Injustice Everywhere: Hemingway's Struggle with Race, Gender, and Aesthetics

The purpose of this study was to critically evaluate the aesthetic decisions and theoretical complexity of three of Ernest Hemingway’s most experimental texts: IN OUR TIME, TO HAVE AND HAVE NOT, and THE GARDEN OF EDEN, and to show that the usually maligned Hemingway was an author invested in the avant-garde and in analyzing and dissecting rigid societal rules, not championing them. Through critical analysis this study examined how Hemingway makes specific aesthetic decisions in order to more clearly examine the disparity between whites and both women and racial minorities in America. The problems that Hemingway makes clear through his art are meant to have a profound effect upon the reader and encourage re-evaluation of societal rules, their purpose, and their fairness to those who are not white, male, and typically in a position of power. The findings demonstrate that Hemingway’s entire oeuvre is open to re-interpretation on the basis of a progressive view of the author.

The Survival and Stock Performance of Emerging Country Firms in the United States

Many firms from emerging markets flocked to developed countries at high cost with hopes of acquiring strategic assets that are difficult to obtain in home countries. Adequate research has focused on the motivations and strategies of emerging country firms' (ECFs') internationalization, while limited studies have explored their survival in advanced economies years after their venturing abroad. Due to the imprinting effect of home country institutions that inhibit their development outside their home market, ECFs are inclined to hire executives with international background and affiliate to world-wide organizations for the purpose of linking up with the global market, embracing multiple perspectives for strategic decisions, and absorbing the knowledge of foreign markets. However, the effects of such orientation on survival are under limited exploration. Motivated by the discussion above, I explore ECFs’ survival and stock performance in a developed country (U.S.). Applying population ecology, signaling theory and institutional theory, the dissertation investigates the characteristics of ECFs that survived in the developed country (U.S.), tests the impacts of global orientation on their survival, and examines how global-oriented activities (i.e. joining United Nations Global Compact) affect their stock performance. The dissertation is structured in the form of three empirical essays. The first essay explores and compares different characteristics of ECFs and developed country firms (DCFs) that managed to survive in the U.S. The second essay proposes the concept of global orientation, and tests its influences on ECFs’ survival. Employing signaling theory and institutional theory, the third essay investigates stock market reactions to announcements of United Nation Global Compact (UNGC) participation. The dissertation serves to explore the survival of ECFs in the developed country (U.S.) by comparison with DCFs, enriching traditional theories by testing non-traditional arguments in the context of ECFs’ foreign operation, and better informing practitioners operating ECFs about ways of surviving in developed countries and improving stockholders’ confidence in their future growth.

Shared services and outsourcing : a contemporary outlook:10th Global Sourcing Workshop 2016, Val d'Isère, France, February 16-19, 2016, revised selected papers

This book constitutes the revised selected papers from the 10th Global Sourcing Workshop held in Val d’Isère, France, in February 2016. The 11 papers presented in this volume were carefully reviewed and selected from 47 submissions. The book offers a review of the key topics in outsourcing and offshoring of information technology and business services offering practical frameworks that serve as a tool kit to students and managers. The range of topics covered is wide and diverse, but predominately focused on how to achieve success in shared services and outsourcing. More specifically, the book examines outsourcing decisions and management practices, giving specific attention to shared services that have become one of the dominant sourcing models. The topics discussed combine theoretical and practical insights regarding challenges that industry leaders, policy makers, and professionals face or should be concerned with. Case studies from various organizations, industries and countries such as UK, Italy, The Netherlands, Canada, Australia and Denmark complete the book.

The Koala and the Kangaroo effects: from Melbourne to Algarve

This communication is the result of several discussions between five researchers about consumers and consumer behavior. In fact, we only stated an analogy between consumers and two animals (koalas and kangaroos). We propose an original way to classify participants in a survey (or experiment) as one of these two animals. With this, we hope to rise up some minds about the need to become more realistic and less theoretical when we try to explain our decisions and behaviors.

