Academic Team Members Research Articles

Political skills matter: the role of academic entrepreneurs in team innovation

PurposeBased on social influence theory, this paper aims to explore the influence of academic entrepreneurs on team innovation activities. The innovation behavior of academic team members is the key behavior in academic entrepreneurial activities. As a special entrepreneurial group, academic entrepreneurs' political skills play an important role in stimulating team innovative behaviors.Design/methodology/approachThis paper adopts a multi-level study design and takes as samples the paired data of 91 academic entrepreneurial teams (n = 475). Based on team cognition, it constructs a model of the influence mechanism of academic entrepreneurs' political skills on team innovation behavior and explores the mechanism of transactive memory system in this influence effect. The authors use HLM and PROCESS macro to test our multilevel model.FindingsThe results show that academic entrepreneurs' political skills positively impact team innovation behavior, and a transactive memory system plays a mediating role between them. Team psychological safety significantly enhances the positive relationship of both academic entrepreneurs' political skills and a transactive memory system with team innovation behavior. Moreover, with enhanced perceptions of team psychological safety, academic entrepreneurs' political skills are more likely to improve team innovation behavior through the transactive memory system.Originality/valueThe study explores the influence of transactive memory system on the relationship between academic entrepreneurs' political skills and team innovation behavior, with the team cognitive perspective derived from social influence theory. This provides authors with new insights on the complex dynamics at place in the team innovation process and offers implications for how we can fruitfully manage this process.

Creating a novel approach to discourse treatment through coproduction with people with aphasia and speech and language therapists

ABSTRACT Background Although spoken discourse is an outcome prioritised by all stakeholders in aphasia rehabilitation, assessment and treatment of discourse are not routine clinical practice. The small evidence base, varied clinical expertise, multiple barriers in the workplace, and challenges for clients in understanding their altered language abilities all contribute to this situation. These factors need serious consideration when developing a new treatment. Involving intended stakeholders as partners in the development process is recommended. This assists with future implementation by ensuring assessment and treatment are practical, feasible, and acceptable to those who will deliver and undertake it. Aims This paper reports on the coproduction phase of the Linguistic Underpinnings of Narrative in Aphasia (LUNA) research project and describes the levels of partners’ involvement, the outcomes and impact of coproduction, and the factors that influenced it. Methods and procedures Four partners with aphasia and four speech and language therapists (SLTs) worked with academic team members across a 6-month period to create the LUNA assessment and treatment. Separate sessions were held with partners with aphasia (monthly) and SLTs (fortnightly). Coproduction methods included open discussion, the Someone Who Isn’t Me (SWIM) technique (thinking from others’ perspectives), low and high fidelity prototypes, flexible brainstorming, card sort, and active experimentation with assessment and treatment tasks. Verbal and written information was presented, shared and documented during each session in supportive formats, and each session summarised as accessible minutes. Outcomes and Results Partners contributed at consultation, cooperation, and co-learning levels during the coproduction phase. Outcomes included joined-up thinking across assessment-goal setting-treatment-desired outcomes; agreed decisions and content for assessment protocol and treatment manual; clarity on personalised, meaningful, and relevant treatment; therapeutic alliance operationalised in treatment manual; and more. Impacts included increased confidence, self-knowledge, pride, validation, peer support, networking, and benefits to SLTs’ services. Coproduction was positively influenced by consistent session structure and conduct, group dynamics, accessible communication methods, active task experimentation, and SWIM technique. Although the process was time and labour intensive, all partners considered this worthwhile. Conclusions LUNA has exemplified how an inclusive coproduction process can work well despite the language challenges of aphasia. Authors also believe that coproduction with intended users has resulted in products (assessment protocol, treatment manual) that are more practical, feasible, and acceptable to clinicians and clients than if designed by academics alone. This latter claim now needs testing on a wide scale.

Inside an Occupational Therapy-Disability Community Partnership to Promote Health Management: Ethnography of a Research Collaboration.

