change requires a reversal of this relationship. Research limitations/implications Future research must observe and evaluate university strategic crisis reactions and their impacts on national and societal well-being with a view to identifying alternative futures. Practical implications Universities face decisions concerning their ongoing role in society and their future approach to balancing operational strategies and the accounting influence. Social implications This study raises the issue of whether universities should continue being seen as an export industry supporting the national economy or as knowledge, educational and social resource for their national and regional communities. Originality/value This paper integrates research into universities over several decades into a strategic critique of their current reaction to an unprecedented global pandemic.


2013 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
pp. 301 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sally Fraser ◽  
Michael Leveritt ◽  
Lauren Ball

INTRODUCTION: General practitioners (GPs) play an important role in the management of patients who are overweight or obese. Previous research suggests that GPs’ physical characteristics may influence patients’ perceptions of health care received during consultations, mediating the likelihood of patients following health advice provided by GPs. This study aimed to explore patients’ perceptions of their GP’s health status and its influence on patients’ perceptions of healthy eating and exercise advice. METHODS: An interpretive approach to phenomenology underpinned the qualitative inquiry and study design. Twenty-one participants (aged 55.9 ± 6.5 years; 14 females, 7 males) who had previously received healthy eating and/or exercise advice from a GP participated in an individual semi-structured interview. A constant comparison approach to thematic analysis was conducted. FINDINGS: Participants identified three key indicators of perceived health of their GP. These included the GP’s physical appearance, particularly weight status; perceived absence of ill health; and disclosure of a GP’s health behaviours. Participants expressed favourable perceptions of the weight status of their GP. Participants expected their GP to be a healthy role model and often, but not always, felt more confident receiving advice from a GP that they perceived as healthy. CONCLUSION: The findings highlight that a GP’s perceived health status influences patients’ perceptions of the health advice received during consultations. These findings provide a foundation for future research that may allow GPs to modify patients’ perceptions of their health status in order to facilitate behaviour change in overweight or obese patients. KEYWORDS: Body weight; general practitioners; obesity; overweight; physicians; primary health care


2017 ◽  
Vol 25 (3) ◽  
pp. 788-810 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julian Hamm ◽  
Arthur G Money ◽  
Anita Atwal ◽  
Gheorghita Ghinea

The assistive equipment provision process is routinely carried out with patients to mitigate fall risk factors via the fitment of assistive equipment within the home. However, currently, over 50% of assistive equipment is abandoned by the patients due to poor fit between the patient and the assistive equipment. This paper explores clinician perceptions of an early stage three-dimensional measurement aid prototype, which provides enhanced assistive equipment provision process guidance to clinicians. Ten occupational therapists trialled the three-dimensional measurement aid prototype application; think-aloud and semi-structured interview data was collected. Usability was measured with the System Usability Scale. Participants scored three-dimensional measurement aid prototype as ‘excellent’ and agreed strongly with items relating to the usability and learnability of the application. The qualitative analysis identified opportunities for improving existing practice, including, improved interpretation/recording measurements; enhanced collaborative practice within the assistive equipment provision process. Future research is needed to determine the clinical utility of this application compared with two-dimensional counterpart paper-based guidance leaflets.


2018 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 42-54 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paschal Anosike

Previous research has focused on stable developed economies to predict that human capital and entrepreneurship education (EE) provision at the higher education (HE) level will positively affect entrepreneurial success. This article draws on the outcome of recent EE projects in two HE institutions in a conflict-torn northern Nigeria as a proxy to advocate the introduction of entrepreneurship as a compulsory component into the secondary school curriculum in Sub-Saharan Africa. Using semi-structured interview data, it is found that the provision of EE at secondary education level could help to facilitate human capital development and assist efforts to curb youth unemployment. Specifically, the study suggests that EE comprises both generic and specific human capital that increases an individual’s ability to identify and exploit opportunities, particularly for young people, and in doing so helps to reduce their vulnerability to poverty and involvement in armed conflict. Suggestions for future research and policy considerations are provided.


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