Psychosocial predictors of intentions to engage in change supportive behaviors in an organizational context

This study utilized the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) to understand employee change readiness. The extent to which attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control predicted employees’ intentions to carry out activities that were supportive of a change event were investigated. The impact of group norm was examined as a further predictor of change-related intentions. The context of the research was a sample of 82 employees in the early stages of a re-brand. Results indicated that direct measures of attitude and subjective norm, as well as group norm, emerged as significant predictors of employees’ intentions to perform re-brand behaviors. To capture the indirect beliefs underlying attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control, participants also provided an assessment of their behavioral, normative, and control beliefs in regards to the change event, respectively. A series of MANOVAs revealed significant differences between moderate and high intenders on a range of underlying beliefs. Findings are discussed in terms of the application of the TPB for effective change management.

Low achieving mathematics students' attitudinal and achievement changes as a result of using an integrated learning system

This paper reports on a study to measure the effectiveness of an integrated learning system (ILS) in improving mathematics achievement for low achieving Year 5 to 9 students. The study found that statistically significant gains on the integrated learning system were not supported by scores on standardised mathematics achievement tests. It also found that although student attitudes to computers decreased (significantly for some items), the students still liked the integrated learning system and felt that it had helped them to learn.

The differential effects of organizational antecedents on dimensions of corporate entrepreneurship

This study seeks to further delineate how organizational antecedents differentially influence the three components of corporate entrepreneurship: innovation, venturing or strategic renewal. We argue that structural differentiation may help organizations to maintain multiple and often conflicting demands of entrepreneurial and mainstream activities. Taking a social capital perspective, our study further examines two contingencies in the form of informal integration mechanisms (i.e. connectedness and TMT social integration). Our findings show structural differentiation has a positive effect on all three components of corporate entrepreneurship, yet the effect is moderated by integration mechanisms. Interunit connectedness has a positive moderation effect regarding innovation and venturing, and TMT social integration has a negative moderation effect regarding strategic renewal. This reveals that innovation is influenced by informal integration mechanisms on the organizational level, strategic renewal on top management team level, while venturing is influenced by integration mechanisms on both levels.

Sensitivity of proximal femoral stiffness and areal bone mineral density to changes in bone geometry and density

Areal bone mineral density (aBMD) is the most common surrogate measurement for assessing the bone strength of the proximal femur associated with osteoporosis. Additional factors, however, contribute to the overall strength of the proximal femur, primarily the anatomical geometry. Finite element analysis (FEA) is an effective and widely used computerbased simulation technique for modeling mechanical loading of various engineering structures, providing predictions of displacement and induced stress distribution due to the applied load. FEA is therefore inherently dependent upon both density and anatomical geometry. FEA may be performed on both three-dimensional and two-dimensional models of the proximal femur derived from radiographic images, from which the mechanical stiffness may be redicted. It is examined whether the outcome measures of two-dimensional FEA, two-dimensional, finite element analysis of X-ray images (FEXI), and three-dimensional FEA computed stiffness of the proximal femur were more sensitive than aBMD to changes in trabecular bone density and femur geometry. It is assumed that if an outcome measure follows known trends with changes in density and geometric parameters, then an increased sensitivity will be indicative of an improved prediction of bone strength. All three outcome measures increased non-linearly with trabecular bone density, increased linearly with cortical shell thickness and neck width, decreased linearly with neck length, and were relatively insensitive to neck-shaft angle. For femoral head radius, aBMD was relatively insensitive, with two-dimensional FEXI and threedimensional FEA demonstrating a non-linear increase and decrease in sensitivity, respectively. For neck anteversion, aBMD decreased non-linearly, whereas both two-dimensional FEXI and three dimensional FEA demonstrated a parabolic-type relationship, with maximum stiffness achieved at an angle of approximately 15o. Multi-parameter analysis showed that all three outcome measures demonstrated their highest sensitivity to a change in cortical thickness. When changes in all input parameters were considered simultaneously, three and twodimensional FEA had statistically equal sensitivities (0.41±0.20 and 0.42±0.16 respectively, p = ns) that were significantly higher than the sensitivity of aBMD (0.24±0.07; p = 0.014 and 0.002 for three-dimensional and two-dimensional FEA respectively). This simulation study suggests that since mechanical integrity and FEA are inherently dependent upon anatomical geometry, FEXI stiffness, being derived from conventional two-dimensional radiographic images, may provide an improvement in the prediction of bone strength of the proximal femur than currently provided by aBMD.