"Going outside": discussing the connection between pedagogical practices with digital tools and outdoor learning in early childhood and primary education

Technology has an important role in children's lives and education. Based on several projects developed with ICT, both in Early Childhood Education (3-6 years old) and Primary Education (6-10 years old), since 1997, the authors argue that research and educational practices need to "go outside", addressing ways to connect technology with outdoor education. The experience with the projects and initiatives developed supported a conceptual framework, developed and discussed with several partners throughout the years and theoretically informed. Three main principles or axis have emerged: strengthening Children's Participation, promoting Critical Citizenship and establishing strong Connections to Pedagogy and Curriculum. In this paper, those axis will be presented and discussed in relation to the challenge posed by Outdoor Education to the way ICT in Early Childhood and Primary Education is understood, promoted and researched. The paper is exploratory, attempting to connect theoretical and conceptual contributions from Early Childhood Pedagogy with contributions from ICT in Education. The research-based knowledge available is still scarce, mostly based on studies developed with other purposes. The paper, therefore, focus the connections and interpellations between concepts established through the theoretical framework and draws on the almost 20 years of experience with large and small scale action-research projects of ICT in schools. The more recent one is already testing the conceptual framework by supporting children in non-formal contexts to explore vineyards and the cycle of wine production with several ICT tools. Approaching Outdoor Education as an arena where pedagogical and cultural dimensions influence decisions and practices, the paper tries to argue that the three axis are relevant in supporting a stronger connection between technology and the outdoor.

Ethos and Ideology of Knowledge Organization: Toward Precepts for and Engaged Knowledge Organization Drawing on The Arts and Crafts Movement, Critical Theory, and Žižek

Ethos is the spirit that motivates ideas and practices. When we talk casually about the ethos of a town, state, or country we are describing the fundamental or at least underlying rationale for action, as we see it. Ideology is a way of looking at things.It is the set of ideas that constitute one’s goals, expectations, and actions. In this brief essay I want to create a space where we might talk about the ethos and ideology in knowledge organization from a particular point of view; combining ideas and inspiration from the Arts and Crafts movement of the early Twentieth Century, critical theory in extant knowledge organization work, the work of Slavoj Žižek, and the work of Thich Nhat Hahn on Engaged Buddhism.I will expand more below, but we can say here and now that there are many open questions about ethos and ideology in and of knowledge organization, both its practice and products. Many of them in classification, positioned as they are around identity politics of race, gender, and other marginalized groups, ask the classificationist to be mindful of the choice of terms and relationships between terms. From this work we understand that race and gender requires special consideration, which manifests as a particular concern for the form of representation inside extant schemes. Even with these advances in our understanding there are still other categories about which we must make decisions and take action. For example, there are ethical decisions about fiduciary resource allocation, political decisions about standards adoption, and even broader zeitgeist considerations like the question of Fordist conceptions (Day, 2001; Tennis 2006) of the mechanics of description and representation present in much of today’s practice.Just as taking action in a particular way is an ethical concern, so too is avoiding a lack of action. Scholars in Knowledge Organization have also looked at the absence of what we might call right action in the context of cataloguing and classification. This leads to some problems above, and hints at larger ethical concerns of watching a subtle semantic violence go on without intervention (Bowker and Star, 2001; Bade 2006).The problem is not to act or not act, but how to act or not act in an ethical way, or at least with ethical considerations. The action advocated by an ethical consideration for knowledge organization is an engaged one, and it is here where we can take a nod from contemporary ethical theory advanced by Engaged Buddhism. In this context we can see the manifestation of fourteen precepts that guide ethical action, and warn against lack of action.

