Causes of teachers’ turnover intentions in Swedish schools : A qualitative research

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the causes of teachers' turnover intentions in selected Swedish schools. Research methodology – This research took the form of a qualitative research. Semi-structured interviews were used to explore the causes of teachers' turnover intentions within the schools selected for this study. The sample was composed by 9 teachers that work in Säter. In order to provide a different yet meaningful perspective, a further interview with the Säter school department has been conducted. Results – Several of the results were coherent with the literature: elements such as motivations to teach, administrative support, workload, class size and collaboration were found to be related to teachers’ turnover intentions and therefore confirmed the previous studies. However, factors like salary, mentoring, autonomy, physical conditions and orderly environment were not found to have a connection with the respondents’ turnover intentions, hence constituting a result that did not confirm the literature. Originality – This thesis extended the previous research related to the causes of teachers’ turnover intentions by focusing on Sweden, which had not been investigated yet to that matter. The Swedish context appears particularly worth researching because of both the particularity of its decentralized educational system and the widespread turnover intentions of teachers.

Intimate Partner Violence and Pregnancy Intentions: A Qualitative Study

Aim and Objective In this qualitative study we explored women’s pregnancy intentions and experiences of intimate partner violence before, during and after pregnancy. Background Unintended pregnancies in the context of intimate partner violence can have serious health, social and economic consequences for women and their children. Design Feminist and phenomenological philosophies underpinned the study to gain a richer understanding of women’s experiences. Methods Eleven women who had been pregnant in the previous two years were recruited from community-based women’s refuges in one region of the United Kingdom. Of the eleven women, eight had unplanned pregnancies, two reported being coerced into early motherhood, and only one woman had purposively planned her pregnancy. Multiple in-depth interviews focused on participants’ accounts of living with intimate partner violence. Experiential data analysis was used to identify, analyse and highlight themes. Results Three major themes were identified: men’s control of contraception, partner’s indiscriminate response to the pregnancy, and women’s mixed feelings about the pregnancy. Participants reported limited influence over their sexual relationship and Accepted Article This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. birth control. Feelings of vulnerability about themselves and fear for their unborn babies’ safety were intensified by their partners’ continued violence during pregnancy. Conclusion Women experiencing intimate partner violence were more likely to have an unintended pregnancy. This could be attributed to male dominance and fear, which impacts on a woman’s ability to manage her birth control options. The women’s initial excitement about their pregnancy diminished in the face of uncertainty and ongoing violence within their relationship. Relevance to clinical practice Women experiencing violence lack choice in relation to birth control options leading to unintended pregnancies. Interpreting the findings from the victim-perpetrator interactive spin theory of intimate partner violence provides a possible framework for midwives and nurses to better understand and respond to women’s experiences of violence during pregnancy.

Comradeship of Cock? Gay porn and the entrepreneurial voyeur

Thirty years of academic and critical scholarship on the subject of gay porn have born witness to significant changes not only in the kinds of porn produced for, and watched by, gay men, but in the modes of production and distribution of that porn, and the legal, economic and social contexts in which it has been made, sold/shared, and watched. Those thirty years have also seen a huge shift in the cultural and political position of gay men, especially in the US and UK, and other apparently ‘advanced’ democracies. Those thirty years of scholarship on the topic of gay porn have produced one striking consensus, which is that gay cultures are especially ‘pornified’: porn has arguably offered gay men not only homoerotic visibility, but a heritage culture and a radical aesthetic. However, neoliberal cultures have transformed the operation and meaning of sexuality, installing new standards of performativity and display, and new responsibilities attached to a ‘democratisation’ that offers women and men apparently expanded terms for articulating both their gender and their sexuality. Does gay porn still have the same urgency in this context? At the level of politics and cultural dissent, what’s ‘gay’ about gay porn now? This essay questions the extent to which processes of legal and social liberalization, and the emergence of networked and digital cultures, have foreclosed or expanded the apparently liberationary opportunities of gay porn. The essay attempts to map some of the political implications of the ‘pornification’ of gay culture on to ongoing debates about materiality, labour and the entrepreneurial subject by analyzing gay porn blogs.

