Suchergebnisse

Community mobilisation interventions have been used to promote health in many low-income and middle-income settings. They frequently involve collective action to address shared determinants of ill-health, which often requires high levels of participation to be effective. However, the non-excludable nature of benefits produced often generates participation dilemmas: community members have an individual interest in abstaining from collective action and free riding on others' contributions, but no benefit is produced if nobody participates. For example, marches, rallies or other awareness-raising activities to change entrenched social norms affect the social environment shared by community members whether they participate or not. This creates a temptation to let other community members invest time and effort. Collective action theory provides a rich, principled framework for analysing such participation dilemmas. Over the past 50 years, political scientists, economists, sociologists and psychologists have proposed a plethora of incentive mechanisms to solve participation dilemmas: selective incentives, intrinsic benefits, social incentives, outsize stakes, intermediate goals, interdependency and critical mass theory. We discuss how such incentive mechanisms might be used by global health researchers to produce new questions about how community mobilisation works and conclude with theoretical predictions to be explored in future quantitative or qualitative research.

Chronic diseases are strongly associated with premature death and increased health care costs. Nearly half of American adults report they have one or more chronic health conditions. Cooperative Extension is calling for refocus to refine and align with broader efforts to promote public health by supporting the prevention and management of chronic disease. The success of this refocus is dependent on a shared vision between funding agencies, stakeholders, and Extension. As part of developing this shared vision, the Chronic Disease Health Implementation Team surveyed 152 Extension administrators, faculty, and Extension Agents/Educators to determine their perception of the role of Extension in chronic disease prevention and management in the next century. Respondents answered the open-ended question, "What role should Cooperative Extension have in working to reduce chronic diseases in America for the next 10, 25, and 100 years?" Analysis with grounded theory identified three themes. The respondents perceived the role of Extension professionals as educators and collaborators in chronic disease prevention and management who focus on influencing individuals and environments. As educators, Extension should deliver evidence-based programs to communicate, inform, facilitate, and teach. As collaborators, Extension should facilitate and nurture partnerships to effect changes in chronic disease prevention and management.

Ethnic-specific organizations have long been features of American society. Historically, they have provided ethnic actors with a means of preserving culture and history. They have also been sites where collective interests are pursued. In this dissertation I study two ethnic-specific organizations. Using identity, incorporation and inequality, as essential dimensions of American ethnicity, I describe how the political and civic work that occurs in two organizations reveals group boundaries. My data and analysis support three major findings. First, I find that the identities that emerge from this kind of organizational work are transactional identities. Transactional identities are identities that are confirmed in social interaction with ethnic and non-co-ethnic actors (i.e., outgroups and mainstream institutions). I argue that transactional identities reflect specific histories and events that determine shared experiences within an ethnic group and are easily distinguishable from the shared experiences other groups have. Secondly, I find that these sites provide groups with a platform to address experiences of inequality in multicultural environments, such as American society. And lastly, I find that these sites provide ethnic groups a means to demonstrate cultural citizenship in American society and institutional belonging in other forums.

In the last decades there has been a growing interest towards the concept of "Quality of Life" (QoL), not only in the bio-medical field, but also in other areas, such as sociology, psychology, economics, philosophy, architecture, journalism, politics, environment, sports, recreation, advertisements. Nevertheless QoL does turn out to be an ambiguous and elusive concept – a precise, clear and shared definition appears to be a long way off. In this article an analysis of how QoL is interpreted and defined in various scientific articles published in the last two decades, is offered. In addition, an illustration of how widespread the use of this concept is in different fields of knowledge, the difficulties in reaching a shared understanding of QoL, the problems involved in stating clearly the construct, and a presentation of some of its conceptualizations, are provided. The importance of subjectivity in the definition of what QoL is, emerges as a key aspect. This personal and subjective dimension could be the starting point for a more thorough and holistic understanding of this concept, in which standardized sets of valid, reliable and evidence-based measures of, e.g., psychological and spiritual dimensions, are encompassed in the person's quality of life evaluation. ; peerReviewed ; publishedVersion

Effective situation awareness is a critical element for decision support in a wide range of military and para-military operational surveillance scenarios. Effective situation awareness in a surveillance scenario can greatly increase operational effectiveness, by improving the quality and timeliness of decisions. In this paper we outline a three level integrated design approach to promote situation awareness. Our approach allows deployed wireless sensor nodes to efficiently self-organise into dynamic clusters, based on a current common perceived threat situation ( context). Firstly our distributed predator aware situation assessment system ( PORTENT) models, detects and presents, in terms of quality of information (QoI), potential situations occurring within an uncertain environment. Secondly, we utilise a Bayesian belief network to understand the significance associated with the potential situation. Finally in order to obtain a better shared awareness we have developed a "context aware" service protocol that supports group formation and efficient management of sensor network assets. By combining this three level approach, we present our VIGILANT "situation aware" QoI interest group system. Extensive simulations have been undertaken to verify the VIGILANT concept, to demonstrate the effectiveness of our approach, in improving performance for network management efficiency, through utilisation of a shared "context" service provision time and QoI surveillance presentation.