THOUGHTS ON TEACHING PHONETICS AND PHONOLOGY IN THE COURSE OF LETTERS: PROBLEMATIC SITUATIONS AS CUES TO PEDAGOGICAL PRACTICE

This paper is a root from the research project on Linguistics and Teacher Formation (at UEM). It also investigates the relations between the linguistic knowledge and the formation of teachers, promoting an interface between scientific knowledge and the didactic and pedagogical knowledge. In order to do so, it proposes to triangulate the official documentation on teacher formation (National Curricular Guidelines, Official Decisions and Opinions; National Curricular Parameters of basic and high school education; and the Pedagogical Project of the Letters Course at UEM); the practice of teachers based on each of the themes; and the schoolbooks used: grammar and government donated books.

Online discussion forums: a tool to stimulate language teachers’ interaction and reflection

The decisions and approaches taken by the teachers in the classroom are guided by their beliefs of what it means to teach and learn which are built along their history as a student and teacher. However, only the experiences lived by the teachers do not guarantee their professional development (CELCE-MURCIA, 2001). The teacher’s engagement in a process of reflection on their beliefs and pedagogical practices, which leads to the construction and reconstruction of meaning about their actions and the classroom is essential to their development, in order to become an agent of reflection. Considering the importance of reflection in teacher education, in this article, we emphasize the potential of virtual discussion forums to foster the sharing and the reflection of beliefs and practices of postgraduate students (language teachers) about the language teaching and learning process through interactive situations. By means of guidance and online and offline reflection, the students were able to share experiences on teaching and learning, as well as discuss their beliefs and the beliefs of their colleagues. The results of this study point out that understanding and interpreting the teachers’ beliefs can be a path to the transformation of their teaching practice through reflective practice. They also emphasize that the use of virtual discussion forums as a pedagogical tool can contribute in this direction.

Power law distributions in pattern dynamics of attacker-defender dyads in the team sport of Rugby Union : phenomena in a region of self-organized criticality?

In the region of self-organized criticality (SOC) interdependency between multi-agent system components exists and slight changes in near-neighbor interactions can break the balance of equally poised options leading to transitions in system order. In this region, frequency of events of differing magnitudes exhibits a power law distribution. The aim of this paper was to investigate whether a power law distribution characterized attacker-defender interactions in team sports. For this purpose we observed attacker and defender in a dyadic sub-phase of rugby union near the try line. Videogrammetry was used to capture players’ motion over time as player locations were digitized. Power laws were calculated for the rate of change of players’ relative position. Data revealed that three emergent patterns from dyadic system interactions (i.e., try; unsuccessful tackle; effective tackle) displayed a power law distribution. Results suggested that pattern forming dynamics dyads in rugby union exhibited SOC. It was concluded that rugby union dyads evolve in SOC regions suggesting that players’ decisions and actions are governed by local interactions rules.

In Pursuit of Excellence : A Policy Driven Systemic Initiative to Embed Gifted Education

Embedding gifted education practices requires major professional development strategies supported by transparent, credible and enforceable policy. This paper describes an analysis of a state-wide initiative involving the establishment of a series of schools tasked to develop and disseminate gifted education principles. The authors have been involved with this initiative at a number of levels over a ten-year period. Their involvement culminated in a commissioned review of the program. Extensive qualitative data were purposively collected from all stakeholders and the effectiveness of the initiative is examined from a theoretical framework of policy development and excellence. The findings summarised in this proposal, indicate the achievement of excellence at a systemic level was constrained by lack of vision, leadership and commitment to long term achievements of excellence. At a local level evidence exists that excellence can be manifested when there is synchronicity of vision, purpose, decisions, and actions.