Consumer perceived risk, risk reduction strategies and transaction intentions in online marketplaces

Even though online commerce has garnered vast academic interest during the recent years, theoretical grounds for consumer behavior online still remains ambiguous. Despite the globally rapid growth of online commerce, only a fraction of Internet browsers end up purchasing goods online. This is argued to be caused by the intangible and distant nature of the Internet, causing overwhelming perceived risks for consumers and negatively affecting transaction intentions. To combat perceived risks, consumers may actively or passively seek to relieve those risks to tolerable level. These risk reduction strategies refer to both institutional mechanisms as well as consumer risk reduction strategies. The objective of this thesis is to provide further understanding upon the relationships between consumer perceived risk, risk reduction strategies and transaction intentions in online marketplaces. To serve the objectives of the present thesis, a quantitative approach was chosen as the method for conducting empirical research. The data was collected with an online survey through discussion board, using a random sample approach. The proposed research model was examined with a set of hierarchical regression analyses. Results revealed several direct relationships as well as moderating interaction effects. The key finding of this thesis is that institutional risk reduction mechanisms significantly contribute to consumer perceived risks. These mechanisms have the potential to reduce perceived risks, and therefore may stimulate transaction intentions. Additionally, it was observed that risk reduction strategies moderate the relationship between intermediary provided risk relievers, consumer perceived risks and transaction intentions. Retailer related risk reduction strategies were also shown to enforce the effectiveness of payment methods; however feedback and monitoring mechanism was shown to have a diminishing effect of perceived risk only when consumers did not rely on product related risk reduction strategies. The present thesis also illustrates the importance of effective information search, as those consumers are more willing to transact as the perceived risks become less significant. For managerial purposes, the importance of well-functioning institutional mechanisms cannot be emphasized enough.

Burnout and turnover intentions in Australian coaches as related to organisational support and perceived control

Entrepreneurial skills of students of polytechnic higher education in Portugal: Business influences

Introduction: Most of entrepreneurial ideas does not appear ready or over. Any business opportunity needs to be developed and improved throughout the enterprise process. Educational institutions may facilitate the ability of the students had undertaken, identifying and building business opportunities, enhancing their knowledge and formative experiences along the learning process. Objectives: Evaluate the business influences the entrepreneurial ability of students of the Polytechnic. Methodology: Correlational quantitative study, conducted with 1604 students from 18 institutions of the Polytechnic of Portugal. Data collection took place between July and November/2015, with a questionnaire to assess the entrepreneurial profile, Carland Entrepreneurship Index (CEI) and sociodemographic variables of students. Results: We found four business factors that influence entrepreneurship, "availability of funds" (4:13, SD = .67); "Have stable customers and incentives" (3.99, SD = .58); "Social and economic instability" (3:08, SD = 1.17) and "opportunities in the sector and area of residence" (3:36, SD = 1.05). On a scale range between (1-5), we obtained an overall score of 3.86 (SD = .55), for the corporate influences on entrepreneurship. Conclusion: For students entrepreneurial influences are important, with a greater sense of fear with regard to economic instability, reinforcing the need for further training and academic investment in the business.

Entrepreneurial skills of students of polytechnic higher education in Portugal: Business influences

Background Most entrepreneurial ideas do not appear ready or finished. Any business opportunity needs to be developed and improved throughout the enterprise process. Educational institutions may facilitate the ability of the students in undertaking, identifying and building business opportunities, enhancing their knowledge and formative experiences along the learning process. Objective: Evaluate business influences on the entrepreneurial ability of students of the Polytechnic. Methods Correlational quantitative study, conducted with 1,604 students from 18 institutions of the Polytechnic of Portugal. Data collection took place between July and November/2015, with a questionnaire to assess the entrepreneurial profile, the Carland Entrepreneurship Index (CEI) and sociodemographic variables of students. Results We found four business factors that influence entrepreneurship: "availability of funds" (4:13, SD = .67); "Having stable customers and incentives" (3.99, SD = .58); "Social and economic instability" (3:08, SD = 1.17) and "Opportunities in the sector and area of residence" (3:36, SD = 1.05). On a scale ranging between 1 and 5, we obtained an overall score of 3.86 (SD = .55), for the corporate influences on entrepreneurship. Conclusions For students, entrepreneurial influences are important, with a greater sense of fear with regard to economic instability, reinforcing the need for further training and academic investment in business.