Disability studies-informed occupational therapy is predicated on full and equal partnerships among occupational therapy practitioners, researchers, and disability communities. Community-based participatory research (CBPR) is an approach to research that aligns with this vision yet is not without challenges. Understanding the tensions that arise from stakeholders' perspectives and priorities is critical for promoting collaboration between occupational therapy professionals and disability community partners. To understand the group dynamics and relational processes of a CPBR team in the context of an intervention development study focused on health management for people with disabilities (PWD). This 9-mo ethnographic study included semistructured interviews and participant observation. Data were analyzed thematically. Community-based multiagency collaborative. Nine participants (6 academic team members, 4 of whom were trained as occupational therapists; 2 disability partners; and 1 managed-care organization representative) took part. Three participants self-identified as PWD. CBPR processes, although productive, were fraught with challenges. Team members navigated competing priorities, varying power dynamics, and multifaceted roles and identities. Flexibility was needed to address diverse priorities, respond to unexpected challenges, and facilitate the project's success. Deep commitment to a shared goal of health care justice for PWD and team members' willingness to address tensions promoted successful collaboration. Intentional relationship building is needed for occupational therapy researchers to collaborate with members of disability communities as equal partners. What This Article Adds: Disability studies-informed occupational therapy research demands that team members intentionally nurture equitable relationships through shared governance, clear communication, and recognition of the fluid nature of power dynamics.

Designing for Growth and Development – A co-designed course for homeless people

Abstract Background In many developed countries, homelessness remains an intractable challenge for intersectoral policies. People who are homeless struggle with a myriad of problems. They frequently experience stigmatisation and social marginalisation. Physical and mental health may be severely compromised, and it could be challenging to retain a sense of personal agency. Objectives. To co-design a personal and organisational development training course, in collaboration with clients and staff of a homeless service provider. To ensure that homeless individuals develop strategies and supports to help them navigate complex life circumstances. 6 three-hour workshops, informed by design-thinking. Each workshop session was co-designed (2 clients of a homeless charity, one staff member of staff, and two academics) in Ireland. Workshops followed the design cycle, starting with empathy exercises, then moved to define specific life challenges related to homelessness. Solution-focused ideation sessions followed. The team proceeded then to build a testable 'prototype'. Results The team jointly developed a high degree of creative confidence and shared responsibility for different sessions. The team developed a 'peer-support programme' as a tangible output. Academic team members gained deep insights into the lived experience of homelessness; client members deployed skills and experiences and gained renewed confidence in their abilities. The homeless charity proceeds with testing the 'peer-support' programme prototype. Conclusions We expect the Access and Life-Long learning programme at the university will offer the programme as a credit-bearing course. Its acceptability and usability will be tested. Key messages Homeless individuals can be meaningfully involved in designing services that empower them to navigate complex systems. Design thinking yields personal and organisational benefits.

Co-producing a shared understanding and definition of empowerment with people with dementia

BackgroundEmpowerment for people with dementia (PWD) is not well defined within the research literature and we feel that this is an important area for development. It is important to seek, consult, and co-produce such a definition with PWD who are more actively involved in their communities post diagnosis (e.g. no longer the ‘long goodbye’). This study seeks to combine academic literature review methods with participatory/co-production methods in order to address this gap. We feel this approach also adds to developing methodologies in the field of co-production and user involvement.MethodsWe use a unique approach toward a definition of empowerment for PWD. Phase 1 - A scoping review of medical/health, social care and social policy-based databases to identify any previous literature that may have defined empowerment exclusively for PWD. Based on this literature, we collected a list of terms relating to empowerment for PWD. Phase 2 – Using empowerment key terms set on cards formulated from Phase 1 across three co-production workshops, academic team members, and nine members of Dementia NI (an organisation founded and led by people with dementia) we reviewed the findings of this search and co-produced an agreed definition they felt best described empowerment for them.ResultsPhase 1 and 2 led to a definition of empowerment relevant to PWD. This shared understanding of empowerment was defined by PWD as ‘A confidence building process whereby PWD are respected, have a voice and are heard, are involved in making decisions about their lives and have the opportunity to create change through access to appropriate resources’.ConclusionsThe strength of this research lies in addressing the current confusion and arbitrariness of empowerment within the context of dementia. This coproduced work also provides evidence for not only the possibility, but also the added value of involving PWD in research in terms of unique insights afforded by their lived experiences.