Objective: We highlight some of the key discoveries and developments in the area of team performance over the past 50 years, especially as reflected in the pages of Human Factors.Background: Teams increasingly have become a way of life in many organizations, and research has kept up with the pace. Method: We have characterized progress in the field in terms of eight discoveries and five challenges. Results: Discoveries pertain to the importance of shared cognition, the measurement of shared cognition, advances in team training, the use of synthetic task environments for research, factors influencing team effectiveness, models of team effectiveness, a multidisciplinary perspective, and training and technological interventions designed to improve team effectiveness. Challenges that are faced in the coming decades include an increased emphasis on team cognition; reconfigurable, adaptive teams; multicultural influences; and the need for naturalistic study and better measurement. Conclusion: Work in human factors has contributed significantly to the science and practice of teams, teamwork, and team performance. Future work must keep pace with the increasing use of teams in organizations. Application: The science of teams contributes to team effectiveness in the same way that the science of individual performance contributes to individual effectiveness.

This article reviews evidence for considering job satisfaction at the group level of analysis. Group-level job satisfaction is functionally independent of individual-level job satisfaction. This construct is labeled group task satisfaction and is defined as the group's shared attitude toward its task and the associated work environment. The authors propose that group task satisfaction develops out of within-group homogeneity in individual job satisfaction, which in turn is a product of the shared work conditions, social influence processes, attraction-selection-attrition effects, and emotional contagion effects associated with work groups. They predict that through group interaction, the within-group homogeneity in job satisfaction will come to be perceived as a characteristic of the group. Once identified as a group characteristic, group task satisfaction will be subject to processes such as polarization and prototyping, with the result that group task satisfaction should function independently of the mean level of job satisfaction within the group. The authors predict that group task satisfaction will be related to the mean level of individual job satisfaction within the group, the quality of the group's processes, and the performance of the group, thus serving as an important indicator of team viability.

AbstractThe article explores four themes based on my participation in the inception phase of a DFID‐funded project in Russia. The first is to assess the role of technical assistance in providing new models for social development and institutional change. What obstacles and difficulties do donors face in introducing changes in practices, which are comparatively new in their own countries? The second theme is the degree to which external changes put pressure on governments to legislate in favour of vulnerable groups. In this case the break‐up of the Soviet Union and subsequent impoverishment of large sectors of society provide the context. Third, the article examines the potential for change through the setting up of a 'Conflict Commission' in the pilot region of Samara oblast. Here, there is a comparatively supportive environment with evidence of a shared commitment by the state, their services and civil society. An outstanding and challenging question for this experiment is the degree to which this shared axis for change can become the basis for wider legal reform at the federal level. The article will finally consider the role of monitoring and evaluation in a pilot project. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Purpose
This paper aims to highlight dysfunctional multi-stakeholder relations and negative business outcomes, evidenced in lose/lose results, exacerbated by failure to acknowledge strategic business focus as a means to redress problematic business thinking and practice amongst key leadership teams associated with achieving balance between competitive advantage and corporate social responsibility.


Design/methodology/approach
The reframed strategic business focus has been developed using Eastern philosophy and Western organization theory and refers to four case examples of dysfunctional business thinking and practice.


Findings
Strategic business focus results from an interdependent and complementary positive mediating relationship between competitive advantage and corporate social responsibility, which is moderated by organization culture (organization core values, including shared value) and strategic human resource management (talent and mindset).


Research limitations/implications
Strategic business focus as proposed has not been empirically tested but seeks to address a conceptualization that competing business and stakeholder agendas are interdependent and complementary.


Practical implications
Strategic business focus seeks to redress traditional win/lose and lose/lose business outcomes, by supporting win/win results, represented by shared value amongst multi-stakeholders.


Social implications
Strategic business focus seeks to provide a means whereby corporate social responsibility, particularly the social contract, plays a key role in the decisions and practices of key leadership teams and the behaviour of corporate staff in host environments when seeking competitive advantage.


