Factors contributing to design-build (DB) project delivery system implementation in road infrastructure projects in Indonesia

Design-build (DB) project delivery systems have increasingly been adopted by many private and public sector organizations worldwide due to the many advantages offered on projects by such systems. However, many Indonesian road infrastructure projects are still delivered using the traditional design-bid-build (DBB) project delivery system. In order to provide evidence of the benefits of DB, it is essential to identify the factors that can contribute to successful DB implementation and this paper aims to provide evidence of such factors that can promote the successful implementation of DB project delivery systems on Indonesian road infrastructure projects. Four main factors and 28 indicators were identified from an extensive literature review, and a Delphi questionnaire survey was conducted amongst 20 experts drawn from the Indonesian road infrastructure construction sector. The first round Delphi study found that regulation, competency of clients, ability to manage DB projects and external conditions were the major factors that can promote successful DB implementation.

Review of "Postcolonial Issues in Australian Literature" edited by Nathanael O’Reilly (Cambria Press, 2010)

Some years ago I opened the 1998 edition of the Johns Hopkins Guide to Literary Theory and Criticism and turned to the entry ‘Australian Theory and Criticism.’ This read: ‘Australia has produced no single critic or theorist of international stature, nor has it developed a distinct school of criticism or theory.’ Postcolonial content was listed under a section called Postcolonial Cultural Studies and there one found key names including Tiffin, Ashcroft, Stephen Slemon, and During...

A roadside survey of unlicensed driving in Queensland

Unlicensed driving remains a serious problem in many jurisdictions, and while it does not play a direct causative role in road crashes, it undermines driver licensing systems and is linked to other high risk driving behaviours. Roadside licence check surveys represent the most direct means of estimating the prevalence of unlicensed driving. The current study involved the Queensland Police Service (QPS) checking the licences of 3,112 drivers intercepted at random breath testing operations across Queensland between February and April 2010. Data was matched with official licensing records from Transport and Main Roads (TMR) via the drivers’ licence number. In total, 2,914 (93.6%) records were matched, with the majority of the 198 unmatched cases representing international or interstate licence holders (n = 156), leaving 42 unknown cases. Among the drivers intercepted at the roadside, 20 (0.6%) were identified as being unlicensed at the time, while a further 11 (0.4%) were driving unaccompanied on a Learner Licence. However, the examination of TMR licensing records revealed that an additional 9 individuals (0.3%) had a current licence sanction but were not identified as unlicensed by QPS. Thus, in total 29 of the drivers were unlicensed at the time, representing 0.9% of all the drivers intercepted and 1% of those for whom their licence records could be checked. This is considerably lower than the involvement of unlicensed drivers in fatal and serious injury crashes in Queensland, which is consistent with other research confirming the increased crash risk of the group. However, the number of unmatched records suggest that it is possible the on-road survey may have under-estimated the prevalence of unlicensed driving, so further development of the survey method is recommended.

Current research in risk-aware business process management : overview, comparison, and gap analysis

The management of risks in business processes has been a subject of active research in the past few years. Many benefits can potentially be obtained by integrating the two traditionally-separated fields of risk management and business process management, including the ability to minimize risks in business processes (by design) and to mitigate risks at run time. In the past few years, an increasing amount of research aimed at delivering such an integrated system has been proposed. However, these research efforts vary in terms of their scope, goals, and functionality. Through systematic collection and evaluation of relevant literature, this paper compares and classifies current approaches in the area of risk-aware business process management in order to identify and explain relevant research gaps. The process through which relevant literature is collected, filtered, and evaluated is also detailed.

