The micro-politics of operational adjustment:veto players and the consolidation of demand in the NHS

Recent reports about procurement within the NHS have been highly critical. One problem identified in the reports is the fragmentation of NHS demand across an unnecessarily large number of suppliers. This fragmentation is said to increase transaction costs, reduce opportunities for scale economies and reduce NHS leverage over suppliers. It has been suggested, therefore, that an important way of improving procurement in the NHS is the better consolidation of demand with a lower number of preferred suppliers. However, such a policy, because it will create ‘winners’ and ‘losers’ within NHS organisations, has political as well as technical and practical ramifications. In this article, the authors present a model, the Veto Players Model, in order to assist managers to address these political ramifications. In the article, the authors not only demonstrate the utility of this model with regard to demand consolidation policies, but also argue that the model provides useful lessons for change management initiatives more generally.

Voluntary, Chronic Dehydration in Adolescent American Football Players

The purpose of the study was to determine whether voluntary acute or chronic dehydration occurs in a male adolescent athletic population during twicea- day American football practice sessions. We conclude that participants will voluntarily rehydrate themselves between practice sessions and will begin to acclimate within three to four days.

Expertise Development in Volleyball: the Role of Early Sport Activities and Players’ Age and Height

The purpose of this study was to analyse the developmental pathway of skilled and less skilled volleyball players by focusing on the quantity and type of sporting activities, as well as their age and height in comparison to peers in those experiences. Retrospective interviews were conducted to provide a longitudinal and detailed account of sport involvement of 30 skilled and 30 less skilled volleyball players (15 male and 15 female players per group) throughout different developmental stages (stage 1: 8-12 years; stage 2: 13-16 years; stage 3: 17-20 years). Results indicated that the developmental pathway of these volleyball players (i.e. skilled and less skilled) was characterized by an early diversified sport involvement with a greater participation in sport activities during stages 1 and 2. However, skilled players specialized later in volleyball (between age 14 and 15) and performed more hours of volleyball at stage 3 (from 17 years of age onwards). Also, skilled players (male and female) were younger in both the diversified sport activities and volleyball at the later stages of development (i.e. stages 2 and 3), and skilled female players were taller than peers in those activities in the early stages of development (i.e. stages 1 and 2). The present findings suggest early diversification as a feasible pathway to reach expertise in volleyball and highlight the importance of practicing with older peers once specialization in the main sport has occurred. The findings highlight the need for coaches and sport programs to consider different stimuli existing within the training environment (i.e. characteristics of athletes, such as age and height) that influence the quality of practice and contribute to players’ expertise development.

Expert players accurately detect an opponent's movement intentions through sound alone

Sounds offer a rich source of information about events taking place in our physical and social environment. However, outside the domains of speech and music, little is known about whether humans can recognize and act upon the intentions of another agent’s actions detected through auditory information alone. In this study we assessed whether intention can be inferred from the sound an action makes, and in turn, whether this information can be used to prospectively guide movement. In two experiments experienced and novice basketball players had to virtually intercept an attacker by listening to audio recordings of that player’s movements. In the first experiment participants had to move a slider, while in the second one their body, to block the perceived passage of the attacker as they would in a real basketball game. Combinations of deceptive and non-deceptive movements were used to see if novice and/or experienced listeners could perceive the attacker’s intentions through sound alone. We showed that basketball players were able to more accurately predict final running direction compared to non-players, particularly in the second experiment when the interceptive action was more basketball specific. We suggest that athletes present better action anticipation by being able to pick up and use the relevant kinematic features of deceptive movement from event-related sounds alone. This result suggests that action intention can be perceived through the sound a movement makes and that the ability to determine another person’s action intention from the information conveyed through sound is honed through practice.

