Selected poems.

Mode of access: Internet.

British Manufacturing Industries. Edited by G.P. Bevan.

Imperfect; wanting the volume entitled, "Paper, by Prof. Archer, Printing, by Joseph Hatton, etc."

The template: A cooperative approach to evaluating community rehabilitation services

This article describes a workshop and consultation process utilized by four community rehabilitation services and other stakeholders. This process led to the development of an evaluation Template upon which to plan a service evaluation. The Template comprises a number of guiding questions within three broad domains. These are, the people domain (pertaining to the client, their disability, their family and service context), the program domain (pertaining to the service and its activities), and the perspective domain (pertaining to the broader social and community context). It is suggested that the Template, the process by which it was developed, and the guidelines for its use will have relevance to rehabilitation managers, administrators, and others involved in evaluation of community rehabilitation services.

The perceived benefits of the chronic disease self-management program among participants with stroke: A qualitative study

Despite the expense associated with rehabilitation following stroke, dissatisfaction with psychosocial outcomes is common (Thomas & Parry, 1996). The rehabilitation system has been critiqued as lacking a theoretical base for psychosocial interventions (Goldberg, Segal, Berk, Schall, & Gershkoff, 1997). The current paper examines the possible role of the Chronic Disease Self-Management Program ([CDSMP] Lorig, 1996) in contributing to the psychosocial rehabilitation of people with stroke. This paper focuses on the analysis of incidental comments made by participants about a version of the CDSMP, tailored for people with stroke. These comments, collected over an 18-month follow-up period, provide interesting insights into the key aspects of the program. Six informative themes emerged from the more specific comments, namely (1) the importance of social contact and comparison, (2) increased awareness and knowledge about stroke, (3) motivation to pursue goals and activities, (4) a sense of achievement, (5) maintenance of gains, and (6) the paradoxical nature of social support. According to participants, the program was associated with enhanced self-efficacy. Other reported benefits (such as social support and enhanced knowledge) were indirectly associated with the program and appeared to reflect social aspects of the group and its stroke-specific focus. Maintenance of gains made by participants was seen as a crucial issue.

Advantage of single-trial models for response to selection in wheat breeding multi-environment trials

An investigation was conducted to evaluate the impact of experimental designs and spatial analyses (single-trial models) of the response to selection for grain yield in the northern grains region of Australia (Queensland and northern New South Wales). Two sets of multi-environment experiments were considered. One set, based on 33 trials conducted from 1994 to 1996, was used to represent the testing system of the wheat breeding program and is referred to as the multi-environment trial (MET). The second set, based on 47 trials conducted from 1986 to 1993, sampled a more diverse set of years and management regimes and was used to represent the target population of environments (TPE). There were 18 genotypes in common between the MET and TPE sets of trials. From indirect selection theory, the phenotypic correlation coefficient between the MET and TPE single-trial adjusted genotype means [r(p(MT))] was used to determine the effect of the single-trial model on the expected indirect response to selection for grain yield in the TPE based on selection in the MET. Five single-trial models were considered: randomised complete block (RCB), incomplete block (IB), spatial analysis (SS), spatial analysis with a measurement error (SSM) and a combination of spatial analysis and experimental design information to identify the preferred (PF) model. Bootstrap-resampling methodology was used to construct multiple MET data sets, ranging in size from 2 to 20 environments per MET sample. The size and environmental composition of the MET and the single-trial model influenced the r(p(MT)). On average, the PF model resulted in a higher r(p(MT)) than the IB, SS and SSM models, which were in turn superior to the RCB model for MET sizes based on fewer than ten environments. For METs based on ten or more environments, the r(p(MT)) was similar for all single-trial models.

An organizational perspective on goal setting in community-based brain injury rehabilitation

Purpose. To use a taxonomy of goal content, developed in community-based brain injury rehabilitation to examine and compare the content of goals set within two different service settings; and to further examine the potential of the taxonomy to be a reliable and comprehensive framework for classifying goals. Method. Qualitative analysis and categorization of 1492 goal statements extracted from a community-based brain injury rehabilitation service over two time periods (1996-97, 1998-99), and cross-organizational comparison of ratings of goal classifications using a random sample of 100 goal statements drawn from this data set and the original 1765 goal statements used in developing the taxonomy. Results. Application of the taxonomy beyond the original service setting in which it was developed indicated a strong inter-rater reliability, with a high test-retest agreement reported over time. For both services, a small number of categories accounted for a substantial proportion of goals set within the two time periods, while considerable change was evident in goals between the two periods for one service. Further, both placed emphasis on individually focused goals rather than relationship or family-related goals. Conclusion. The taxonomy provides a reliable means for classifying goals and is a useful tool for exploration of the multiple influences on goal setting. Further application of the taxonomy to examine the relative influence on goal setting of client factors versus a range of organizational factors would be beneficial.