An empirical investigation of health information system failure in regional Sri Lanka

Public health decision making is critically dependant on accurate, timely and reliable information. There is a widespread belief that most of the national and sub-national health information systems fail in providing much needed information support for evidence based health planning and interventions. This situation is more acute in developing nations where resources are either stagnant or decreasing, coupled with the situations of demographic transition and double burden of diseases. Literature abounds with publications, which provide information on misguided health interventions in developing nations, leading to failure and waste of resources. Health information system failure is widely blamed for this situation. Nevertheless, there is a dearth of comprehensive evaluations of existing national or sub-national health information systems, especially in the region of South-East Asia. This study makes an attempt to bridge this knowledge gap by evaluating a regional health information system in Sri Lanka. It explores the strengths and weaknesses of the current health information system and related causative factors in a decentralised health system and then proposes strategic recommendations for reform measures. A mix methodological and phased approach was adopted to reach the objectives. An initial self administered questionnaire survey was conducted among health managers to study their perceptions in relation to the regional health information system and its management support. The survey findings were used to establish the presence of health information system failure in the region and also as a precursor to the more in-depth case study which was followed. The sources of data for the case study were literature review, document analysis and key stake holder interviews. Health information system resources, health indicators, data sources, data management, data quality, and information dissemination were the six major components investigated. The study findings reveal that accurate, timely and reliable health information is unavailable and therefore evidence based health planning is lacking in the studied health region. Strengths and weaknesses of the current health information system were identified and strategic recommendations were formulated accordingly. It is anticipated that this research will make a significant and multi-fold contribution for health information management in developing countries. First, it will attempt to bridge an existing knowledge gap by presenting the findings of a comprehensive case study to reveal the strengths and weaknesses of a decentralised health information system in a developing country. Second, it will enrich the literature by providing an assessment tool and a research method for the evaluation of regional health information systems. Third, it will make a rewarding practical contribution by presenting valuable guidelines for improving health information systems in regional Sri Lanka.

Public-private partnerships : a survey with suggestions for research

The broad aim of this paper is to examine and comment on the development of public private partnerships (ppp) in an international context, concluding with suggestions for further research. The first section offers some working definitions. Section two reflects my attempt to provide a first, broad answer to my initial research question, what is the prevalence of such partnerships, taking a historical perspective. Section three focuses on the questions of what are the expectations of government and business in regard to ppp and what is their prevalence in more recent times. The final section highlights some of the findings of this initial research survey and suggests types of research questions that could be addressed....

Quality of work life and turnover intention in primary healthcare organisations : a cross-sectional study of registered nurses in Saudi Arabia

