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This study aims to describe the components of the Mu'jam Al Lughah Al Arabiyyah Al Mu'ashiroh dictionary. This dictionary is an ekabahasa dictionary that contains the lexical meanings of contemporary Arabic. This research uses a type of descriptive qualitative research with a literature method. This research seeks to elaborate a component analysis of the dictionary written by Ahmad Mukhtar Umar where this dictionary is very popular in egypt and in the arab world in general. Data is collected through careful reading and analyzing through content analysis to find out the components of the dictionary comprehensively. The finding is that this dictionary is quite ideal where its components consist of the initial part, the core part, and the final part which contains enough important information regarding how to use it and contextual examples [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a growing trend in social science research to share qualitative data in a repository for others to access. However, some researchers are reticent to share qualitative data. One major concern is how to de-identify qualitative data while maintaining adequate contextual detail to allow secondary users to meaningfully interpret de-identified data. To help inform discussions regarding qualitative data sharing, we reviewed 100 qualitative health science studies to determine what potentially identifying variables (PIVs) are reported in the published literature. There are relatively few PIVs reported in each qualitative study; the majority of studies (n=64) reported two or fewer PIVs. The most commonly reported PIVs were profession, sex or gender, and age. Our findings can help guide de-identification efforts going forward as presumably the PIVs that are most commonly reported provide essential contextual details that will also be needed by secondary users, while PIVs that are rarely reported may not provide essential contextual information for interpretation of data. This suggests it is possible to share qualitative data that are both de-identified and useful for secondary analysis. As data are shared, we recommend researchers mask study sites, as these may uniquely increase the chance of re-identification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Employee learning plays a vital role in corporate sustainability strategy. Past attempts to map sustainability learning (SL) in organizations have fallen short in explaining the interactions between key learning approaches and the dynamics within the learning environment. This paper is based on a study conducted to explore how employees learned sustainability in organizations and the contextual factors that facilitated their learning process. The study adopted the interpretivist qualitative approach in data collection. Semi-structured interviews were used as the main method, supported by participant observation and document analysis. The findings found evidence suggesting an interplay between several types of learning approaches in SL and highlighted important contextual factors that facilitated the learning environment. Based on the findings, this paper proposes an integrated model for sustainable learning that contributes to refining understanding of the SL process and can be used to assist organizations in enhancing their SL programs. This research addresses the dearth of studies on SL in the organizational setting. It also provides theoretical contribution by providing a clearer overview regarding how SL occurs among employees based on the perspectives of social, experiential, and transformative learning theories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Reflexión Politica is the property of Universidad Autonoma de Bucaramanga, UNAB and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Aim: Enhancement of recovery-oriented care in psychiatry requires insight into the personal meaning and context of recovery. The Psychiatry Story Bank is a narrative project, designed to meet this need, by collecting, sharing and studying the narratives of service-users in psychiatry. Our study was aimed at expanding insight into personal recovery through contextual analysis of these first-person narratives. Methods: We analyzed 25 narratives, as collected through research interviews. To capture the storied context on both a personal, interpersonal and ideological level we combined several forms of qualitative analysis. A total of 15 narrative characteristics were mapped and compared. Results: Through comparative analysis we identified four narratives genres in our sample: Lamentation (narratives about social loss), Reconstruction (narratives about the impact of psychosis), Accusation (narratives about injustice in care), and Travelogue (narratives about identity transformation). Each genre provides insight into context-bound difficulties and openings for recovery and recovery-support. Conclusion: A contextual approach to studying personal recovery offers insights that can help attune recovery support in psychiatry. Important clues for recovery support can be found in people's narrated core struggle and the associated desire to be recognized in a particular way. Our results also indicate that familiarity with different ways of understanding mental distress, can help people to express and reframe their struggles and desires in a helpful way, thereby facilitating recognition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In a democratic regime, political power derived from popular consent is obtained through periodic competitive elections. In addition, Free and fair elections constitute the basis of any true representative democracy. In Nigeria, votes rarely count as elections are usually not free