Spaces of care in the third sector : Understanding the effects of professionalization

Increasingly the health and welfare needs of individuals and communities are being met by third sector, or not-for-profit, organizations. Since the 1980s third sector organizations have been subject to significant, sector-wide changes, such as the development of contractual funding and an increasing need to collaborate with governments and other sectors. In particular, the processes of ‘professionalization’ and ‘bureaucratization’ have received significant attention and are now well documented in third sector literature. These processes are often understood to create barriers between organizations and their community groups and neutralize alternative forms of service provision. In this article we provide a case study of an Australian third sector organization undergoing professionalization. The case study draws on ethnographic and qualitative interviews with staff and volunteers at a health-based third sector organization involved in service provision to marginalized community groups. We examine how professionalization alters organizational spaces and dynamics and conclude that professionalized third sector spaces may still be ‘community’ spaces where individuals may give and receive care and services. Moreover, we suggest that these community spaces hold potential for resisting the neutralizing effects of contracting.

Key organizational elements for effective information and knowledge management

Effective information and knowledge management (IKM) is critical to corporate success; yet, its actual establishment and management is not yet fully understood. We identify ten organizational elements that need to be addressed to ensure the effective implementation and maintenance of information and knowledge management within organizations. We define these elements and provide key characterizations. We then discuss a case study that describes the implementation of an information system (designed to support IKM) in a medical supplies organization. We apply the framework of organizational elements in our analysis to uncover the enablers and barriers in this systems implementation project. Our analysis suggests that taking the ten organizational elements into consideration when implementing information systems will assist practitioners in managing information and knowledge processes more effectively and efficiently. We discuss implications for future research.

Assessing organizational culture? value management to the rescue

As part of a Doctor of Business Administration degree programme jointly run by Curtin University, Perth, Australia and Lingnan University, Hong Kong, a research thesis relating organizational effectiveness to the organizational culture of Hong Kong construction firms involved in public housing is being undertaken. Organizational effectiveness is measured by the Housing Department (HD) Performance Assessment Scoring System (PASS) and organizational culture traits and strengths have been measured by using the Denison Organizational Culture Survey (OCS), developed by Daniel Denison and William S. Neale and based on 16 years of research involving over 1,000 organizations. The PASS scores of building contractors are compared with the OCS scores to determine if there is any significant correlation between highly effective companies and particular organizational strengths and traits. Profiles are then drawn using the Denison Model and can be compared against ‘norms’ for the industry sector on which the survey has been carried out. The next stage of the work is to present the results of the survey to individual companies, conduct focus group interviews to test the results, discover more detail on that company’s culture and discuss possible actions based on the results. It is in this latter stage that certain value management techniques may well prove very useful.

Queensland Emergency Medical System : a structural and organizational model for the emergency medical system in Australia

Objective: The emergency medical system (EMS) can be defined as a comprehensive, coordinated and integrated system of care for patients suffering acute illness and injury. The aim of the present paper is to describe the evolution of the Queensland Emergency Medical System (QEMS) and to recommend a strategic national approach to EMS development. Methods: Following the formation of the Queensland Ambulance Service in 1991, a state EMS committee was formed. This committee led the development and approval of the cross portfolio QEMS policy framework that has resulted in dynamic policy development, system monitoring and evaluation. This framework is led by the Queensland Emergency Medical Services Advisory Committee. Results: There has been considerable progress in the development of all aspects of the EMS in Queensland. These developments have derived from the improved coordination and leadership that QEMS provides and has resulted in widespread satisfaction by both patients and stakeholders. Conclusions: The strategic approach outlined in the present paper offers a model for EMS arrangements throughout Australia. We propose that the Council of Australian Governments should require each state and Territory to maintain an EMS committee. These state EMS committees should have a broad portfolio of responsibilities. They should provide leadership and direction to the development of the EMS and ensure coordination and quality of outcomes. A national EMS committee with broad representation and broad scope should be established to coordinate the national development of Australia's EMS.

Organizational rhetoric in the prospectuses of elite private schools : unpacking strategies of persuasion

Schools have seldom been examined by scholars in studies of organizational sites. Yet schools and the educational context in which they operate, offer potentially important insights into how organizations use rhetoric in their communications to persuade audiences and leverage advantage in the marketplace. This study, which utilises rhetorical analysis to examine the persuasive, yet ambiguous strategies used in 65 school prospectuses in Australia, revealed six strategies consistently used by schools to leverage competitive advantage and persuade internal and external audiences: identification, juxtapositioning, bolstering or self-promotion, partial reporting, selfexpansion and reframing or reversal. As well as illustrating how schools operate in the context of marketisation and privatization discourses in 21st century education, the organizational theory and methods utilised for the research demonstrates how rhetorical strategies draw on, as well as reproduce, socio-political and cultural discourses around economic and social privilege.