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to improve the retention of primary healthcare (PHC) nurses through exploring and assessing their quality of work life (QWL) and turnover intention. Design and methods: A cross-sectional survey design was used in this study. Data were collected using a questionnaire comprising four sections (Brooks’ survey of Quality of Nursing Work Life [QNWL], Anticipated Turnover Intention, open-ended questions and demographic characteristics). A convenience sample was recruited from 143 PHC centres in Jazan, Saudi Arabia. A response rate of 87% (n = 508/585) was achieved. The SPSS v17 for Windows and NVivo 8 were used for analysis purposes. Procedures and tests used in this study to analyse the quantitative data were descriptive statistics, t-test, ANOVA, General Linear Model (GLM) univariate analysis, standard multiple regression, and hierarchical multiple regression. Qualitative data obtained from responses to the open-ended questions were analysed using the NVivo 8. Findings: Quantitative findings suggested that PHC nurses were dissatisfied with their work life. Respondents’ scores ranged between 45 and 218 (mean = 139.45), which is lower than the average total score on Brooks’ Survey (147). Major influencing factors were classified under four dimensions. First, work life/home life factors: unsuitable working hours, lack of facilities for nurses, inability to balance work with family needs and inadequacy of vacations’ policy. Second, work design factors: high workload, insufficient workforce numbers, lack of autonomy and undertaking many non-nursing tasks. Third, work context factors: management practices, lack of development opportunities, and inappropriate working environment in terms of the level of security, patient care supplies and unavailability of recreation room. Finally, work world factors: negative public image of nursing, and inadequate payment. More positively, nurses were notably satisfied with their co-workers. Conversely, 40.4% (n = 205) of the respondents indicated that they intended to leave their current employment. The relationships between QWL and demographic variables of gender, age, marital status, dependent children, dependent adults, nationality, ethnicity, nursing tenure, organisational tenure, positional tenure, and payment per month were significant (p < .05). The eta squared test for these demographics indicates a small to medium effect size of the variation in QWL scores. Using the GLM univariate analysis, education level was also significantly related to the QWL (p < .05). The relationships between turnover intention and demographic variables including gender, age, marital status, dependent children, education level, nursing tenure, organisational tenure, positional tenure, and payment per month were significant (p < .05). The eta squared test for these demographics indicates a small to moderate effect size of the variation in the turnover intention scores. Using the GLM univariate analysis, the dependent adults’ variable was also significantly related to turnover intention (p < .05). Turnover intention was significantly related to QWL. Using standard multiple regression, 26% of the variance in turnover intention was explained by the QWL F (4,491), 43.71, p < .001, with R² = .263. Further analysis using hierarchical multiple regression found that the total variance explained by the model as a whole (demographics and QWL) was 32.1%, F (17.433) = 12.04, p < .001. QWL explained an additional 19% of the variance in turnover intention, after controlling for demographic variables, R squared change =.19, F change (4, 433) = 30.190, p < .001. The work context variable makes the strongest unique contribution (-.387) to explain the turnover intention, followed by the work design dimension (-.112). The qualitative findings reaffirmed the quantitative findings in terms of QWL and turnover intention. However, the home life/work life and work world dimensions were of great important to both QWL and turnover intention. The qualitative findings revealed a number of new factors that were not included in the survey questionnaire. These included being away from family, lack of family support, social and cultural aspects, accommodation facilities, transportation, building and infrastructure of PHC, nature of work, job instability, privacy at work, patients and community, and distance between home and workplace. Conclusion: Creating and maintaining a healthy work life for PHC nurses is very important to improve their work satisfaction, reduce turnover, enhance productivity and improve nursing care outcomes. Improving these factors could lead to a higher QWL and increase retention rates and therefore reinforcing the stabilisation of the nursing workforce. Significance of the research: Many countries are examining strategies to attract and retain the health care workforce, particularly nurses. This study identified factors that influence the QWL of PHC nurses as well as their turnover intention. It also determined the significant relationship between QWL and turnover intention. In addition, the present study tested Brooks’ survey of QNWL on PHC nurses for the first time. The qualitative findings of this study revealed a number of new variables regarding QWL and turnover intention of PHC nurses. These variables could be used to improve current survey instruments or to develop new research surveys. The study findings could be also used to develop and appropriately implement plans to improve QWL. This may help to enhance the home and work environments of PHC nurses, improve individual and organisational performance, and increase nurses’ commitment. This study contributes to the existing body of research knowledge by presenting new data and findings from a different country and healthcare system. It is the first of its kind in Saudi Arabia, especially in the field of PHC. It has examined the relationship between QWL and turnover intention of PHC nurses for the first time using nursing instruments. The study also offers a fresh explanation (new framework) of the relationship between QWL and turnover intention among PHC nurses, which could be used or tested by researchers in other settings. Implications for further research: Review of the extant literature reveals little in-depth research on the PHC workforce, especially in terms of QWL and organisational turnover in developing countries. Further research is required to develop a QWL tool for PHC nurses, taking into consideration the findings of the current study along with the local culture. Moreover, the revised theoretical framework of the current study could be tested in further research in other regions, countries or healthcare systems in order to identify its ability to predict the level of PHC nurses’ QWL and their intention to leave. There is a need to conduct longitudinal research on PHC organisations to gain an in-depth understanding of the determents of and changes in QWL and turnover intention of PHC nurses at various points of time. An intervention study is required to improve QWL and retention among PHC nurses using the findings of the current study. This would help to assess the impact of such strategies on reducing turnover of PHC nurses. Focusing on the location of the current study, it would be valuable to conduct another study in five years’ time to examine the percentage of actual turnover among PHC nurses compared with the reported turnover intention in the current study. Further in-depth research would also be useful to assess the impact of the local culture on the perception of expatriate nurses towards their QWL and their turnover intention. A comparative study is required between PHC centres and hospitals as well as the public and private health sector agencies in terms of QWL and turnover intention of nursing personnel. Findings may differ from sector to sector according to variations in health systems, working environments and the case mix of patients.