and fair due to various electoral malpractices such as rigging, ballot box snatching, vote-buying, violence, and bribery - among other irregularities. Consequently, Nigeria is facing a crisis of democracy because the sanctity of the vote is not guaranteed, which undermines electoral legitimacy. Adopting the qualitative research method (which relies largely on secondary sources of data) and descriptive/contextual analysis, this paper interrogates salient impediments to free and fair elections in Nigeria from mainly the institutional perspective by focusing on the election management body, security (law enforcement) agencies, and the judiciary to proffer actionable suggestions for the way forward. The findings of the study suggest that lack of institutional autonomy, lack of financial independence, manipulation of both voters =registration and the processes of collecting permanent voters' card, including the interference of security agencies, are institutional impediments to a free and fair election. The lessons learned from this experience can help the countries of sub-Saharan Africa in conducting free and fair elections. This is because, given the population size and influence of Nigeria in the subregion and Africa, it carries a lot of influence both for good and bad. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Extant theorizing concerning person-environment fit (PE fit) is culture bound in that it focuses predominantly on PE fit phenomena in the Western world. We enrich the PE fit literature by exploring the interpretations of PE fit in a prevailing Eastern context (Chinese) using a qualitative study. We interviewed 30 Chinese working adults with diverse backgrounds, and our findings suggest an integrated Chinese model of PE fit that constitutes five dominant PE fit themes: competence at work, harmonious connections at work, balance among life domains, cultivation, and realization. In addition, our research finds empirical evidence of both psychological time and diachronic time with regard to PE fit. With reference to cultural grounding, we reason that Confucian relationalism, selfhood, and appropriateness are particularly helpful in explaining our findings. Other implications and future research are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Discourses on Ghanaian video movies have predominantly been described as representing everyday life. Conversely, the approach to which the everydayness of the video movies has been viewed diminishes the cultural value of the narratives. This article examines how movie narratives capture daily life experiences and how they respond to the anxieties that characterise everyday life. Using qualitative research methods, a contextual analysis of six movies was employed in analysing the narratives. Representations of daily life are embodied in marriage, religion, family, social relations and economic conditions. Anxiety is expressed over family disintegration, consumer culture intersecting with religious beliefs and the interplay between individual aspirations and social expectations in contemporary living. This study broadens the conversation on the relevance and contribution of video films to both cinema and cultural studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How students develop vocational knowledge is a rather under-researched topic in the context of vocational education and training. Vocational knowledge is perceived as the kind of knowledge required to perform in occupational practice. From an activity-theoretical approach to learning, supplemented with ideas borrowed from inferentialism, this article explores how students develop vocational knowledge in terms of a cognitive activity of contextualising. A qualitative in-depth study is presented, which explores students' cognitive processes during professional performance. Hospitality students and culinary students were interviewed and asked to articulate the process of contextualising during their work in a sandwich bar. A detailed description of the characteristics of contextualising is presented, and the process is illustrated with examples from the data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This article presents an analysis of how critical thinking is contextualised in everyday teaching in three vocational education and training (VET) programmes: Vehicle and transport, Restaurant and management, and Health and social care. Purpose: The main question addressed is: What knowledge discourses permeate different VET-contexts, and hence what kinds of opportunities for critical thinking do they offer students? Method: The qualitative analysis draws on data from a four-year ethnographic project exploring learning processes that can be characterised as civic education in Swedish vocational education. The analysis presented here used data collected during 85 days of observations of teaching in six VET classes, interviews with 81 students and 10 teachers, and collected teaching material. To explore why some contextualisations provided more opportunities and encouragement for critical thinking than others, we applied Bernsteinian concepts of 'horizontal and vertical knowledge discourses' and 'discursive gaps'. Findings and conclusions: Overall, teaching that was observed focused primarily on 'doing'. However, in all three programmes, the analysis identified that there were also situations that touched upon critical thinking. Three major themes were identified: critical thinking related to 'Personal experiences', 'The other(s)' and 'Wider perspectives'. It appeared that the frequency and nature of such situations varied with the knowledge discourses permeating the programme. Furthermore, we discuss the manifestations of critical thinking in relation to the