Opportunities For Voice Research Articles

Walking the Digital Tightrope: Diversity and voice in creative platform work

This study examines how diversity shapes creative platform workers’ access to and exercise of voice within the precarious landscape of platform capitalism. Drawing on Bourdieu’s concepts of capital and field, we explore unique qualitative materials collected from 40 Brazilian literary content creators. The findings show that creative platform workers’ access to and exercise of voice is based on three conditions of privilege: playing the rules of the game; drawing on bundles of resources; and leveraging intermediation capacity. We identify four forms of voice among creative platform workers – shielding, demonstrating, ingroup-focused gatekeeping and affirmative voices – and highlight the relational dynamics of power in this context. This research contributes to understanding diversity in creative platform work through a privilege lens, thereby revealing the complex dynamics of power and dependence that creative platform workers experience with different industry stakeholders. This study contributes to the literature about diversity and voice by: showing that online prestige alone does not ensure voice opportunities; unveiling the variety of targets and agents in the four forms of voice in creative platform work; and highlighting the limitations of collective voice in challenging existing privilege and disadvantage systems.

Opportunities for nurses to address employee voice in health care providers: a scoping review

BackgroundEmployees’ decision to speak up or to stay silent can have implications for health care providers, employees and people who need care. As a result, a shift is needed from blindly following guidelines to implementing a sustainable proactive organizational culture in which employees, especially nurses, can evaluate their work environment and take advantage of growth opportunities. The aim of this review is to analyse the characteristics of employee voice opportunities in the health care context, particularly for nurses.MethodsThe search was conducted in April 2023 in the following databases: MEDLINE via PubMed, CINHAL via EBSCO, Scopus via Elsevier, Wiley/Web of Science and Cochrane Library. The search results were imported into the COVIDENCE program and screened by two researchers separately. We used the following search components: health care organization, opportunities, and employee voice. The review followed the PRISMA-ScR guidelines. We identified 951 studies in five databases and via citation tracking. After we removed 102 duplicates and screening 839 titles and abstracts, 23 full texts were assessed. According to our inclusion and exclusion criteria, we included 9 studies.ResultsThree main characteristics of employee voice opportunities that need to be considered to enable nurses to have a voice in the organization were identified. These main categories are individual factors, organizational culture, and available voice channels. It is not possible to rank them in order of importance; they are interrelated.ConclusionsTo conclude, employee voice is a process. In order for utilize employee voice opportunities, individual employee factors, organizational culture and its embedded context must be considered. Individual internal and external motivation, which is influenced by socio-cultural aspects and work hierarchies, must also be considered for successful use of opportunities.

A relational approach to youth healthcare: Examining young people's, parents' and clinicians' experiences in the context of variations in sex characteristics

According to popular understandings, children grow from a state of dependence to eventually become independent adults. Interdependence helps to disrupt the in/dependence binary and is a useful concept for making sense of the experiences young people with variations in sex characteristics in relation to healthcare. This study used semi-structured interviews with 32 health professionals, 33 caregivers and 12 young people recruited in the UK and Sweden. The analysis is guided by the questions: (1) how do young people, carers and health professionals position themselves in the adult/young person relationship in the context of healthcare? (2) how is the (in/ter)dependence of young people imagined when young people, carers and health professionals talk about healthcare? Our analysis shows how carers and health professionals might support dominant understandings about young people growing towards independence while providing little opportunity for young people's agency and voice. Interviews with young people gave clear examples of their negotiating relational ways of being, seeking agency in the context of healthcare and not simply becoming independent of adults. This analysis also draws attention to the ways young people might be silenced within healthcare contexts. The present paper is based on secondary analysis of data from the SENS. It works with concepts of relationality and interdependence to draw out the possibilities of voice and agency for young people with variations in sex characteristics in healthcare contexts.