Chinese online literature : creative consumers and evolving business models

Purpose – The internet is transforming possibilities for creative interaction, experimentation and cultural consumption in China and raising important questions about the role that “publishers” might play in an open and networked digital world. The purpose of this paper is to consider the role that copyright is playing in the growth of a publishing industry that is being “born digital”. Design/methodology/approach – The paper approaches online literature as an example of a creative industry that is generating value for a wider creative economy through its social network market functions. It builds on the social network market definition of the creative industries proposed by Potts et al. and uses this definition to interrogate the role that copyright plays in a rapidly-evolving creative economy. Findings – The rapid growth of a market for crowd-sourced content is combining with growing commercial freedom in cultural space to produce a dynamic landscape of business model experimentation. Using the social web to engage audiences, generate content, establish popularity and build reputation and then converting those assets into profit through less networked channels appears to be a driving strategy in the expansion of wider creative industries markets in China. Originality/value – At a moment when publishing industries all over the world are struggling to come to terms with digital technology, the emergence of a rapidly-growing area of publishing that is being born digital offers important clues about the future of publishing and what social network markets might mean for the role of copyright in a digital age.

Job satisfaction and intention to leave among critical care nurses in Saudi Arabia

Aim The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between registered nurses’ (RN) job satisfaction and their intention to leave critical care nursing in Saudi Arabia. Background Many studies have identified critical care areas as stressful work environments for nurses and have identified factors contributing to job satisfaction and staff retention. However, very little research has examined these relationships in the Saudi context. Design and Methods This study utilised an exploratory, cross-sectional survey design to examine the relationship between RN job satisfaction and intention to leave at King Abdul-Aziz University Hospital, Saudi Arabia. Respondents completed a self-administered survey including demographic items and validated measures of job satisfaction and intention to leave. A convenience sample of 182 RNs working in critical care areas during the data collection period were included. Results Regression analysis predicting RN intention to leave found that demographic variables including age, parental status and length of ICU experience, and three of the job satisfaction subscales including perceived workload, professional support and pay and prospects for promotion, were significantly associated with the outcome variable. Conclusion This study adds to the existing literature on the relationship between job satisfaction and intention to leave critical care areas among RNs working in Saudi Arabia. These findings point to the need for management and policy interventions targeting nurses’ workloads, professional support and pay and promotion in order to improve nurse retention.

The experiences of learner drivers, provisional drivers and supervisors with graduated driver licensing in two Australian jurisdictions