Analysis of the entrepreneurial profile of students attending higher education in Portugal: the Carland Entrepreneurship Index application

Background The societal changes have created new necessities in terms of health care and of professionals with diverse skills. The institutions of higher education should promote the development of an entrepreneurial profile in students which may boost the exploration of new opportunities. Objectives: To identify the entrepreneurial profile in the students in higher education and its relationship to some personal characteristics and training. Methods Correlational quantitative study, accomplished with 1,604 students from 18 institutions of polytechnic Institutes of Portugal. The collection of data occurred between July and November/2015. The Carland Entrepreneurship Index (CEI) entrepreneurial skills questionnaire was applied, along with the acquisition of socio-demographic variables of the students. Data was analysed with the SPSS 23.0. The study followed the ethical requirements. Results The (CEI) application, allowed us to note that 75.7 % of the students presented an entrepreneurial profile, 20.8 % a Micro entrepreneurial profile and 3.4 % a Macro entrepreneurial. Additionally, we verified that older students (r = 0.193, p < = 0.000), of the male gender (Female = 0.55; Male, M= 0.580 p < 0.000), that had already worked or would like to work for others, showed the greatest entrepreneurial potential (Yes M= 0.60; No 0.54; p < 0.000), along with those who participated in entrepreneurial contents during their training (Did not participate M= 0.53; Participated 0.58; p < 0.000). Conclusions The entrepreneurial profile is related with some social demographic characteristics of the students; however, the educational institutions may have a preponderant role in the development of that profile, which may contribute to a greater contribution in the wellbeing of the populations.

A longitudinal interpretive phenomenological investigation into latent entrepreneurial learning processes: Key implications for entrepreneurial education.

The effectiveness and value of entrepreneurship education is much debated within academic literature. The individual’s experience is advocated as being key to shaping entrepreneurial education and design through a multiplicity of theoretical concepts. Latent, pre-nascent and nascent entrepreneurship (doing) studies within the accepted literature provide an exceptional richness in diversity of thought however, there is a paucity of research into latent entrepreneurship education. In addition, Tolman’s early work shows the existence of cases whereby a novel problem is solved without trial and error, and sees such previous learning situations and circumstances as “examples of latent learning and reasoning”, (Deutsch, 1956, pg115). Latent learning has historically been the cause of much academic debate however, Coon’s (2004, pg260) work refers to “latent (hidden) learning … (as being) … without obvious reinforcement and remains hidden until reinforcement is provided” and thus, forms the working definition for the purpose of this study.

An examination of factors that influence entrepreneurial intention of high school students in Kenya

Abstract Considerable research has been carried out on entrepreneurship in efforts to understand its incidence in order to influence and maximize its benefits. Essentially, researchers and policy makers have sought to understand the link between individuals and business creation: Why some people start businesses while others do not. The research indicates that personality traits, individual background factors and association of entrepreneurship with career choice and small business enterprises, cannot sufficiently explain entrepreneurship. It is recognized that entrepreneurship is an intentional process and based on Ajzen’s Theory of Planned Behavior, the most defining characteristic of entrepreneurship is the intention to start a business. The purpose of this study was, therefore, to examine factors that influence entrepreneurial intention in high school students in Kenya. Specifically, the study aimed at determining if there were relationships between the perceptions of desirability, and feasibility of entrepreneurship with entrepreneurial intention of the students, identifying any difference in these perceptions with students of different backgrounds, and developing a model to predict entrepreneurship in the students. The study, therefore, tested how well Ajzen’s Theory of Planned Behavior applied in the Kenyan situation. A questionnaire was developed and administered to 969 final year high school students at a critical important point in their career decision making. Participants were selected using a combined convenience and random sampling technique, considering gender, rural/urban location, cost, and accessibility. Survey was the major method of data collection. Data analysis methods included descriptive statistics, correlation, ANOVA, factor analysis, effect size, and regression analysis. iii The findings of this study corroborate results from past studies. Attitudes are found to influence intention, and the attitudes to be moderated by individual background factors. Perceived personal desirability of entrepreneurship was found to have the greatest influence on entrepreneurial intention and perceived feasibility the lowest. The study findings also showed that perceived social desirability and feasibility of entrepreneurship contributed to perception of personal desirability, and that the background factors, including gender and prior experience, influenced entrepreneurial intention both directly and indirectly. In addition, based on the literature reviewed, the study finds that entrepreneurship promotion requires reduction of the high small business mortality rate and creation of both entrepreneurs and entrepreneurial opportunities (Kruger, 2000; Shane & Venkataraman, 2000). These findings have theoretical and practical implications for researchers, policy makers, teachers, and other entrepreneurship practitioners in Kenya.

