Informal caring networks for people at end of life: Building social capital in Australian communities

The care of a person living at home near the end of their life is predominantly provided by family carers with the support of health services such as palliative care. In addition, informal caring networks also contribute at times to the support to the dying person and their carer. In this way, these networks can promote social capital in the communities from which they are drawn. This social approach to end of life care enhances community capacity to provide support to those dying at home and their carers. This article examines relevant published literature to explore the conceptual foundations of informal caring networks, examining the place of social capital and community development in the provision of end of life care at home, particularly in the Australian context.

An organization of visual and auditory fear conditioning in the lateral amygdala

Pavlovian fear conditioning is an evolutionary conserved and extensively studied form of associative learning and memory. In mammals, the lateral amygdala (LA) is an essential locus for Pavlovian fear learning and memory. Despite significant progress unraveling the cellular mechanisms responsible for fear conditioning, very little is known about the anatomical organization of neurons encoding fear conditioning in the LA. One key question is how fear conditioning to different sensory stimuli is organized in LA neuronal ensembles. Here we show that Pavlovian fear conditioning, formed through either the auditory or visual sensory modality, activates a similar density of LA neurons expressing a learning-induced phosphorylated extracellular signal-regulated kinase (p-ERK1/2). While the size of the neuron population specific to either memory was similar, the anatomical distribution differed. Several discrete sites in the LA contained a small but significant number of p-ERK1/2-expressing neurons specific to either sensory modality. The sites were anatomically localized to different levels of the longitudinal plane and were independent of both memory strength and the relative size of the activated neuronal population, suggesting some portion of the memory trace for auditory and visually cued fear conditioning is allocated differently in the LA. Presenting the visual stimulus by itself did not activate the same p-ERK1/2 neuron density or pattern, confirming the novelty of light alone cannot account for the specific pattern of activated neurons after visual fear conditioning. Together, these findings reveal an anatomical distribution of visual and auditory fear conditioning at the level of neuronal ensembles in the LA.

Audit committee effectiveness : informal processes and behavioural effects

Purpose This paper seeks to investigate the conditions and processes affecting the operation and potential effectiveness of audit committees (ACs), with particular focus on the interaction between the AC, individuals from financial reporting and internal audit functions and the external auditors. Design/methodology/approach A case study approach is employed, based on direct engagement with participants in AC activities, including the AC chair, external auditors, internal auditors, and senior management. Findings The authors find that informal networks between AC participants condition the impact of the AC and that the most significant effects of the AC on governance outcomes occur outside the formal structures and processes. An AC has pervasive behavioural effects within the organization and may be used as a threat, an ally and an arbiter in bringing solutions to issues and conflicts. ACs are used in organizational politics, communication processes and power plays and also affect interpretations of events and cultural values. Research limitations/implications Further research on AC and governance processes is needed to develop better understanding of effectiveness. Longitudinal studies, focusing on the organizational and institutional context of AC operations, can examine how historical events in an organization and significant changes in the regulatory environment affect current structures and processes. Originality/value The case analysis highlights a number of significant factors which are not fully recognised either in theorizing the governance role of ACs or in the development of policy and regulations concerning ACs but which impinge on their governance contribution. They include the importance of informal processes around the AC; its influence on power relations between organizational participants; the relevance of the historical development of governance in an organization; and the possibility that the AC’s impact on governance may be greatest in non-routine situations.

A study of the informal interactions between audit committees and internal auditors in Australia

This paper finds evidence for the growing importance of informal interactions between the internal audit function and the audit committee (AC) in Australia – a relatively unexplored topic in the literature – using a survey of Chief Audit Executives (CAEs). It also describes the nature of these informal interactions. The most innovative elements of this paper are the findings that certain personal characteristics of CAEs, the specific knowledge and expertise of the AC chair, as well as some of the AC chair’s personal characteristics are associated with the existence (and increase) of informal interactions.

Importance of knowledge management processes in a project-based organization : a case study of research enterprise

Knowledge Management (KM) is vital factor to successfully undertake projects. The temporary nature of projects necessitates employing useful KM practices for tackling issues such as knowledge leakiness and rework. The Project Management Office (PMO) is a unit within organizations to facilitate and oversee organizational projects. Project Management Maturity Models (PMMM) shows the development of PMOs from immature to mature levels. The existing PMMMs have focused on discussing Project Management (PM) practices, however, the management of project knowledge is yet to be addressed, at various levels of maturity. This research project was undertaken to investigate the mentioned gap for addressing KM practices at the existing PMMMs. Due to the exploratory and inductive nature of this research, qualitative methods were chosen as the research methodology. In total, three cases selected from different industries: research; mining and government organizations, to provide broad categories for research and research questions were examined using the developed framework. This paper presents the partial findings of undertaken investigation of the research organisation with the lowest level of maturity. The result shows that knowledge creation and capturing are the most important processes, while knowledge transferring and reusing are not as important as the other two processes. In addition, it was revealed that provision of “knowledge about client” and “project management knowledge” are the most important types of knowledge that are required at this level of maturity. In conclusion, the outcomes of this paper shall provide powerful guidance to PMOs at lowest level of maturity from KM point of view.