Newly licensed drivers on a provisional or intermediate licence have the highest crash risk when compared with any other group of drivers. In comparison, learner drivers have the lowest crash risk. Graduated driver licensing is one countermeasure that has been demonstrated to effectively reduce the crashes of novice drivers. This thesis examined the graduated driver licensing systems in two Australian states in order to better understand the behaviour of learner drivers, provisional drivers and the supervisors of learner drivers. By doing this, the thesis investigated the personal, social and environmental influences on novice driver behaviour as well as providing effective baseline data against which to measure subsequent changes to the licensing systems. In the first study, conducted prior to the changes to the graduated driver licensing system introduced in mid-2007, drivers who had recently obtained their provisional licence in Queensland and New South Wales were interviewed by telephone regarding their experiences while driving on their learner licence. Of the 687 eligible people approached to participate at driver licensing centres, 392 completed the study representing a response rate of 57.1 per cent. At the time the data was collected, New South Wales represented a more extensive graduated driver licensing system when compared with Queensland. The results suggested that requiring learners to complete a mandated number of hours of supervised practice impacts on the amount of hours that learners report completing. While most learners from New South Wales reported meeting the requirement to complete 50 hours of practice, it appears that many stopped practising soon after this goal was achieved. In contrast, learners from Queensland, who were not required to complete a specific number of hours at the time of the survey, tended to fall into three groups. The first group appeared to complete the minimum number of hours required to pass the test (less than 26 hours), the second group completed 26 to 50 hours of supervised practice while the third group completed significantly more practice than the first two groups (over 100 hours of supervised practice). Learner drivers in both states reported generally complying with the road laws and were unlikely to report that they had been caught breaking the road rules. They also indicated that they planned to obey the road laws once they obtained their provisional licence. However, they were less likely to intend to comply with recommended actions to reduce crash risk such as limiting their driving at night. This study also identified that there were relatively low levels of unaccompanied driving (approximately 15 per cent of the sample), very few driving offences committed (five per cent of the sample) and that learner drivers tended to use a mix of private and professional supervisors (although the majority of practice is undertaken with private supervisors). Consistent with the international literature, this study identified that very few learner drivers had experienced a crash (six per cent) while on their learner licence. The second study was also conducted prior to changes to the graduated driver licensing system and involved follow up interviews with the participants of the first study after they had approximately 21 months driving experience on their provisional licence. Of the 392 participants that completed the first study, 233 participants completed the second interview (representing a response rate of 59.4 per cent). As with the first study, at the time the data was collected, New South Wales had a more extensive graduated driver licensing system than Queensland. For instance, novice drivers from New South Wales were required to progress through two provisional licence phases (P1 and P2) while there was only one provisional licence phase in Queensland. Among the participants in this second study, almost all provisional drivers (97.9 per cent) owned or had access to a vehicle for regular driving. They reported that they were unlikely to break road rules, such as driving after a couple of drinks, but were also unlikely to comply with recommended actions, such as limiting their driving at night. When their provisional driving behaviour was compared to the stated intentions from the first study, the results suggested that their intentions were not a strong predictor of their subsequent behaviour. Their perception of risk associated with driving declined from when they first obtained their learner licence to when they had acquired provisional driving experience. Just over 25 per cent of participants in study two reported that they had been caught committing driving offences while on their provisional licence. Nearly one-third of participants had crashed while driving on a provisional licence, although few of these crashes resulted in injuries or hospitalisations. To complement the first two studies, the third study examined the experiences of supervisors of learner drivers, as well as their perceptions of their learner’s experiences. This study was undertaken after the introduction of the new graduated driver licensing systems in Queensland and New South Wales in mid- 2007, providing insights into the impacts of these changes from the perspective of supervisors. The third study involved an internet survey of 552 supervisors of learner drivers. Within the sample, approximately 50 per cent of participants supervised their own child. Other supervisors of the learner drivers included other parents or stepparents, professional driving instructors and siblings. For two-thirds of the sample, this was the first learner driver that they had supervised. Participants had provided an average of 54.82 hours (sd = 67.19) of supervision. Seventy-three per cent of participants indicated that their learners’ logbooks were accurate or very accurate in most cases, although parents were more likely than non-parents to report that their learners’ logbook was accurate (F (1,546) = 7.74, p = .006). There was no difference between parents and non-parents regarding whether they believed the log book system was effective (F (1,546) = .01, p = .913). The majority of the sample reported that their learner driver had had some professional driving lessons. Notwithstanding this, a significant proportion (72.5 per cent) believed that parents should be either very involved or involved in teaching their child to drive, with parents being more likely than non-parents to hold this belief. In the post mid-2007 graduated driver licensing system, Queensland learner drivers are able to record three hours of supervised practice in their log book for every hour that is completed with a professional driving instructor, up to a total of ten hours. Despite this, there was no difference identified between Queensland and New South Wales participants regarding the amount of time that they reported their learners spent with professional driving instructors (X2(1) = 2.56, p = .110). Supervisors from New South Wales were more likely to ensure that their learner driver complied with the road laws. Additionally, with the exception of drug driving laws, New South Wales supervisors believed it was more important to teach safety-related behaviours such as remaining within the speed limit, car control and hazard perception than those from Queensland. This may be indicative of more intensive road safety educational efforts in New South Wales or the longer time that graduated driver licensing has operated in that jurisdiction. However, other factors may have contributed to these findings and further research is required to explore the issue. In addition, supervisors reported that their learner driver was involved in very few crashes (3.4 per cent) and offences (2.7 per cent). This relatively low reported crash rate is similar to that identified in the first study. Most of the graduated driver licensing research to date has been applied in nature and lacked a strong theoretical foundation. These studies used Akers’ social learning theory