An investigation into how work-related road safety can be enhanced

Despite the facts that vehicle incidents continue to be the most common mechanism for Australian compensated fatalities and that employers have statutory obligations to provide safe workplaces, very few organisations are proactively and comprehensively managing their work-related road risks. Unfortunately, limited guidance is provided in the existing literature to assist practitioners in managing work-related road risks. The current research addresses this gap in the literature. To explore how work-related road safety can be enhanced, three studies were conducted. Study one explored the effectiveness of a range of risk management initiatives and whether comprehensive risk management practices were associated with safety outcomes. Study two explored barriers to, and facilitators for, accepting risk management initiatives. Study three explored the influence of organisational factors on road safety outcomes to identify optimal work environments for managing road risks. To maximise the research sample and increase generalisability, the studies were designed to allow data collection to be conducted simultaneously drawing upon the same sample obtained from four Australian organisations. Data was collected via four methods. A structured document review of published articles was conducted to identify what outcomes have been observed in previously investigated work-related road safety initiatives. The documents reviewed collectively assessed the effectiveness of 19 work-related road safety initiatives. Audits of organisational practices and process operating within the four researched organisations were conducted to identify whether organisations with comprehensive work-related road risk management practices and processes have better safety outcomes than organisations with limited risk management practices and processes. Interviews were conducted with a sample of 24 participants, comprising 16 employees and eight managers. The interviews were conducted to identify what barriers and facilitators within organisations are involved in implementing work-related road safety initiatives and whether differences in fleet safety climate, stage of change and safety ownership relate to work-related road safety outcomes. Finally, questionnaires were administered to a sample of 679 participants. The questionnaires were conducted to identify which initiatives are perceived by employees to be effective in managing work-related road risks and whether differences in fleet safety climate, stage of change and safety ownership relate to work-related road safety outcomes. Seven research questions were addressed in the current research project. The key findings with respect to each of the research questions are presented below. Research question one: What outcomes have been observed in previously investigated work-related road safety initiatives? The structured document review indicated that initiatives found to be positively associated with occupational road safety both during and after the intervention period included: a pay rise; driver training; group discussions; enlisting employees as community road safety change agents; safety reminders; and group and individual rewards. Research question two: Which initiatives are perceived by employees to be effective in managing work-related road risks? Questionnaire findings revealed that employees believed occupational road risks could best be managed through making vehicle safety features standard, providing practical driver skills training and through investigating serious vehicle incidents. In comparison, employees believed initiatives including signing a promise card commitment to drive safely, advertising the organisation’s phone number on vehicles and consideration of driving competency in staff selection process would have limited effectiveness in managing occupational road safety. Research question three: Do organisations with comprehensive work-related road risk management practices and processes have better safety outcomes than organisations with limited risk management practices and processes? The audit identified a difference among the organisations in their management of work-related road risks. Comprehensive risk management practices were associated with employees engaging in overall safer driving behaviours, committing less driving errors, and experiencing less fatigue and distraction issues when driving. Given that only four organisations participated in this research, these findings should only be considered as preliminary. Further research should be conducted to explore the relationship between comprehensiveness of risk management practices and road safety outcomes with a larger sample of organisations. Research question four: What barriers and facilitators within organisations are involved in implementing work-related road safety initiatives? The interviews identified that employees perceived six organisational characteristics as potential barriers to implementing work-related road safety initiatives. These included: prioritisation of production over safety; complacency towards work-related road risks; insufficient resources; diversity; limited employee input in safety decisions; and a perception that road safety initiatives were an unnecessary burden. In comparison, employees perceived three organisational characteristics as potential facilitators to implementing work-related road safety initiatives. These included: management commitment; the presence of existing systems that could support the implementation of initiatives; and supportive relationships. Research question five: Do differences in fleet safety climate relate to work-related road safety outcomes? The interviews and questionnaires identified that organisational climates with high management commitment, support for managing work demands, appropriate safety rules and safety communication were associated with employees who engaged in safer driving behaviours. Regression analyses indicated that as participants’ perceptions of safety climate increased, the corresponding likelihood of them engaging in safer driving behaviours increased. Fleet safety climate was perceived to influence road safety outcomes through several avenues. Some of these included: the allocation of sufficient resources to manage occupational road risks; fostering a supportive environment of mutual responsibility; resolving safety issues openly and fairly; clearly communicating to employees that safety is the top priority; and developing appropriate work-related road safety policies and procedures. Research question six: Do differences in stage of change relate to work-related road safety outcomes? The interviews and questionnaires identified that participants’ perceptions of initiative effectiveness were found to vary with respect to their individual stage of readiness, with stage-matched initiatives being perceived most effective. In regards to safety outcomes, regression analyses identified that as participants’ progress through the stages of change, the corresponding likelihood of them being involved in vehicle crashes decreases. Research question seven: Do differences in safety ownership relate to work-related road safety outcomes? The interviews and questionnaires revealed that management of road risks is often given less attention than other areas of health and safety management in organisations. In regards to safety outcomes, regression analyses identified that perceived authority and perceived shared ownership both emerged as significant independent predictors of self-reported driving behaviours pertaining to fatigue and distractions. The regression models indicated that as participants’ perceptions of the authority of the person managing road risks increases, and perceptions of shared ownership of safety tasks increases, the corresponding likelihood of them engaging in driving while fatigued or multitasking while driving decreases. Based on the findings from the current research, the author makes several recommendations to assist practitioners in developing proactive and comprehensive approaches to managing occupational road risks. The author also suggests several avenues for future research in the area of work-related road safety.