Business model evolution and firm performance of entrepreneurial companies

This research explores the business model (BM) evolution process of entrepreneurial companies and investigates the relationship between BM evolution and firm performance. Recently, it has been increasingly recognised that the innovative design (and re-design) of BMs is crucial to the performance of entrepreneurial firms, as BM can be associated with superior value creation and competitive advantage. However, there has been limited theoretical and empirical evidence in relation to the micro-mechanisms behind the BM evolution process and the entrepreneurial outcomes of BM evolution. This research seeks to fill this gap by opening up the ‘black box’ of the BM evolution process, exploring the micro-patterns that facilitate the continuous shaping, changing, and renewing of BMs and examining how BM evolutions create and capture value in a dynamic manner. Drawing together the BM and strategic entrepreneurship literature, this research seeks to understand: (1) how and why companies introduce BM innovations and imitations; (2) how BM innovations and imitations interplay as patterns in the BM evolution process; and (3) how BM evolution patterns affect firm performances. This research adopts a longitudinal multiple case study design that focuses on the emerging phenomenon of BM evolution. Twelve entrepreneurial firms in the Chinese Online Group Buying (OGB) industry were selected for their continuous and intensive developments of BMs and their varying success rates in this highly competitive market. Two rounds of data collection were carried out between 2013 and 2014, which generates 31 interviews with founders/co-founders and in total 5,034 pages of data. Following a three-stage research framework, the data analysis begins by mapping the BM evolution process of the twelve companies and classifying the changes in the BMs into innovations and imitations. The second stage focuses down to the BM level, which addresses the BM evolution as a dynamic process by exploring how BM innovations and imitations unfold and interplay over time. The final stage focuses on the firm level, providing theoretical explanations as to the effects of BM evolution patterns on firm performance. This research provides new insights into the nature of BM evolution by elaborating on the missing link between BM dynamics and firm performance. The findings identify four patterns of BM evolution that have different effects on a firm’s short- and long-term performance. This research contributes to the BM literature by presenting what the BM evolution process actually looks like. Moreover, it takes a step towards the process theory of the interplay between BM innovations and imitations, which addresses the role of companies’ actions, and more importantly, reactions to the competitors. Insights are also given into how entrepreneurial companies achieve and sustain value creation and capture by successfully combining the BM evolution patterns. Finally, the findings on BM evolution contributes to the strategic entrepreneurship literature by increasing the understanding of how companies compete in a more dynamic and complex environment. It reveals that, the achievement of superior firm performance is more than a simple question of whether to innovate or imitate, but rather an integration of innovation and imitation strategies over time. This study concludes with a discussion of the findings and their implications for theory and practice.

Driven entrepreneurial education in vocational schools

Vocational Education and Training (VET) is offered throughout the world to students of various educational backgrounds and career aspirations in an effort to create a skilled workforce. The structure of VET varies greatly across different fields and countries with high-growth, low-growth, and transitional economies. However, a common critique of many vocational institutions is that they focus on skills training without addressing related business systems. Thus, students may not understand the business strategies related to their field, which stifles job readiness and entrepreneurial potential. To counter this, a more context-driven and integrated entrepreneurial approach is proposed for VET. Benefits, disadvantages, and exemplars of various types of vocational and entrepreneurial programs are evaluated to determine how their strengths might be leveraged. Such integrated entrepreneurial and vocational training would more suitably address context-specific market needs via both practical and transferrable skills, thus helping to reduce unemployment, particularly among youth in sub-Saharan Africa. (DIPF/Orig.)