to explore the self-reported behaviour of novice drivers and their supervisors. This theory was selected as it has previously been found to provide a relatively comprehensive framework for explaining a range of driver behaviours including novice driver behaviour. Sensation seeking was also used in the first two studies to complement the non-social rewards component of Akers’ social learning theory. This program of research identified that both Akers’ social learning theory and sensation seeking were useful in predicting the behaviour of learner and provisional drivers over and above socio-demographic factors. Within the first study, Akers’ social learning theory accounted for an additional 22 per cent of the variance in learner driver compliance with the law, over and above a range of socio-demographic factors such as age, gender and income. The two constructs within Akers’ theory which were significant predictors of learner driver compliance were the behavioural dimension of differential association relating to friends, and anticipated rewards. Sensation seeking predicted an additional six per cent of the variance in learner driver compliance with the law. When considering a learner driver’s intention to comply with the law while driving on a provisional licence, Akers’ social learning theory accounted for an additional 10 per cent of the variance above socio-demographic factors with anticipated rewards being a significant predictor. Sensation seeking predicted an additional four per cent of the variance. The results suggest that the more rewards individuals anticipate for complying with the law, the more likely they are to obey the road rules. Further research is needed to identify which specific rewards are most likely to encourage novice drivers’ compliance with the law. In the second study, Akers’ social learning theory predicted an additional 40 per cent of the variance in self-reported compliance with road rules over and above socio-demographic factors while sensation seeking accounted for an additional five per cent of the variance. A number of Aker’s social learning theory constructs significantly predicted provisional driver compliance with the law, including the behavioural dimension of differential association for friends, the normative dimension of differential association, personal attitudes and anticipated punishments. The consistent prediction of additional variance by sensation seeking over and above the variables within Akers’ social learning theory in both studies one and two suggests that sensation seeking is not fully captured within the non social rewards dimension of Akers’ social learning theory, at least for novice drivers. It appears that novice drivers are strongly influenced by the desire to engage in new and intense experiences. While socio-demographic factors and the perception of risk associated with driving had an important role in predicting the behaviour of the supervisors of learner drivers, Akers’ social learning theory provided further levels of prediction over and above these factors. The Akers’ social learning theory variables predicted an additional 14 per cent of the variance in the extent to which supervisors ensured that their learners complied with the law and an additional eight per cent of the variance in the supervisors’ provision of a range of practice experiences. The normative dimension of differential association, personal attitudes towards the use of professional driving instructors and anticipated rewards were significant predictors for supervisors ensuring that their learner complied with the road laws, while the normative dimension was important for range of practice. This suggests that supervisors who engage with other supervisors who ensure their learner complies with the road laws and provide a range of practice to their own learners are more likely to also engage in these behaviours. Within this program of research, there were several limitations including the method of recruitment of participants within the first study, the lower participation rate in the second study, an inability to calculate a response rate for study three and the use of self-report data for all three studies. Within the first study, participants were only recruited from larger driver licensing centres to ensure that there was a sufficient throughput of drivers to approach. This may have biased the results due to the possible differences in learners that obtain their licences in locations with smaller licensing centres. Only 59.4 per cent of the sample in the first study completed the second study. This may be a limitation if there was a common reason why those not participating were unable to complete the interview leading to a systematic impact on the results. The third study used a combination of a convenience and snowball sampling which meant that it was not possible to calculate a response rate. All three studies used self-report data which, in many cases, is considered a limitation. However, self-report data may be the only method that can be used to obtain some information. This program of research has a number of implications for countermeasures in both the learner licence phase and the provisional licence phase. During the learner phase, licensing authorities need to carefully consider the number of hours that they mandate learner drivers must complete before they obtain their provisional driving licence. If they mandate an insufficient number of hours, there may be inadvertent negative effects as a result of setting too low a limit. This research suggests that logbooks may be a useful tool for learners and their supervisors in recording and structuring their supervised practice. However, it would appear that the usage rates for logbooks will remain low if they remain voluntary. One strategy for achieving larger amounts of supervised practice is for learner drivers and their supervisors to make supervised practice part of their everyday activities. As well as assisting the learner driver to accumulate the required number of hours of supervised practice, it would ensure that they gain experience in the types of environments that they will probably encounter when driving unaccompanied in the future, such as to and from education or work commitments. There is also a need for policy processes to ensure that parents and professional driving instructors communicate effectively regarding the learner driver’s progress. This is required as most learners spend at least some time with a professional instructor despite receiving significant amounts of practice with a private supervisor. However, many supervisors did not discuss their learner’s progress with the driving instructor. During the provisional phase, there is a need to strengthen countermeasures to address the high crash risk of these drivers. Although many of these crashes are minor, most involve at least one other vehicle. Therefore, there are social and economic benefits to reducing these crashes. If the new, post-2007 graduated driver licensing systems do not significantly reduce crash risk, there may be a need to introduce further provisional licence restrictions such as separate night driving and peer passenger restrictions (as opposed to the hybrid version of these two restrictions operating in both Queensland and New South Wales). Provisional drivers appear to be more likely to obey some provisional licence laws, such as lower blood alcohol content limits, than others such as speed limits. Therefore, there may be a need to introduce countermeasures to encourage provisional drivers to comply with specific restrictions. When combined, these studies provided significant information regarding graduated driver licensing programs. This program of research has investigated graduated driver licensing utilising a cross-sectional and longitudinal design in order to develop our understanding of the experiences of novice drivers that progress through the system in order to help reduce crash risk once novice drivers commence driving by themselves.