Role of multinational buyers in ensuring worker voice through social dialogue: an exploratory study of the export oriented garment industry

Purpose This study aims to explore how multinational lead buyers can play an active role in ensuring worker voices in garment supplier factories where workers have limited space to raise their voices, and how buyers’ involvement increases the possibilities of worker voices mitigating barriers to social dialogues and enhancing mutual interests of buyers and workers in garment factories. Design/methodology/approach Using a qualitative research approach and multiple embedded case study method, this study considered buyer−supplier dyads as the unit of analysis, i.e. two multinational lead buyers and their four corresponding suppliers in the garment industry of Bangladesh. Focus group discussion and key informant in-depth interviews were techniques applied to collect factory-level data, and within and cross-case analysis techniques were applied to develop an overall understanding. Findings The results of this study reveal that the opportunities for workers to voice their concerns through social dialogue in garment supplier factories are limited due to various obstacles. Similarly, the role of multinational lead buyers in addressing these issues is found to be less than ideal. This study also shows that buyers can take short-term and long-term initiatives to ensure social dialogues. Moreover, this study presents how social dialogues can meet the expectations of multinational buyers and their garment suppliers. Research limitations/implications While this study focuses exclusively on the garment industry, similar scenarios also exist across a multitude of other industries. Thus, future research could extend this study’s scope to various sectors, providing a more comprehensive understanding of the general state of worker voices in Bangladesh. This study stands to make significant contributions to literature in the fields of global value chains, human relations and international business. It will pose critical perspectives on how upstream value chain suppliers can fortify worker rights through social dialogue, and elucidate the means and motives for lead buyers to play a more active role in this endeavour. Originality/value This study is distinct in its approach, integrating buyer−supplier roles to pave the way for enhanced worker voice opportunities through social dialogue in garment supplier factories.

THE HIGH-PERFORMANCE WORK SYSTEM & INNOVATIVE PERFORMANCES: MEDIATING ROLE OF VOICE OPPORTUNITY

In the context of higher education institutions in KP, Pakistan, this study examines complex relationship between High-Performance Work Systems (HPWS), employees' innovative performance, and mediating role of voice opportunity. For this purpose, a sample size of 304 academic members from was chosen universities. Results highlighted standing of giving employees a platform to communicate their thoughts and opinions and validate the mediating function of voice opportunity in the relationship between HPWS and employees' innovative performance. Study shows that HPWS adoption has a beneficial impact upon employees' inventive performance. Moreover, voice opportunity serves as the critical mediating factor, highlighting the significance of an atmosphere at work that is supportive of the employee engagement and feedback. The findings offer significant perspectives for academic administrators and legislators, for cultivating an environment at work towards inventive output. It also provides useful recommendations for maximizing innovative capacities in the KP, Pakistan's higher education sector.

Learning to facilitate student voice in primary physical education

Student voice pedagogies in physical education (PE) offer teachers a mechanism to promote meaningful experiences by actively engaging students in decision-making regarding their learning. Over one academic year, the experiences of one generalist classroom teacher's enactment of student voice pedagogies in their primary PE practice were explored within a Self-Study of Teaching and Teacher Education Practice (S-STTEP) frame. Data sources included post-lesson personal reflections, a researcher journal, and transcripts from meetings with a critical friend. Qualitative data was also collected from students ( n = 19) over a shorter timeframe of six months, and took the form of student work samples, along with transcripts from focus group interviews ( n = 2, with eight total participants). Findings show that the enactment of student voice pedagogies requires significant scaffolding for both the teacher and their students. The teacher needs to learn how to listen to, nurture, and act on their students’ voices, while students require assistance in developing their capacity to share their voices. Thus, the enactment of student voice pedagogies takes time, and necessitates a period of trial and error, to ensure the educator is providing authentic student voice opportunities in their practice. This study adds an additional layer to student voice research by providing a teacher's perspective of learning how to enact student voice pedagogies in PE. Furthermore, the findings add to the limited research into the use of student voice pedagogies at primary level.