Subjective fit with organizational culture : an investigation of moderating effects in the work stressor-employee adjustment relationship

Occupational stress has been a concern for human resource managers in light of research investigating the work stressor-employee adjustment relationship. This research has consistently demonstrated many negative effects between stressors in the workplace and employee adjustment. A considerable amount of literature also describes potential moderators of this relationship. Subjective fit with organizational culture has been established as a significant predictor of employee job-related attitudes; however, research has neglected investigation of the potential moderating effect of subjective fit in the work stressor-employee adjustment process. It was predicted that perceptions of subjective fit with the organization’s values and goals would mitigate the negative effect of work stressors on employee adjustment in an employee sample from three organizations (N ¼ 256). Hierarchical multiple regression analyses revealed support for the stress-buffering effects of high subjective fit in the prediction of physical symptoms, job satisfaction, and intentions to leave. The theoretical and practical implications of the results are discussed.

Age-related maculopathy : linking aetiology and pathophysiological changes to the ischaemia hypothesis

Age-related maculopathy (ARM) has remained a challenging topic with respect to its aetiology, pathomechanisms, early detection and treatment since the late 19th century when it was first described as its own entity. ARM was previously considered an inflammatory disease, a degenerative disease, a tumor and as the result of choroidal hemodynamic disturbances and ischaemia. The latter processes have been repeatedly suggested to have a key role in its development and progression. In vivo experiments under hypoxic conditions could be models for the ischaemic deficits in ARM. Recent research has also linked ARM with gene polymorphisms. It is however unclear what triggers a person's gene susceptibility. In this manuscript, a linking hypothesis between aetiological factors including ischaemia and genetics and the development of early clinicopathological changes in ARM is proposed. New clinical psychophysical and electrophysiological tests are introduced that can detect ARM at an early stage. Models of early ARM based upon hemodynamic, photoreceptor and post-receptoral deficits are described and the mechanisms by which ischaemia may be involved as a final common pathway are considered. In neovascular age-related macular degeneration (neovascular AMD), ischaemia is thought to promote release of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) which induces chorioretinal neovascularisation. VEGF is critical in the maintenance of the healthy choriocapillaris. In the final section of the manuscript the documentation of the effect of new anti-VEGF treatments on retinal function in neovascular AMD is critically viewed.

The efficacy of an augmented virtual reality system to alleviate pain in children undergoing burns dressing changes : a randomised controlled trial

In children, the pain and anxiety associated with acute burn dressing changes can be severe, with drug treatment alone frequently proving to be inadequate. Virtual reality (VR) systems have been successfully trialled in limited numbers of adult and paediatric burn patients. Augmented reality (AR) differs from VR in that it overlays virtual images onto the physical world, instead of creating a complete virtual world. This prospective randomised controlled trial investigated the use of AR as an adjunct to analgesia and sedation in children with acute burns. Forty-two children (30 male and 12 female), with an age range of 3–14 years (median age 9 years) and a total burn surface area ranging from 1 to 16% were randomised into a treatment (AR) arm and a control (basic cognitive therapy) arm after administration of analgesia and/or sedation. Pain scores, pulse rates (PR), respiratory rates (RR) and oxygen saturations (SaO2) were recorded pre-procedurally, at 10 min intervals and post-procedurally. Parents were also asked to grade their child's overall pain score for the dressing change. Mean pain scores were significantly lower (p = 0.0060) in the AR group compared to the control group, as were parental pain assessment scores (p = 0.015). Respiratory and pulse rates showed significant changes over time within groups, however, these were not significantly different between the two study groups. Oxygen saturation did not differ significantly over time or between the two study groups. This trial shows that augmented reality is a useful adjunct to pharmacological analgesia.

Changes in intraocular pressure and ocular pulse amplitude with accommodation

Aims: To investigate the change that occurs in intraocular pressure (IOP) and ocular pulse amplitude (OPA) with accommodation in young adult myopes and emmetropes. Methods: Fifteen progressing myopic and 17 emmetropic young adult subjects had their IOP and OPA measured using the Pascal dynamic contour tonometer. Measurements were taken initially with accommodation relaxed, and then following 2 min of near fixation (accommodative demand 3 D). Baseline measurements of axial length and corneal thickness were also collected prior to the IOP measures. Results: IOP significantly decreased with accommodation in both the myopic and emmetropic subjects (mean change 1.861.1 mm Hg, p<0.0001). There was no significant difference (p>0.05) between myopes and emmetropes in terms of baseline IOP or the magnitude of change in IOP with accommodation. OPA also decreased significantly with accommodation (mean change for all subjects 0.560.5, p<0.0001). The myopic subjects (baseline OPA 2.060.7 mm Hg) exhibited a significantly lower baseline OPA (p¼0.004) than the emmetropes (baseline OPA 3.261.3 mm Hg),and a significantly lower magnitude of change in OPA with accommodation. Conclusion: IOP decreases significantly with accommodation, and changes similarly in progressing myopic and emmetropic subjects. However, differences found between progressing myopes and emmetropes in the mean OPA levels and the decrease in OPA associated with accommodation suggested some changes in IOP dynamics associated with myopia.