Aviation Human Factors Related Industry News

Aviation Human Factors Related Industry News

Reflection for learning, learning for reflection: Developing Indigenous competencies in higher education

Reflection is an essential part of students’ critically reflective development within experiential-learning contexts; it is arguably even more important when working cross-culturally. This paper reports from a national, arts-based service-learning project in which students in creative arts, media and journalism, and pre-service teachers worked with Aboriginal people in urban and rural areas of Australia. The paper uses Ryan and Ryan’s (2010) 4Rs model of reflective thinking for reflective learning and assessment in higher education to ascertain the effectiveness of the project work toward engendering a reflective mindset. The paper discusses how students learned to engage in critical self-monitoring as they attended to their learning experiences, and it describes how they “wrote” their experiences and shaped their professional identities as they developed and refined the philosophy that related to their developing careers. Examples taken from the narratives of students, community partners and academic team members illustrate the principal finding, which is that through a process of guided reflection, students learned to reflect in three stages: a preliminary drawing out of existing attitudes and expectations; a midway focus on learning from and relating to past experiences; and a final focus on reciprocal learning, change and future practice. The three stages were apparent regardless of program duration. Thus, program phase rather than academic year level emerged as the most important consideration when designing the supports that promote and scaffold reflection.

Reflection for Learning, Learning for Reflection: Developing Indigenous Competencies in Higher Education.

Reflection is an essential part of students’ critically reflective development within experiential-learning contexts; it is arguably even more important when working cross-culturally. This paper reports from a national, arts-based service-learning project in which students in creative arts, media and journalism, and preservice teachers worked with Aboriginal people in urban and rural areas of Australia. The paper uses Ryan and Ryan’s (2010) 4Rs model of reflective thinking for reflective learning and assessment in higher education to ascertain the effectiveness of the project work toward engendering a reflective mindset. The paper discusses how students learned to engage in critical self-monitoring as they attended to their learning experiences, and it describes how they “wrote” their experiences and shaped their professional identities as they developed and refined the philosophy that related to their developing careers. Examples taken from the narratives of students, community partners and academic team members illustrate the principal finding, which is that through a process of guided reflection, students learned to reflect in three stages: a preliminary drawing out of existing attitudes and expectations; a midway focus on learning from and relating to past experiences; and a final focus on reciprocal learning, change and future practice. The three stages were apparent regardless of program duration. Thus, program phase rather than academic year level emerged as the most important consideration when designing the supports that promote and scaffold reflection. This journal article is available in Journal of University Teaching & Learning Practice: http://ro.uow.edu.au/jutlp/vol13/iss2/7 Reflection for learning, learning for reflection: Developing Indigenous competencies in higher education Dawn Bennett, Curtin University, dawn.bennett@curtin.edu.au Anne Power, Western Sydney University Chris Thomson, Curtin University Bonita Mason, Curtin University Brydie-Leigh Bartleet, Griffith University

Environmental Justice Radar: A Tool for Community-Based Mapping to Increase Environmental Awareness and Participatory Decision Making.

As part of the Charleston Area Pollution Prevention Partnership (CAPs), studies have been performed to address environmental health issues using various techniques including Geographic Information Systems (GIS) mapping. Most of the mapping has been conducted by academic team members; however, there is a need for more community-based mapping to ensure the sustainability and effectiveness of community-driven efforts to eliminate environmental hazards and health disparities. The emergence of public participatory GIS (PPGIS) has been shown as a way to democratize science, build community capacity, and empower local citizens to address environmental health issues. This article describes the development of the Environmental Justice (EJ) Radar, a PPGIS tool that provides stakeholders in South Carolina with a way to raise environmental awareness and improve citizen participation in local environmental decision-making. We describe the functionality of EJ Radar and discuss feedback received from stakeholders to improve the utility of the PPGIS tool.