“There is just more love in it”: a qualitative study of youth voice and relatedness in U.S. youth circus programs

ABSTRACT Recreational youth circus programs are a unique context for positive youth development. Anecdotal evidence suggests that young people feel heard in these programs, and research in other recreation settings shows that participation in decision making helps youth connect with others. The present study therefore examined how youth voice is supported at five youth circus programs across the United States through program observations and qualitative interviews with participants (N = 17, ages 12–18) and staff (N = 13). Thematic analysis revealed that both youth and staff felt their circus programs listen to youth members, although actual options for engagement varied. Furthermore, the love and acceptance of the circus community was omnipresent in the interviews; a feeling of belonging/relatedness even for individuals who felt excluded elsewhere. This study shows that youth circus can foster belonging and inclusion, and raises questions about the differences between perceived and actual opportunities for youth voice in recreation contexts.

Employee Voice Opportunities Enhance Organizational Performance When Faced With Competing Demands

Public personnel management should strive to balance the needs of employees, employers, and society, but there is insufficient empirical research to conclude whether such goals conflict or coincide. Using longitudinal data from multiple independent sources, this study analyzes the relationship between employee voice opportunity in personnel management (employee rights), organizational performance (employer interest), and competing demands from citizens (societal objectives). The results showed that public agencies encouraging employees to voice their rights outperformed their counterparts when faced with high or very high levels of competing demands from citizens after controlling for various factors. However, this appreciation for employee voice does not always yield positive-sum organizational outcomes when the competing demands on work are lower. These findings suggest that treating employees fairly and empowering them may lead to better long-term organizational performance in the face of high levels of competing demands from stakeholders, but the benefits of this approach may not always outweigh the costs, potentially due to the substantial expenses or risks associated with the promised payoffs.

The influence of personalized learning on the development of learning enjoyment

Given the relevance of learning enjoyment, its decrease in secondary school is concerning. Following the stage-environment fit theory, we investigated whether personalized learning in general and its two key features, choice and voice in particular, influence learning enjoyment and its development. We analyzed longitudinal data from 1241 students surveyed in grade 8 (average age: 14.9 years) and one year later in grade 9. Latent change models indicate a decline in learning enjoyment that depends on the initial value. Both the extent of personalization in schools and the students' perception of choice and voice are positively related to learning enjoyment. In addition, a change in students' perception of having a say (voice) affects the development of learning enjoyment. This article emphasizes the importance of voice for the development of learning enjoyment in the context of personalized learning. Because of the very limited student perception of opportunities for voice, there is considerable potential to foster learning enjoyment.

DEMOCRATIC MANAGEMENT STYLE AND STUDENTS’ UNREST IN PUBLIC BOYS BOARDING SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN BUNGOMA COUNTY, KENYA

This study sought to find out the influence of democratic management style on students’ unrest in public boys boarding secondary schools in Bungoma County, Kenya. The study was guided by the style and behavior theory. The survey was descriptive in nature. The target population was made up of 9,993 persons comprising of 396 teachers, 9575 students and 22 Principals from 22 public boys boarding secondary schools in Bungoma County. Using Krejcie and Morgan (1970) table for determining sample sizes, the target population gave a sample size of 373 respondents. The study utilized two questionnaires i.e. for teachers and students, and interview schedules, for Principals, to collect data. Descriptive statistics and inferential statistics were used to analyse data, which was later presented in tables. Qualitative data from the Principals was analysed using the theme under study and presented in a narrative form. The study established that democratic management style had an effect on students’ unrest in public boys’ boarding schools in Bungoma County. The model coefficient was found to be positive, indicating that democratic management style had a favorable effect on student unrest. Thus the findings showed democratic management style (β = .201, p <.05) had significant effect on student unrest. Therefore principals should consider involving students in decision-making, providing opportunities for student voice and input on decisions made, and establishing clear channels of communication. Principals should foster open communication, provide opportunities for student input, and create a culture of shared decision-making.