Industrialized housing in China : a coin with two sides

China today is experiencing a time when housing is needed more than ever and one approach satisfying this need is by industrialization - a streamlined process aimed at generating profits and promoting energy efficiency in the housing sectors. Although large housing programs have been completed in China, few housing projects have been built in an industrialized manner. One contributing factor is that industrialization is not omnipotent and, just as a coin has two sides, not all the outcomes of industrialization are beneficial. In this paper, a preliminary assessment is made of these two sides - the benefits and hindrances of industrialized housing in China - by literature review and survey. Case studies are used to verify the questionnaire survey results and from which the advantages and disadvantages involved are compared. The findings indicate the need for formulating policies to encourage industrialized housing in China and for well-planned R&D themes to be implemented simultaneously with industry practices in the near future.

Re-examining the evidence in radiation dermatitis management literature : an overview and a critical appraisal of systematic reviews

Purpose: To provide an overview and a critical appraisal of systematic reviews (SRs) of published interventions for the prevention/management of radiation dermatitis. Methods and Materials: We searched Medline, CINAHL, Embase, and the Cochrane Library. We also manually searched through individual reference lists of potentially eligible articles and a number of key journals in the topic area. Two authors screened all potential articles and included eligible SRs. Two authors critically appraised and extracted key findings from the included reviews using AMSTAR (the measurement tool for “assessment of multiple systematic reviews”). Results: Of 1837 potential titles, 6 SRs were included. A number of interventions have been reported to be potentially beneficial for managing radiation dermatitis. Interventions evaluated in these reviews included skin care advice, steroidal/nonsteroidal topical agents, systemic therapies, modes of radiation delivery, and dressings. However, all the included SRs reported that there is insufficient evidence supporting any single effective intervention. The methodological quality of the included studies varied, and methodological shortfalls in these reviews might create biases to the overall results or recommendations for clinical practice. Conclusions: An up-to-date high-quality SR in the prevention/management of radiation dermatitis is needed to guide practice and direction for future research. We recommend that clinicians or guideline developers critically evaluate the information of SRs in their decision making.

Comparison of key competences of DB clients and contractors in the construction market of the People’s Republic of China

Clients and Design-build (DB) contractors are two key stakeholders in DB projects, and contribute significantly to the successful project performance. This study aims to identify and compare such key competences in the construction market of the PRC. After the survey of available literature and face-to-face interviews, a two-round Delphi questionnaire survey was conducted to identify the key competences of clients and DB contractors in DB projects. Relative importance of these identified competences were ranked and compared. The questionnaire results indicated distinct differences between the key competences of clients and that of contractors. The contractor’s key competences emphasize on DB experience, corporate management capability, building and design expertise, financial capability, enterprise qualification and reputation. While the client’s competences focus on the ability to clearly define the project scope & requirements, financial capacity, contract management ability, adequate staff, effective coordination with DB contractor and similar DB experience. Both clients and DB contractors should clearly understand the competence requirements in DB projects and possess all the necessary competences for the successful outcome of DB projects. The identification of these key competences provides clients and DB contractors with indicators to assess their capabilities before going for the DB option. Furthermore, the comparison of competences for clients and DB contractors will result in better understanding of DB system and improve the communication between these stakeholders.