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1 – 10 of 24Christina Donovan and Hannes Hautz
This paper seeks to illustrate how interventionist education reforms shape dis/trust-building processes and their impact on teacher professionalism in vocational education and…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper seeks to illustrate how interventionist education reforms shape dis/trust-building processes and their impact on teacher professionalism in vocational education and training (VET) across national contexts. Using trust as the object of analysis, we discuss the affective mechanisms of becoming a professional in a standards-based neoliberal environment.
Design/methodology/approach
Through an analysis of VET teacher narratives in England and Austria, the paper draws attention to the ways in which policy instrumentalism has created a culture of distrust in VET. Drawing upon foundational work on system trust developed by Niklas Luhmann, we illustrate how conditions for trust sit at symbolic thresholds, which set the conditions for professional recognition within VET.
Findings
Our analysis revealed that attempts to standardise VET strategy are fuelled by the need for existential security and predictability, leading to tensions in the cultivation of system trust. Conditions for professional recognition across both contexts were based on practices of documentation and subordination, narrowly defining modes of legitimate self-expression in organisations. This constitutes a crisis of trust in VET teacher professionalism, which undermines pedagogical autonomy and integrity.
Practical implications
We seek to highlight the impact that reduced trust in the governance of VET can have on issues associated with teacher motivation, well-being and retention. The consideration of trust is therefore essential both for policy design and implementation in VET organisations.
Originality/value
The application of trust theory offers a distinctive lens through which to understand the impact of accountability, performativity and governance processes upon teacher subjectivity within VET across national contexts.
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Christopher Lubienski and Jin Lee
This analysis addresses the question of how the goals motivating policies around markets for supplementary education are supported and reflected (or not) in the subsequent…
Abstract
Purpose
This analysis addresses the question of how the goals motivating policies around markets for supplementary education are supported and reflected (or not) in the subsequent structures for those markets.
Design/methodology/approach
Drawing on policy documents and empirical research on these policies, we examine the policy contexts and market structures the low-intensity form of supplementary education (SE) seen in the United States relative to the high-intensity case of Korea – specifically, the supplementary educational services (SESs) of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 and the After School Programs (ASPs) in Korea, respectively.
Findings
The analysis finds that Korea is using school-based SE programs as an alternative to existing SE markets in order to mediate perceived free-market excesses, while the United States is subsidizing SE markets to address the negative consequences of inequitable schooling. Yet, even in different contexts and purposes, policymakers in both countries see a value to supplementary education as part of their overall education strategy, despite a lack of evidence on the effectiveness of these approaches. This commonality is reflective of the larger neoliberal approach, evident around the globe, of using market forces such as competitive incentives and parental choice to drive policy toward social objectives.
Originality/value
The significance of this analysis is the insight that these policy approaches, while different in context and policy specifics, represent an overall blurring of traditional distinctions between public and private organizations.
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Fei Ping Por, Christina Sook Beng Ong, Siew Keow Ng and Arathai Din Eak
The psychological theory of self-determination postulated that gamification enhances learning engagement by intrinsically motivating learners to undertake tasks spontaneously…
Abstract
Purpose
The psychological theory of self-determination postulated that gamification enhances learning engagement by intrinsically motivating learners to undertake tasks spontaneously. Gamification has then been integrated into adult learning as part of the initiative of learner-centred pedagogies to curb the low retention rates of adult learners who struggle with heavy work commitments, family obligations and financial pressure. Gamification, being one of the technological mediations, assumes the crucial role of engaging and retaining adult learners. Adult learners have received less attention in research when compared with conventional university students. The purpose of this study is to conduct a bibliographic analysis to assess the past, present and future publication trends of gamifying adult learning and to identify the research gap.
Design/methodology/approach
This study included publications related to gamification and adult learning from 2014 to 2022, extracted from Dimensions. A total of 79,864 publications were retrieved initially, and 3,469 publications were ultimately selected for final analysis after the refinement of the keyword search. VOSviewer was used for bibliographic coupling, keyword co-occurrence, clustering and co-citation analysis of countries.
Findings
The number of publications related to gamification in adult learning has decreased since its peak in 2020. The saturation is mainly concentrated in the USA, the UK and China, with similar levels of national income and technology advancement skills. However, gamification in adult learning remains a popular and growing research area in developing countries like Malaysia, which has huge potential due to government investments in education, technology and lifelong learning. There is also an evident research gap on gamification, adult learning and personality traits, which have not been covered in previous studies.
Originality/value
Prior research mostly focused on systematic literature reviews, while the use of bibliometric analysis could be a missing link in this research domain. This paper unveils the evolution of publications on this topic over time by scientifically analysing a large number of publications and rigorously identifying research gaps contributing to future research avenues.
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Derry Law, Christina Wong and Joanne Yip
The aim of this article is to investigate the relationship between visual merchandising elements and consumer affective response by focusing on a function‐oriented product …
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of this article is to investigate the relationship between visual merchandising elements and consumer affective response by focusing on a function‐oriented product – intimate apparel.