Measurement properties of the Australian Women's Activity Survey

Purpose: The Australian Women’s Activity Survey (AWAS) was developed based on a systematic review and qualitative research on how to measure activity patterns of women with young children (WYC). AWAS assesses activity performed across five domains (planned activities, employment, childcare, domestic responsibilities and transport), and intensity levels (sitting, light-intensity, brisk walking, moderate-intensity and vigorous-intensity) in a typical week in the past month. The purpose of this study was to assess the test-retest reliability and criterion validity of the AWAS. Methods: WYC completed the AWAS on two occasions 7-d apart (test-retest reliability protocol) and/or wore an MTI ActiGraph accelerometer for 7-d in between (validity protocol). Forty WYC (mean age 35 ± 5yrs) completed the test-retest reliability protocol and 75 WYC (mean age 33 ± 5yrs) completed the validity protocol. Interclass Correlation Coefficients (ICC) between AWAS administrations and Spearman’s Correlation Coefficients (rs) between AWAS and MTI data were calculated. Results: AWAS showed good test-retest reliability (ICC=0.80 (0.65-0.89)) and acceptable criterion validity (rs= 0.28, p=0.01) for measuring weekly health-enhancing physical activity. AWAS also provided repeatable and valid estimates of sitting time (test-retest reliability ICC=0.42 (0.13-0.64), and criterion validity (rs= 0.32, p=0.006)). Conclusion: The measurement properties of the AWAS are comparable to those reported for existing self-report measures of physical activity. However, AWAS offers a more comprehensive and flexible alternative for accurately assessing different domains and intensities of activity relevant to WYC. Future research should investigate whether the AWAS is a suitable measure of intervention efficacy by examining its sensitivity to change.

Histology challenge : an interactive program for 1st year students

Our students come from diverse backgrounds. They need flexibility in their learning, and opportunities to review aspects of curriculum they are less confident with. An online teaching and learning programme called the Histology Challenge has been developed to supplement learning experiences offered in several first year anatomy and anatomy & physiology units at QUT. The programme is designed to be integrated with the existing Blackboard sites. The Histology Challenge emphasises the foundation concept that a complex system, such as the human body, can be better understood by examining its simpler components. The tutorial allows students to examine the cells and tissues which ultimately determine structural and functional properties of body organs. The program is interactive, asking students to make decisions and choices, demonstrating an integrated understanding of systemic and cellular aspects. It provides users with the ability to progress at their own pace and to test their understanding and knowledge. For the developer the learning activity can be easily controlled and modified via the use of text files. There are several key elements of this programme, designed to promote specific aspects of student learning. Minimum text is used, instead there is a strong emphasis on instructive artwork and original, high quality histology images presented within a framework that reinforces learning and promotes problem solving skills.