It matters to be heard: Increasing the citizen acceptance of low-carbon technologies in the Netherlands and United Kingdom

The deployment of low-carbon technologies such as carbon capture utilization and storage (CCUS) and onshore wind is essential to mitigate climate change, but may be met with resistance from local residents. In two experimental surveys (Study 1: Dutch citizens, N = 395; Study 2: United Kingdom citizens, N = 240) we investigated the importance of the quality of the voice opportunity offered to local residents in the decision-making process for acceptance of CCUS (Study 1) and onshore wind (Study 2) projects. Participants read a scenario in which they were asked to put themselves in the position of a resident in a town near which a project developer planned to implement a CCUS or onshore wind project. Depending on the experimental condition, participants read that they, as local residents, could voice their opinion and that their input was considered (genuine voice) or was not considered (pseudo voice) by the developer, or that they could not voice their opinion (no voice). As predicted, giving local residents a genuine voice opportunity resulted in higher project acceptance compared to giving a pseudo voice or no voice opportunity, due to an increase in perceived procedural fairness and trust in the project developer. Results further showed that giving a pseudo voice opportunity can be equally detrimental as giving no voice opportunity at all. The findings underline the importance of genuine voice opportunities and show that policymakers and project developers should avoid voice opportunities where residents' input is seemingly ignored.

Two-sided legitimation strategies: informal groups at the World Trade Organization

Abstract Who engages in legitimation strategies in global governance and why and how do they do it? This article studies the legitimation strategies and legitimacy-generating capacity of low-authority institutions, specifically informal groups within formal international organizations (IOs). It argues that informal groups seek legitimation and they can also be a source of legitimation for formal IOs. In doing so, the article makes three contributions to recent legitimation literature: 1) contra recent arguments, it shows why not only high-authority, but also low-authority institutions have special incentives to engage in legitimation; 2) it expands our understanding of the reasons why institutions engage in legitimation, showing why authority-deficits can motivate legitimation; 3) it studies legitimation strategies to show when they are likely to be audience- or agent-driven. A case-study of informal groups at the World Trade Organization yields three policy implications. First, developing countries could invest greater resources in legitimizing informal groups in order to boost their representation and voice opportunities within IOs. Second, formal IOs can increase their own legitimacy by supporting informal groups that enhance the representation of marginalized members. Third, however, to the extent that these strategies deflect pressure for formal rule changes, increasing investments in informal groups may be a long-term liability for developing countries.

Examining the Roles of Science Museum Facilitators in Academic Research

ABSTRACT Research into teaching and learning in science museums has led to innovations in pedagogy, exhibits, and educational programming. Science museum facilitators play a critical role in advancing the educational missions of their institutions, yet the roles that these facilitators have in academic research projects aimed at understanding learning within the context of their museums vary widely. In this systematic review, 40 articles and book chapters were reviewed for how science museum facilitators participate in reported research and design activities. The findings suggest that facilitators take on a variety of roles within research projects, from simply being talked about in the context of professional development programs, to taking active roles as co-designers and co-researchers in their institutions. Increasing opportunities for facilitator agency and voice within academic research may improve scholarly understanding of facilitators’ experiences, pedagogies, and institutional constraints, thus improving the designs of exhibits, educational programming, and professional development opportunities.

School-based mandates versus teacher autonomy: three early career teacher viewpoints of leadership impacting the teaching of reading

This paper reports on three Victorian early career Foundation to Year Two (F-2) teachers and the impact of leadership on their daily pedagogic decision-making about the teaching of reading. Data sets from each teacher drew on observations of three of their reading lessons and researcher-generated field notes, a semi-structured teacher interview, an online survey of reported teacher practice, teacher planning documents of the observed lessons and classroom artefacts related to reading. Selected from a wider qualitative case study undertaken with 16 F-2 teachers across six government primary sites in metropolitan Melbourne, the teachers in this paper reported on how mandated and non-negotiable principles and practices of reading affected their ability to make daily pedagogic decisions for their students. As a result of leadership directives, the three teachers expressed frustration at the lack of opportunity for teacher voice and autonomy in their craft of teaching. If the teaching profession wishes to continue to renew its numbers and promote the teaching profession as an ongoing career of choice, the focus on the professional development of early career teachers is timely and necessary. Therefore, this paper aims to shine a light on the importance of instructional leadership models which support the development of teacher knowledge, teacher efficacy and teacher satisfaction, ultimately resulting in more targeted outcomes for students and more teachers likely to remain in the profession.