wider context of what Bernstein refers to as pedagogic rights; individual enhancement, social inclusion and development of the competence and confidence to participate in political processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Radio production involves editing speech-based audio using tools that represent sound using simple waveforms. Semantic speech editing systems allow users to edit audio using an automatically generated transcript, which has the potential to improve the production workflow. To investigate this, we developed a semantic audio editor based on a pilot study. Through a contextual qualitative study of five professional radio producers at the BBC, we examined the existing radio production process and evaluated our semantic editor by using it to create programmes that were later broadcast. We observed that the participants in our study wrote detailed notes about their recordings and used annotation to mark which parts they wanted to use. They collaborated closely with the presenter of their programme to structure the contents and write narrative elements. Participants reported that they often work away from the office to avoid distractions, and print transcripts so they can work away from screens. They also emphasised that listening is an important part of production, to ensure high sound quality. We found that semantic speech editing with automated speech recognition can be used to improve the radio production workflow, but that annotation, collaboration, portability and listening were not well supported by current semantic speech editing systems. In this paper, we make recommendations on how future semantic speech editing systems can better support the requirements of radio production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The growing global concern around antimicrobial mis-use and proliferating resistance has resulted in increasing interest in optimising antibiotics, particularly in hospitals. While the agenda to tighten antibiotic use has been critically explored in metropolitan settings, the dynamics of rural and remote settings have remained largely unexplored. Drawing on 30 interviews with doctors, nurses, and pharmacists in a remote Australian hospital, we focus on the pertinence of setting, and its importance for contextualising and potentially achieving antibiotic optimisation. Building on previous work on the dynamics of locale and core-periphery relations, here we consider how antimicrobial practice is deeply embedded in experiences of being on the geographical periphery, and crucially, at the periphery of (established) knowledge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Conceptual models are fundamental to system analysis and design. However, the actual usage of conceptual models remains poorly understood, in particular, how and why practitioners would use multiple models in combination when doing their work. In this paper, the authors explore the reported use of multiple conceptual models for system analysis and design to determine the circumstances that lead professionals to use multiple models. They uncover both semantic and pragmatic reasons that influence the choice and selection of different models for system analysis and design tasks. Contrasting these findings to existing ontological theories, the authors find that the extent and type of multiple model use is determined by not only ontological factors but also contextual factors that can override ontological qualities and in so doing bring forth desired qualities for users. The authors offer several novel propositions about the implications of ontological theory that will be worth exploring in future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A complex array of intersecting social contextual factors are known to influence safer and/or unsafe practices among people who inject drugs. However, less is known about the social contextual factors that may specifically influence injection practices for young people who inject drugs. In this qualitative study, we explored with young people, ages 18-29, living in an urban centre in Nova Scotia, Canada, their perceptions and experiences of the social contextual factors that influence their safer and/or unsafe injection practices. We found that many of the social contextual factors the young people reported as influencing unsafe practices are at the micro-environmental level, and a number of these factors also affect adults (as per the literature). Methadone maintenance treatment was identified by a number of the participants as an important factor influencing safer practices. An expansion of harm reduction services and supports may help to address many of the social contextual factors identified by young people who inject drugs and should be considered given their important role in reducing the harms associated with injection drug use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to highlight levels of power in research ethics that are insufficiently addressed in self-ethnographic research literature.Design/methodology/approach The paper reflexively draws from a qualitative research that was conducted in a higher education institution (HEI) in South Africa. The reflection is substantiated with literature on various aspects of the reflection. The research design was self-ethnography, conducted within a postmodernist paradigm.Findings The reflection exposes the hidden levels of power in the process of ethical clearance and gatekeeping of access to participants. It also suggests that different theoretical perspectives about ethics work together throughout the self-ethnographic research process.Research limitations/implications The research on which the paper is based was conducted in only one college of one HEI. Therefore its findings may only be contextual.Practical implications The exposure of the levels of power contributes to the discourses of research ethics and may caution self-ethnographic researchers about the complexities of research ethics involved in this research design.Originality/value Although there is plethora of literature about ethics and insider research, little has been done to bring to light the various levels of power that this paper highlights. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Qualitative small-N comparisons face the challenge to detect context-bound causality under conditions of limited empirical diversity. Rather than treating context as a causal factor, we test the usefulness of the novel method of comparative multilevel analysis (CMA) to identify and understand the role of context as a contingent necessary condition that enables a causal relationship to unfold. Combining CMA with pairwise comparisons, we assess how organ donation policies in Switzerland and Spain affect relatives' refusal rates in a small-N setting exhibiting multiple contextual levels. To tackle limited diversity systematically, we suggest to refine the CMA methodology by accounting for several contexts and referring to higher-order constructs. Applying CMA with these refinements, we find voluntary information measures only affect refusal rates in contexts of a credible state explicitly supporting organ donation. The fact that CMA can easily be combined with other analytical and conceptual approaches makes it an effective technique to identify contextual effects in small-N research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Context is important in implementation-we know that what works in one setting may not work in the same way elsewhere. Primary care has been described as a unique context both in relation to the care delivered and efforts to carry out research and implementation of new evidence.Objective: To explore some of the distinctive features of the primary care environment that may influence implementation.Methods: We conducted an ethnographic study involving observations, interviews and documentary analysis of the ENABLE-CKD project, which involved general practices implementing a chronic kidney disease care bundle and offering self-management support tools to patients. Analysis was based on the constant comparative method.Results: Four elements of the primary care environment emerged as important influences on the extent to which implementation was successful. First, the nature of delivering care in this setting meant that prioritizing one condition over others was problematic. Second, the lack of alignment with financial and other incentives affected engagement. Third, the project team lacked mechanisms through which engagement could be mandated. Fourth, working relationships within practices impacted on engagement.Conclusions: Those seeking to implement interventions in primary care need to consider the particular context if they are to secure successful implementation. We suggest that there are particular kinds of interventions, which may be best suited to the primary care context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the context of qualitative research, this paper presents and analyses the strategies students used and the mathematical ideas that come to light when working with two tasks involving the study of relationships arising between a contextual situation and an associated mathematical model. The results show that by studying the different mathematical representations with the support of digital tools, it is possible for students to develop different analysis strategies that help them to understand the behaviour of the phenomenon and the connections between the associated representations. Extensive use of registers of representation could be seen as a means of interpreting and establishing the relationship between the mathematical model and the corresponding context. These results are an extension of the work on the qualitative study of differential equations and how students interpret them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A significant body of social-scientific literature has developed contextual theories. In a recent contribution to Quality & Quantity, Denk and Lehtinen (Qual Quant 48(6):3475-3487, ) present Comparative Multilevel Analysis (CMA) as an innovative method whereby the effects of contexts on outcomes of interest can be studied configurationally if combined with Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA). In contradistinction, I argue that CMA is neither innovative in nor necessary for ascertaining the influence of context in a configurational-comparative manner. QCA is appreciably more powerful than the authors acknowledge and provides all required functionality. In repetition of Rohlfing's (Int J Soc Res Methodol 15(6):497-506, ) verdict on Denk's (Int J Soc Res Methodol 13(1):29-39, ) earlier version of CMA, I conclude that QCA need not be extended in the direction proposed by Denk and Lehtinen. Researchers interested in the contextual analysis of configurational data are well-served by the existing toolbox of QCA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the usefulness of qualitative research in health design and offers a framework for exploring and understanding the perspectives of key stakeholders on strategies for development. Topics include the main features of qualitative research like the contextualization, the research considerations for health design like research question and literature review, and data collection such as through interviewing.