Design/methodology/approach
In this paper, a different perspective on visual merchandising is offered through the different types of intimate apparel retailers (from fashion‐oriented, mass market‐oriented to fashion forward). This is presented in an interpretive study of Hong Kong Chinese female consumers, between the ages of 25 and 35. A qualitative approach is employed and the grounded theory method is chosen. A total of eight focus group interviews are conducted with 64 subjects.
Findings
The findings indicate that participating subjects have two points of view when evaluating visual store displays, which include utilitarian and hedonic aspects. The utilitarian aspect relates to the actual needs of consumers, such as garment deterioration, seasonal changes and occasions. The hedonic aspect finds that the perceived female image governs consumer interpretation and acceptance of visual displays. It also reveals that the need to be feminine sets the guidelines to evaluating visual stimulus in stores. Display elements, such as mannequins, colour, lighting and props that emphasize feelings of feminine sexuality, tend to trigger negative affective responses in consumers which finally affect purchase intentions.
Originality/value
The authors aim to explore consumer affective response on visual stimulus in stores by considering the aesthetic, symbolic and cultural perceptions of a function‐oriented product – intimate apparel. The literature to date tends to focus on the interaction between individual visual merchandising elements (e.g. colour, lighting) with consumers. However, the product nature and its symbolic meaning have not been seriously taken into consideration. Due to the immense market potential in the East, applying western‐developed theories may not be universally appropriate. There may be different results and patterns in consumer behaviour. Thus, this study aims to enrich existing knowledge of atmospheric management by including the interaction of Eastern values and product nature on affective responses.
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The purpose of this paper is to explore the clubs and club memberships of 491 elite women in three eastern Australian states in the 1930s. It is the second part of a descriptive…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore the clubs and club memberships of 491 elite women in three eastern Australian states in the 1930s. It is the second part of a descriptive analysis of these women's biographical sketches in Who's Who-type collections, now out of copyright, published in Australia in the 1930s: Victoria (1934), New South Wales (1936) and Queensland (1939).
Design/methodology/approach
Using mixed methods within a prosopographical approach, described fully in the first paper on these data, this is mainly a quantitative analysis. After the numbers of club memberships of the women are given and compared on a state-by-state basis, a taxonomy of five main types of clubs was created and the clubs and club memberships listed for each of them. The five types are: (1) social and cultural clubs; (2) sporting clubs; (3) imperial, national and patriotic clubs; (4) professional clubs; and (5) service and educational clubs. The paper then explores the similarities and variations at the state level in the women's club memberships across the five types. It should be noted that the article does not include charities to which the women contributed because they required a separate typology and analysis to be taken up elsewhere.
Findings
The paper frames women's clubs as informal educative networks where women were able to acquire the knowledge and skills in modernity for effective participation in the public sphere. The analysis shows that three-quarters of the 491 women were members of one club or more. Overall, the women listed 340 separate clubs with 1,029 memberships across the five types. The state-by-state analysis giving lists of clubs, and numbers of memberships per club in each type, enumerated variations of women's clubs at the state level. Overall, the analysis suggests that the “club habit” for such women was a substantial historical phenomenon at this time.
Originality/value
This is the first study to encompass women's club memberships across three Australian states. Quantification of women's involvement in clubs has proved difficult, however, by using a prosopographical approach, this study creates a unique quantitative picture of the club data contained in 491 elite women's biographical sketches from the 1930s.
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Since the advent of the contract culture, the reduction in museum budgets, and the implementation of performance measures based on customer satisfaction management, museums have…
Abstract
Since the advent of the contract culture, the reduction in museum budgets, and the implementation of performance measures based on customer satisfaction management, museums have faced increasing pressure to attract wider audiences. This requires an understanding of visitor expectations, and experiences, of visiting a museum. However, for the most part, public museums have concentrated their research efforts into obtaining statistical data which measure through‐put and provide demographic profiles, ignoring in the process the nature of the experience itself. This paper looks at research derived primarily from academics working in the field of visitor studies. It outlines three approaches; the social, the cognitive, and the environmental perspective, which have been applied to studies of museum visitor behaviour. The paper then presents the findings from an observational study of visitors to a city museum. These findings are recast in the light of the three approaches described, in order to offer an integrated framework of customer behaviour which has implications for the management of the service encounter in museums.
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Imran Rahman, Jeongdoo Park and Christina Geng-qing Chi
This quasi-experimental study aimed to investigate, drawing upon influential discounting behavior theory and cognition – affect – behavior (C-A-B) paradigm, consumers’ reactions…
Abstract
Purpose
This quasi-experimental study aimed to investigate, drawing upon influential discounting behavior theory and cognition – affect – behavior (C-A-B) paradigm, consumers’ reactions to the phenomenon of “greenwashing” in the lodging industry. More specifically, this paper proposed and tested a theoretical model that examined whether recognizing the ulterior motive caused consumer skepticism about hotels’ environmental claims, which in turn influenced consumers’ intention to participate in linen reuse program and intention to revisit the hotel. Additionally, the moderating effects of ecological concern on the relationship between skepticism and intention to participate and between skepticism and intention to revisit were examined.