Centering and collaborating with community knowledge systems: piloting a novel participatory modeling approach

BackgroundSystems science approaches like simulation modeling can offer an opportunity for community voice to shape policies. In the episteme of many communities there are elders, leaders, and researchers who are seen as bearers of historic knowledge and can contextualize and interpret contemporary research using knowledge systems of the community. There is a need for a systematic methodology to collaborate with community Knowledge Bearers and Knowledge Interpreters. In this paper we report the results of piloting a systematic methodology for collaborating with a community Knowledge-Bearer and Knowledge-Interpreter to develop a conceptual model revealing the local-level influences and architecture of systems shaping community realities. The use case for this pilot is ‘persistent poverty’ in the United States, specifically within the inner-city African American community in Baltimore City.MethodsThis pilot of a participatory modeling approach was conducted over a span of 7 sessions and included the following steps, each with an associated script:Step 1: Knowledge-Bearer and Knowledge-Interpreter recruitmentStep 2: Relationship buildingStep 3: Session introduction, Vignette development & enrichmentStep 4: Vignette analysis & constructing architecture of systems mapStep 5: Augmenting architecture of systems mapResultsEach step of the participatory modeling approach resulted in artifacts that were valuable for both the communities and the research effort.Vignette construction resulted in narratives representing a spectrum of lived experiences, trajectories, and outcomes within a community. The collaborative analysis of vignettes yielded the Architecture of Systemic Factors map, that revealed how factors inter-relate to form a system in which lived experience of poverty occurs. A literature search provided an opportunity for the community to contextualize existing research about them using realities of lived experience.ConclusionThis methodology showed that a community Knowledge Bearer can function as communicators and interpreters of their community’s knowledge base, can develop coherent narratives of lived experiences within which research and knowledge is contextualized, and can collaboratively construct conceptual mappings necessary for simulation modeling. This participatory modeling approach showed that even if there already exists a vast body of research about a community, collaborating with community gives context to that research and brings together disparate findings within narratives of lived experience.

Batik Paintings, A Beautiful Cultural Heritage​

In early 2020, Malaysia’s creative industry was weakened by the country’s constant lockdown due to pandemic Covid-19. Lim Anuar, a deaf artist, illustrator, and designer, was struggling financially and missed his family in Vietnam as many galleries and art workshops were closed during this pandemic. In this research, the authors discussed the impact of Covid-19 towards creative industries globally, issues with Malaysian creative industry and batik during Covid-19, batik paintings during modern Malaysian art in between 60s-70s, Kwan Chin’s style of Modern Malaysian batik paintings, exploration of Lim Anuar’s batik paintings in contemporary Malaysian art. Three significant batik paintings of the artist’s interest namely Gotong-Royong II, Best Friends, and Family Togetherness, produced in 2021 were discussed in terms of subject, form, and content. The researchers found that there are some influences from the Western art namely Cubism and Kwan Chin’s “crackle” effect in Lim Anuar’s batik paintings. This study also clarifies that local artists especially those with special needs who contributed to the development of contemporary Malaysian art should be given more opportunities for career expansion and voice in the creative industry during the post-pandemic era of Covid-19.