Value congruence and job-related attitudes in a nonprofit organization: A competing values approach

Researchers have highlighted the importance of the nonprofit sector, its continued growth, and a relative lack of literature particularly related to nonprofit organizational values. Therefore, this study investigates organizational culture in a human services nonprofit organization. The relationship between person-organization value congruence and employee and volunteer job-related attitudes is examined (N = 227). Following initial qualitative enquiry, confirmatory factor analyses of the Competing Values Framework and additional values revealed five dimensions of organizational values. The relationship between value congruence, and employee and volunteers' job-related attitudes was examined using polynomial regression techniques. Analyses revealed that for employees, job-related attitudes were influenced strongly by organization values ratings, particularly when exceeding person ratings of the same values. For volunteers, person value ratings exceeding organization value ratings were especially detrimental to their job-related attitudes. Findings are discussed in terms of their theoretical and practical implications.

Human mating in the informal market for sperm donation: Preferences and decision making

Choosing a mate is one of the largest (economic) decisions humans make. This thesis investigates this large scale decision and how the process is changing with the advent of the internet and the growing market for online informal sperm donation. This research identifies individual factors that influence female mating preferences. It explores the roles of behavioural traits and physical appearance, preferences for homogamy and hypergamy, and personality, and how these impact the decision to choose a donor. Overall, this thesis makes contributions to both the literature on human behaviour, and that on decision-making in extreme and highly important situations.

Social organization of household finance: Understanding artful financial systems in the home

In this paper we discuss results of a field study focused on understanding the ways money and financial issues are handled within family settings. Families develop ‘systems’ or methods through which they coordinate and manage their everyday financial activities. Through an analysis of our fieldwork data collected from fifteen families, we provide several examples of such systems, highlighting their qualities and illustrating how such systems come to support the handling of financial activities in the home. Our results show that these systems are developed with a careful consideration of familial values, relationships and routines; and incorporate the use of physical and digital tools. Consequently, we suggest that design should consider the use and non-use of technology when supporting household financial management, taking into account the richness of families’ existing organically formed practices surrounding financial systems. Finally, our findings point to the fact that financial management in the domestic setting is socially organized and is closely connected to supporting everyday household activities.

Three-dimensional organization of fenestrae labyrinths in liver sinusoidal endothelial cells

- Background/Aims Liver sinusoidal endothelial cell (LSEC) fenestrae are membrane-bound pores that are grouped in sieve plates and act as a bidirectional guardian in regulating transendothelial liver transport. The high permeability of the endothelial lining is explained by the presence of fenestrae and by various membrane-bound transport vesicles. The question as to whether fenestrae relate to other transport compartments remains unclear and has been debated since their discovery almost 40 years ago. - Methods In this study, novel insights concerning the three-dimensional (3D) organization of the fenestrated cytoplasm were built on transmission electron tomographical observations on isolated and cultured whole-mount LSECs. Classical transmission electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy imaging was performed to accumulate cross-correlative structural evidence. - Results and Conclusions The data presented here indicate that different arrangements of fenestrae have to be considered: i.e. open fenestrae that lack any structural obstruction mainly located in the thin peripheral cytoplasm and complexes of multifolded fenestrae organized as labyrinth-like structures that are found in the proximity of the perinuclear area. Fenestrae in labyrinths constitute about one-third of the total LSEC porosity. The 3D reconstructions also revealed that coated pits and small membrane-bound vesicles are exclusively interspersed in the non-fenestrated cytoplasmic arms.

Insights from stimulating creative behaviours in a project-based organization team

Novel and useful ideas and creative behaviours originate in varied work environments, yet the characteristics of work environments that stimulate and foster such creative behaviours are not well defined. The aim of this study was to identify the influences that contribute to creative behaviours in the work environment of a global project-based professional service organization. This article is based on an investigation of the work environment of one project team undertaking interdisciplinary work in the construction of a processing plant in a remote location. This multi-disciplinary team encouraged creative behaviours through regular team meetings, ensuring the presentation of diverse views and commitments to regular interaction and collaboration in co-located environments. In addition, a technology manager dedicated to identifying potential opportunities for patenting and commercialization further extended the creative behaviours of the team by focusing on the best solution for each situation. The study contributes new knowledge to research regarding work environments that facilitate creative behaviours.