Design/methodology/approach
A quasi-experimental design was used with two conditions (control vs ulterior motive) employing staff members of a US public university as study participants. In total, 638 useful responses were received.
Findings
The results of this study revealed that an ulterior motive of hotels’ environmental claims evoked consumer skepticism, which, in turn, negatively influenced consumers’ intention to participate in the linen reuse program and intention to revisit the hotel. Skepticism was found to partially mediate the relationships between ulterior motive and intention to participate and between ulterior motive and intention to revisit. Consumers’ ecological concern was not found to moderate the relationship between skepticism and intention to participate in the linen reuse program and skepticism and intention to revisit the hotel. In addition, a significant positive direct effect between ecological concern and intention to participate and a non-significant effect between ecological concern and revisit intention were revealed.
Research limitations/implications
Focus on consumers’ response to the ulterior motive of environmental claims advances an understanding of consumers’ attitudes and perceptions about hotels’ green practices.
Practical implications
Findings suggest that hotels need to be watchful so that consumers do not become skeptical. Therefore, it is of utmost importance that managers do everything possible to give customers no room for doubt. Hoteliers need to spend more effort in installing comprehensive green programs and make true green claims by keeping the potential consequences of greenwashing in mind. Hoteliers also need to seek out third-party certifications that require the hotel to meet certain standards, which will help ensure credibility in the eyes of consumers.
Originality/value
Hospitality literature has seldom explored this gray area of green marketing, and, in this regard, this study serves as a guide to hoteliers and researchers alike. The authors thereby anticipate that this study would encourage more research in this often overlooked but highly important area.
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Christina Chiang and Deryl Northcott
The purpose of this paper is to examine how New Zealand financial auditors could be motivated to improve current practices in regards to auditing the effects of environmental…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine how New Zealand financial auditors could be motivated to improve current practices in regards to auditing the effects of environmental matters in financial reports.
Design/methodology/approach
This is a qualitative study. The views of 27 New Zealand private and public sector auditors were solicited via semi‐structured interviews. Concepts from new institutional theory, and in particular institutional isomorphism, are used to interpret the research findings.
Findings
The interview evidence indicates that a combination of normative, coercive and mimetic forces would be necessary to advance current practices in auditing environmental matters. A crucial driver of change would be a mindset shift within the profession about the importance of environmental accountability, reporting and auditing – i.e. increased normative pressures for change. Coercive forces of negative media publicity, the “fear factor” and government intervention can serve to reinforce the audit profession's normative obligations. Since public sector auditors have already developed effective audit practices around environmental matters, emulating their approach within the private sector would drive improvements in practice.
Practical implications
By identifying the potential drivers for improving auditors' practices, this paper can inform the discussions and strategies of professional bodies, regulators and government on improving the audit of environmental matters in financial reports.
Originality/value
Few prior studies have solicited financial auditors' views on the factors they perceive as motivating change in their professional practice, and none have done so in regard to the important and emerging area of environmental matters. This New Zealand study offers a timely contribution, as well as geographical diversity, to the international literature on audit theory and practice.
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Christina Chiang and Deryl Northcott
This paper seeks to examine the responses of New Zealand auditors to the promulgation of Audit Guidance Statement (AGS) 1010: The Consideration of Environmental Matters in the…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper seeks to examine the responses of New Zealand auditors to the promulgation of Audit Guidance Statement (AGS) 1010: The Consideration of Environmental Matters in the Audit of Financial Statements and the consequent impact on audit practice.
Design/methodology/approach
This study adopts an interpretive methodology. It draws on dual research methods – interviews with 27 senior auditors, and a critical analysis of AGS‐1010. Legitimacy theory informs the interpretation of the findings.
Findings
The findings point to significant gaps in the guidance AGS‐1010 provides and reveal its limited impact on practice, which seems to reflect “business as usual” in regard to the audit of environmental matters. However, AGS‐1010 does appear to serve a ceremonial, legitimating role by supporting practising auditors' efforts to appear responsive to concerns about this emergent accountability issue.
Research limitations/implications
The findings highlight the practical challenges that exist in the audit of environmental matters, and point to the need to scrutinise the role of auditors in providing opinions on the financial reports of firms whose activities give rise to material environmental matters.
Practical implications
The findings suggest points for reflection for a profession that relies on maintaining its societal legitimacy, but which is failing to pursue or achieve best practice in the audit of environmental matters.
Originality/value
This paper presents a novel critique of AGS‐1010 and a first examination of how New Zealand auditors are dealing with environmental matters in light of this professional promulgation. The findings contribute to the international literature by exploring the relatively neglected role of the auditor in advancing the “greening of accounting”.
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