Originality/value
Eastern thinking and behaviour are usually undervalued in the western business literature, particularly in western business practice. Joint attention, however, may improve competitive advantage and corporate social responsibility agendas in support of diverse management practices, including shared value.

A large-scale computational project has been recently launched to develop the Virtual Atomic and Molecular Data Centre (VAMDC). It involves several research groups from the European Union (Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Sweden, UK), the Russian Federation, Serbia and Venezuela. VAMDC intends to deploy an advanced and secure cyberinfrastructure for providing an interoperable e-science environment for existing distributed atomic and molecular databases. These databases are used in a variety of research and industrial fields such as astrophysics, atmospheric physics, fusion, environmental sciences, lasers and lighting. Research groups from Venezuela, namely from IVIC and CeCalCULA, will make use of the EELA grids and storage elements for upgrading, testing and tuning atomic database services and applications such as TOPbase, TIPbase, OPserver and XSTAR. In the present report we will describe the project guidelines, especially in reference to the training of potential users and expertise dissemination in Latin America. ; 1-7 ; claudio@ivic.ve ; nunez@ula.ve

This book gathers renowned researchers and policymakers from all continents who have accompanied Dirk Messner's professional life in science and policy advice. Their articles and essays cover topics related to the ideational spheres and practice-oriented spaces which have consistently characterised Dirk Messner's career. These include steps at the national, regional or global level to effectively accelerate the shift towards planetary sustainability; measures to forge or strengthen cross-sectoral, transboundary, multi-actor alliances for sustainable transformation; and key elements of universal ethics and shared norms which foster transnational cooperation for the global common good.

This Systematic Country Diagnostic (SCD) aims to identify the major constraints on and opportunities for sustaining poverty reduction and shared prosperity in Serbia. The SCD serves as the analytic foundation on which the World Bank Group and the Government of Serbia will define a new Country Partnership Framework for FY2016 to FY2020. It is based on the best possible analysis, drawing on available evidence, and not limited to areas where the World Bank Group is currently engaged. The SCD is structured as follows: Chapter 2 presents the political and economic context. The economic context describes recent trends in growth, shared prosperity, and poverty reduction and briefly discusses factors behind them. Chapter 3 discusses pre-crisis patterns of growth and opportunities for future growth and inclusion in Serbia. Chapter 4 presents drivers of economic growth in Serbia and the principal constraints on growth and competitiveness. Chapter 5 discusses drivers of and constraints to economic inclusion. Chapter 6 outlines risks to sustainable shared prosperity and poverty reduction. Chapter 7 presents priorities for action.

The environments in which people live out their later lives have a strong impact on their identity and provide opportunities for nourishing social interactions. This volume translates the insights derived from contemporary research on residential environments and public spaces that enhance well-being into practical recommendations for the design of such beneficial community environments. The text is grounded in the conceptual and theoretical underpinnings of current research on place attachment, environmental meaning, and community living in later life. Emphasis is placed on how to design residential spaces that facilitate the development of a sense of place or home, and investigation is made into the kinds of lifestyles such spaces foster and support. A major theme pervading the text is the juxtaposition of private and public space. The book also addresses such themes as the transformation of spaces into places of personal identification and attachment, the need for shared intergenerational spaces, and consideration of diverse populations when designing public spaces. The book also considers how emerging public policy agendas affect the development and management of environments for the elderly. Environmental Gerontology includes the contributions of scholars in anthropology, architecture, economics, education, geography, gerontology, planning, psychology, sociology, and numerous health sciences, who hail from North America, Europe, and Asia. With its strong interdisciplinary focus, this text offers innovative and judicious recommendations for the creation of community environments that are truly beneficial for older adults. Key Features:.: Provides an up-to-date synthesis of the latest research on the meaning of place to older people and its relationship to well-being; Offers fresh insight and critical perspectives on community planning and

After 3 years of historic reforms, Myanmar has entered a pivotal stage in its socioeconomic development. Natural, cultural, and demographic advantages are positioning the country for long-term success, but many challenges and potential pitfalls lie ahead. This publication examines how to leverage the opportunities and offers solutions to the challenges. For Myanmar to achieve its economic transition, considerable investments will have to be made in infrastructure and developing human capital, and progress made on building institutional capacity, a regulatory environment for the private sector to flourish, and a modern finance sector. In all reform efforts, the government should embrace good governance, and strive for inclusive, environmentally sustainable, and regionally connected growth. Ensuring that the benefits of growth are shared broadly and regionally balanced stands out in a crowded development agenda.