A metacognitive contextual intervention to enhance error awareness and functional outcome following traumatic brain injury: A single-case experimental design

Very few empirically validated interventions for improving metacognitive skills (i.e., self-awareness and self-regulation) and functional outcomes have been reported. This single-case experimental study presents JM, a 36-year-old man with a very severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) who demonstrated long-term awareness deficits. Treatment at four years post-injury involved a metacognitive contextual intervention based on a conceptualization of neuro-cognitive, psychological, and socio-environmental factors contributing to his awareness deficits. The 16-week intervention targeted error awareness and self-correction in two real life settings: (a) cooking at home: and (b) volunteer work. Outcome measures included behavioral observation of error behavior and standardized awareness measures. Relative to baseline performance in the cooking setting, JM demonstrated a 44% reduction in error frequency and increased self-correction. Although no spontaneous generalization was evident in the volunteer work setting, specific training in this environment led to a 39% decrease in errors. JM later gained paid employment and received brief metacognitive training in his work environment. JM's global self-knowledge of deficits assessed by self-report was unchanged after the program. Overall, the study provides preliminary support for a metacognitive contextual approach to improve error awareness and functional Outcome in real life settings.

Approaches to sharing knowledge in group problem structuring

Problem-structuring techniques are an integral aspect of 'Soft-OR'. SSM, SAST, Strategic Choice, and JOURNEY Making, all depend for their success on a group developing a shared view of a problem through some form of explicit modelling. The negotiated problem structure becomes the basis for problem resolution. Implicit to this process is an assumption that members of the group share and build their knowledge about the problem domain. This paper explores the extent to which this assumption is reasonable. The research is based on detailed records from the use of JOURNEY Making, where it has used special purpose Group Support software to aid the group problem structuring. This software continuously tracks the contributions of each member of the group and thus the extent to which they appear to be 'connecting' and augmenting their own knowledge with that of other members of the group. Software records of problem resolution in real organisational settings are used to explore the sharing of knowledge among senior managers. These explorations suggest a typology of knowledge sharing. The implications of this typology for problem structuring and an agenda for future research are considered.

Systemic analysis of concurrent engineering practice

This paper discusses three major areas of knowledge; business process reengineering (BPR), soft systems methodology (SSM) and concurrent engineering (CE) to demonstrate that their philosophies are complementary. An example is given depicting how a manufacturing resource planning system is set up and how improvements can be achieved by applying CE best practice.

Managing service productivity using data envelopment analysis

This chapter provides the theoretical foundation and background on data envelopment analysis (DEA) method. We first introduce the basic DEA models. The balance of this chapter focuses on evidences showing DEA has been extensively applied for measuring efficiency and productivity of services including financial services (banking, insurance, securities, and fund management), professional services, health services, education services, environmental and public services, energy services, logistics, tourism, information technology, telecommunications, transport, distribution, audio-visual, media, entertainment, cultural and other business services. Finally, we provide information on the use of Performance Improvement Management Software (PIM-DEA). A free limited version of this software and downloading procedure is also included in this chapter.

An analysis of the role of soft systems methodology in the change process and the contribution of the facilitator within this process

This research aims to examine the effectiveness of Soft Systems Methodology (SSM) to enable systemic change within local goverment and local NHS environments and to examine the role of the facilitator within this process. Checkland's Mode 2 variant of Soft Systems Methodology was applied on an experimental basis in two environments, Herefordshire Health Authority and Sand well Health Authority. The Herefordshire application used SSM in the design of an Integrated Care Pathway for stroke patients. In Sandwell, SSM was deployed to assist in the design of an Infonnation Management and Technology (IM&T) Strategy for the boundary-spanning Sandwell Partnership. Both of these environments were experiencing significant organisational change as the experiments unfurled. The explicit objectives of the research were: To examine the evolution and development of SSM and to contribute to its further development. To apply the Soft Systems Methodology to change processes within the NHS. To evaluate the potential role of SSM in this wider process of change. To assess the role of the researcher as a facilitator within this process. To develop a critical framework through which the impact of SSM on change might be understood and assessed. In developing these objectives, it became apparent that there was a gap in knowledge relating to SSM. This gap concerns the evaluation of the role of the approach in the change process. The case studies highlighted issues in stakeholder selection and management; the communicative assumptions in SSM; the ambiguous role of the facilitator; and the impact of highly politicised problem environments on the effectiveness of the methodology in the process of change. An augmented variant on SSM that integrates an appropriate (social constructivist) evaluation method is outlined, together with a series of hypotheses about the operationalisation of this proposed method.