Interrelações das Epistemologias do Sul e o cuidado transcultural nas práticas em saúde e Enfermagem

Abstract Objective to reflect on the interrelationships of transcultural care and the Epistemologies of the South of health and Nursing practices. Method this is a reflective study, based on a narrative review of the literature, highlighting the concepts of abyssal line, ecology of knowledge, and decolonization of knowledge from the framework of the Epistemologies of the South. Results after the reflective analysis of the material, three reflexive axes emerged, namely: Populations south of the abyssal line; Ecology of knowledge and interculturality; and Decolonization of knowledge in health and nursing practices: culturally congruent care. Final considerations and implications for practice the appreciation of the self-care culture of vulnerable population groups south of the abyssal line is essential to create opportunities for visibility and voice removed by the colonization process in the health field, as a result of the overvaluation of biomedical knowledge. There is a need for dialogue between knowledge to build an environment of mutual learning, characterized as the ecology of knowledge. For this, the decolonization process is needed from the perspective of post-abyssal thinking, with the appreciation of popular knowledge, in favor of culturally congruent care. Finally, in nursing, the framework of the Theory of Universality and Diversity of Cultural Care equips nurses to plan and implement sensitive transcultural care.

Person-organisation fit, employee voice, and knowledge productivity: the moderating role of perceived voice opportunity

ABSTRACT The emerging economy has placed great importance on knowledge, particularly as the main ingredient to gain competitive advantage through knowledge productivity. Notably, businesses do not gain competitiveness from knowledge itself, but from their capability to make knowledge productive. According to knowledge-based view (KBV), the concept of knowledge management is closely connected to knowledge productivity. Past scholarship has examined the adoption of resource-based view (RBV) and KBV, in particular the various socio-technical driving factors of knowledge management. However, studies linking employees’ psychological perspectives, such as person-organisation fit and employee voice, to knowledge management are scarce. Therefore, this conceptual work presents a moderated mediation model on the relationships among person-organisation fit, knowledge productivity, employee voice, and perceived voice opportunity.

The Representative Potential of Interest Groups: Internal Voice in Post-Communist and Western European Countries

Why do some interest group systems provide group members with more elaborate voice opportunities than other systems? We argue that evaluating membership voice is important for understanding the representative potential of interest group systems. An adequate understanding of “voice” forms the basis of “context”-embedded assessments of benchmarks such as interest group bias, interest group representational distortion, and interest group-driven policy overload. We examine two competing hypotheses on the differences in internal voice in Eastern and Western Europe. Primarily, case-specific arguments lead us to expect a weaker internal voice in post-communist Eastern Europe compared to Western Europe. Conversely, some theoretical approaches, such as population ecological organisational theory, lead us to expect a relatively weak membership voice in the organisationally saturated Western European systems. We assess these two hypotheses on the basis of an international survey of interest group leaders and observe, in line with the population ecological hypothesis, that members of Western European interest groups, compared to those in post-communist countries, are perceived as having less influential voices in internal decisions on policy positions. We conclude, neither optimistically nor pessimistically, that there is a meaningful representative potential of interest group systems supporting democratic societies, also, or even especially, in the post-communist countries studied.

Assessing twenty-first century competencies: can students lead and facilitate the co-construction process?

ABSTRACT There is global recognition of the need to teach and assess complex competencies, which are often referred to as twenty-first century or work-ready knowledge and skills. While several assessment frameworks have been co-developed by researchers and teachers to assess competencies in schools, little is known about how these frameworks are shaped, both in product and process, by the active participation of other key stakeholders. This study, therefore, examined the co-construction of a competency-based assessment framework, incorporating the perspectives of teachers, students, and industry partners from an Australian secondary school community. Our findings reveal that the students confidently designed, articulated and justified the framework and then presented this to the adult participants, despite existing power dynamics. In addition, the students were able to navigate the co-construction process through acts of leadership and the use of questioning techniques, unmasking the opportunities for student leadership and voice within the design of assessment frameworks. We argue that the co-construction of assessment frameworks, involving a range of stakeholders, allows for workplace competencies to reflect school priorities and structures while also addressing the realities of the workplace and the needs, capabilities and imagined futures of students.