Aerobic and anaerobic test performance among elite male football players in different team positions

The purpose was to determine the magnitude of aerobic and anaerobic performance factors among elite male football players in different team positions. Thirty-nine players from the highest Swedish division classified as defenders (n=18), midfield players (n=12) or attackers (n=9) participated. Their mean (± sd) age, height and body mass (bm) were 24.4 (±4.7) years, 1.80 (±5.9)m and 79 (±7.6)kg, respectively. Running economy (RE) and anaerobic threshold (AT) was determined at 10, 12, 14, and 16km/h followed by tests of maximal oxygen uptake (VO2max). Maximal strength (1RM) and average power output (AP) was performed in squat lifting. Squat jump (SJ), counter-movement jump with free arm swing (CMJa), 45m maximal sprint and the Wingate test was performed. Average VO2max for the whole population (WP) was 57.0mL O2•kg-1min-1 . The average AT occurred at about 84% of VO2max. 1RM per kg bm0.67 was 11.9±1.3kg. Average squat power in the whole population at 40% 1RM was 70±9.5W per kg bm0.67 . SJ and CMJa were 38.6±3.8cm and 48.9±4.4cm, respectively. The average sprint time (45m) was 5.78± 0.16s. The AP in the Wingate test was 10.6±0.9W•kg-1 . The average maximal oxygen uptake among players in the highest Swedish division was lower compared to international elite players but the Swedish players were better off concerning the anaerobic threshold and in the anaerobic tests. No significant differences were revealed between defenders, midfielders or attackers concerning the tested parameters presented above.

Running economy and blood lactate accumulation in elite football players with high and low maximal aerobic power

The purpose was to determine running economy and lactate threshold among a selection of male elite football players with high and low aerobic power. Forty male elite football players from the highest Swedish division (“Allsvenskan”) participated in the study. In a test of running economy (RE) and blood lactate accumulation the participants ran four minutes each at 10, 12, 14, and 16 km•h-1 at horizontal level with one minute rest in between each four minutes interval. After the last sub-maximal speed level the participants got two minutes of rest before test of maximal oxygen uptake (VO2max). Players that had a maximal oxygen uptake lower than the average for the total population of 57.0 mL O2•kg-1•minute-1 were assigned to the low aerobic power group (LAP) (n=17). The players that had a VO2max equal to or higher than 57.0 mL O2•kg-1•minute-1 were selected for the high aerobic power group (HAP) (n=23). The VO2max was significantly different between the HAP and LAP group. The average RE, measured as oxygen uptake at 12, 14 and 16km•h-1 was significantly lower but the blood lactate concentration was significantly higher at 14 and 16 km•h-1 for theLAP group compared with the HAP group.

Aerobic and anaerobic test performance among elite male football players in different team positions

The purpose was to determine the magnitude of aerobic and anaerobic performance factors among elite male football players in different team positions. Thirty-nine players from the highest Swedish division classified as defenders (n=18), midfield players (n=12) or attackers (n=9) participated. Their mean (± sd) age, height and body mass (bm) were 24.4 (±4.7) years, 1.80 (±5.9)m and 79 (±7.6)kg, respectively. Running economy (RE) and anaerobic threshold (AT) was determined at 10, 12, 14, and 16km/h followed by tests of maximal oxygen uptake (VO2max). Maximal strength (1RM) and average power output (AP) was performed in squat lifting. Squat jump (SJ), counter-movement jump with free arm swing (CMJa), 45m maximal sprint and the Wingate test was performed. Average VO2max for the whole population (WP) was 57.0mL O2•kg-1min-1. The average AT occurred at about 84% of VO2max. 1RM per kg bm0.67 was 11.9±1.3kg. Average squat power in the whole population at 40% 1RM was70±9.5W per kg bm0.67. SJ and CMJa were 38.6±3.8cm and 48.9±4.4cm,respectively. The average sprint time (45m) was 5.78± 0.16s. The AP in the Wingate test was 10.6±0.9W•kg-1. The average maximal oxygen uptake among players in the highest Swedish division was lower compared to international elite players but the Swedish players were better off concerning the anaerobic threshold and in the anaerobic tests. No significant differences were revealed between defenders, midfielders or attackers concerning the tested parameters presented above.

How do Small Players Deduce Beliefs about Uncertainty? A Look at Texas Shale Oil Investments

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Washington, 2016-08

Barry Lieberman & Friends present a guest artist recital by The American String Project Chamber Players May 10, 2015

Concert Program

Gift players or playbourers? Who is playing citizen science games?

Paper presented at the 1st International Joint Conference of DiGRA and FDG Dundee, August 1-6, 2016.