“Go forth …”

"Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit," (Matt. 28:19) was one of the early golden verses from the Bible I memorized when I was in elementary school at the Armenian Evangelical School in Lebanon. (1) Who was being addressed? I asked myself. The church, my missionary teachers or me as a girl? The question remained with me until I learned the theology of mission of my church and became involved in the ecumenical movement. Mission: An ecumenical journey While at the Evangelical School, I faced a dilemma: On Sunday I attended the liturgy in the Armenian Orthodox church with my family, and during the week, I attended Bible studies and memorized golden verses at school. My parents explained to me the missionary nature of our church as the eucharistic community where discipleship meant internal conversion, commitment to Christian values of love and justice, and serving the world. My parents' explanation of God's mission contrasted with the school's message of repentance and personal salvation. In my mind, I was a sinner during the week and God's child growing up to serve humanity on Sundays. This different understanding of mission made me question the theology of mission of my church. In our history classes we learned that Armenians were the first people to adopt Christianity as national religion in 301 CE. How could the founders of our faith, the apostles Thaddeus and Bartholomew, who evangelized Armenia, and our church fathers be wrong? How about our Muslim neighbours and friends? While my parents assured me that my neighbours and friends were not doomed to go to hell, yet I always feared for them. My role as a girl-child having received the message "go forth" was clarified later when I joined the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) and the World Council of Churches (WCC) respectively as staff. My ecumenical quest, which led to the creation of the European Project for Interreligious Learning (EPIL), began with my work at the Ecumenical Youth and Students Secretariat of the Middle East in Beirut (2) and as development secretary. The next step was my appointment as executive secretary for Inter-Church Aid and Development Programme, the only woman executive in the newly constituted Middle East Council of Churches in 1974. During the 1970s Paulo Freire was a staff member at the WCC and his pedagogy (3)--based on "conscientization"/"awareness building" and liberation of the poor and the oppressed through reflection and action in the liberational methodological rhythm of See, Judge, and Act-guided our work. As head of the development department, I was further inspired by the WCC Commission on Churches Participation in Development (CCPD) with its emphasis on development as a process to promote social justice, self-reliance, and economic growth. The 1980s brought a new understanding of mission to the ecumenical movement through the WCC central committee's approval in 1982 of the document "Mission and Evangelism: An Ecumenical Affirmation." (4) The document included the Orthodox pneumatology and showed the interrelationship between Christololgy and the Holy Spirit, as later explained by the current Catholicos of Cilicia, Aram I: The Triune God is the source of life. The Holy Spirit is the giver of life, the life-giving presence of the Triune God. Like breath, the Holy Spirit inspires and empowers life in human beings and in the whole creation. Without the presence of the Spirit all things in creation "die and return to dust" (Psalm 104:29). The Holy Spirit is not only the generator of life, but the one who sustains it. (5) The clarification that God is Trinity and the risen Christ is active in the Spirit as manifested through the Pentecost emphasized the cosmic nature of salvation and opened a new way of reflecting on creation, reconciliation, and healing. …

Faculty Members’ Ethical Behaviors: A Survey Based on Students' Perceptions at Universities in Turkey

As members of academic team, faculty behaviors have vital influence on students’ lives at universities. This study purposes to discover students’ perceptions about faculty behaviors concerning their professional responsibilities, dating/sexual harassment, behaviors inside and behaviors outside the classroom and relationship based on self-interest. The study employs both a quantitative and a qualitative research technique. Results reveal that students’ considerations are negative in terms of faculty behaviors inside the classroom and faculty professional behaviors. Significant differences were discovered according to establishment dates of the universities and students’ Grand Point Averages (GPAs).

COLLABORATIVE RESEARCH PARTNERSHIPS IN THE COMMUNITY

Working with community partners on research projects where the community members are part of the research team presents its own challenges. The challenges include the possible mismatch of expectations between academic team members and community members, as well as in defining the different roles people play, and managing the process. This paper reports the experiences and insights gained from working with community members involved in two research projects. The two projects were the Digital Divas project, involving the creation of a girls’ only information technology (IT) elective which has been implemented in a number of schools, and the Doing IT Better project that involved building IT capacity in the Victorian community service sector. Two community members from each of the projects are collaborators in this paper and provide the community perspective on this kind of research. Issues around concordances and discordances of academic research processes with a community's own ways of knowing, creating, managing and disseminating knowledge and information are discussed. The roles of community expertise, along with expectations regarding relationships and interactions are also explored.