Resolving painful emotional experience during psychodrama

Unresolved painful emotional experiences such as bereavement, trauma and disturbances in core relationships, are common presenting problems for clients of psychodrama or psychotherapy more generally. Emotional pain is experienced as a shattering of the sense of self and disconnection from others and, when unresolved, produces avoidant responses which inhibit the healing process. There is agreement across therapeutic modalities that exposure to emotional experience can increase the efficacy of therapeutic interventions. Moreno proposes that the activation of spontaneity is the primary curative factor in psychodrama and that healing occurs when the protagonist (client) engages with his or her wider social system and develops greater flexibility in response to that system. An extensive case-report literature describes the application of the psychodrama method in healing unresolved painful emotional experiences, but there is limited empirical research to verify the efficacy of the method or to identify the processes that are linked to therapeutic change. The purpose of this current research was to construct a model of protagonist change processes that could extend psychodrama theory, inform practitioners’ therapeutic decisions and contribute to understanding the common factors in therapeutic change. Four studies investigated protagonist processes linked to in-session resolution of painful emotional experiences. Significant therapeutic events were analysed using recordings and transcripts of psychodrama enactments, protagonist and director recall interviews and a range of process and outcome measures. A preliminary study (3 cases) identified four themes that were associated with helpful therapeutic events: enactment, the working alliance with the director and with group members, emotional release or relief and social atom repair. The second study (7 cases) used Comprehensive Process Analysis (CPA) to construct a model of protagonists’ processes linked to in-session resolution. This model was then validated across four more cases in Study 3. Five meta-processes were identified: (i) a readiness to engage in the psychodrama process; (ii) re-experiencing and insight; (iii) activating resourcefulness; (iv) social atom repair with emotional release and (v) integration. Social atom repair with emotional release involved deeply experiencing a wished-for interpersonal experience accompanied by a free flowing release of previously restricted emotion and was most clearly linked to protagonists’ reports of reaching resolution and to post session improvements in interpersonal relationships and sense of self. Acceptance of self in the moment increased protagonists’ capacity to generate new responses within each meta-process and, in resolved cases, there was evidence of spontaneity developing over time. The fourth study tested Greenberg’s allowing and accepting painful emotional experience model as an alternative explanation of protagonist change. The findings of this study suggested that while the process of allowing emotional pain was present in resolved cases, Greenberg’s model was not sufficient to explain the processes that lead to in-session resolution. The protagonist’s readiness to engage and activation of resourcefulness appear to facilitate the transition from problem identification to emotional release. Furthermore, experiencing a reparative relationship was found to be central to the healing process. This research verifies that there can be in-session resolution of painful emotional experience during psychodrama and protagonists’ reports suggest that in-session resolution can heal the damage to the sense of self and the interpersonal disconnection that are associated with unresolved emotional pain. A model of protagonist change processes has been constructed that challenges the view of psychodrama as a primarily cathartic therapy, by locating the therapeutic experience of emotional release within the development of new role relationships. The five meta-processes which are described within the model suggest broad change principles which can assist practitioners to make sense of events as they unfold and guide their clinical decision making in the moment. Each meta-process was linked to specific post-session changes, so that the model can inform the development of therapeutic plans for individual clients and can aid communication for practitioners when a psychodrama intervention is used for a specific therapeutic purpose within a comprehensive program of therapy.

Towards a reference model for SOA governance (extended version)

Although the lack of elaborate governance mechanisms is often seen as the main reason for failures of SOA projects, SOA governance is still very low in maturity. In this paper, we follow a design science approach to address this drawback by presenting a framework that can guide organisations in implementing a governance approach for SOA more successfully. We have reviewed the highly advanced IT governance frameworks Cobit and ITIL and mapped them to the SOA domain. The resulting blueprint for an SOA governance framework was refined based on a detailed literature review, expert interviews and a practical application in a government organisation. The proposed framework stresses the need for business representatives to get involved in SOA decisions and to define benefits ownership for services.