Abstract: Given the significance of emotional labor (EL) for hospitality service firms, it is highly valuable to examine the contextual factors that affect the EL strategy undertaken by hospitality employees. Utilizing a qualitative research method, this exploratory study reveals four situational and organizational factors that affect employees’ type of EL strategy: (1) the manager–employee relationship; (2) the job's physical demands (3) the quality of EL training; and (4) the frequency, duration and repetition of guest–employee encounters. The findings provide interesting theoretical insights and useful practical implications with regard to the means to establish a suitable work environment that encourages hospitality employees to perform genuine or deep acting while minimizing incidents of surface acting. While the study was conducted in Israel and its conclusions should be generalized with caution, it sheds light on (contextual) aspects of EL that receive little attention in the literature. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Previously, the reference place in intra-team interactions has been defined as the collection of references that team members share to increase consensus and harmony. Psychological studies have characterized the reference place based on verbal communication. These studies also have highlighted the need for being concerned about the other person, which is captured in the Japanese concept of Omoiyari. The current study has investigated an enhancement of such communication by exchanging images. For this purpose, a system for communicating images as well as text constrained by Omoiyari-type concerns has been developed. The system formed the basis of a study where a stranger as well as friends of the participants communicated liked and disliked images. Participants responded to that image presentation with text messages. The dependent variable was defined as the increase in harmony assessment after image presentation and was expressed in values of a Likert scale. The results showed a significant difference between images sent by strangers and by friends (F1,11 = 30.31, p < 0.005) and between liked and disliked images (F1,11 = 14.19, p < 0.01). These differences indicate a confirmatory bias, as more information is available about friends than strangers. The confirmatory bias hypothesis was further supported by a qualitative analysis of participants’ responses to images. The result suggests that exchanging images has a positive effect on relationships, if the partners have contextual knowledge available and if they use this knowledge for an Omoiyari-type approach in selecting images as opposed to using images for self-presentation. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Breastfeeding is an important source of nutrition and sustenance for infants and toddlers, and has also been linked to several aspects of emotional, physiological, and psychological developments. Benefits of breastfeeding include lower morbidity and mortality rates in infants, appropriate nutrition for early physiological development, and improved immune system development. Some studies also suggest it may enhance cognitive development and reduce the risk of diabetes. These health benefits positively influence the physiological status of the infant throughout his or her early childhood and adolescence. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that breastfeeding be initiated immediately following birth and continued until the infant is at least 6 months of age. However, according to the UNICEF report, between 2000-2007 in Qatar, only 12% of babies under 6 months were exclusively breastfed. Funded by the QNRP (Qatar Undergraduate Research Experience Program), the goal of this exploratory qualitative study was to find ways to effectively promote breastfeeding practices among Qatari women by investigating factors affecting the ways in which Qatari women (national and nonnational Arab women) make decisions to engage in breastfeeding practices and their overall knowledge of breastfeeding. Purposive sampling was used to recruit 32 Arab mothers as research participants and individual in-depth, semi-structured interviews were conducted with each participant. Results showed that professional support from doctors and nurses, social support from parents and spouse, cultural and religious values, economic ability work restrictions, time, as well as availability of help and care at home, personal challenges, such as perceptions of pain, body image, and body changes, were some of the major factors in making decisions to breastfeed or not. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Body image concerns have been highlighted as a key issue for young Australians. Drawing on qualitative research, this paper contextualises the current sociological interest in the body, and explores the ways that the body is understood as linking with numerous social forces, particularly gender. While many women in the study discussed feeling under pressure to live up to standards of feminine beauty, a number of men also spoke about experiencing pressure or anxiety related to how their body looks. It is crucial to study the ways both young women and young men experience their bodies in the context of gender and body work, to enable a consideration of the ways masculinities and femininities are co-constructed and negotiated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background A variety of interventions have been developed to promote prudent antibiotic use, especially for respiratory tract infections (RTIs); however, it is not yet clear which are most acceptable and feasible for implementation across a wide range of contexts. This study elicited the views of experts, professionals who develop and implement guidelines and interventions, from five countries, on the development of RTI guidelines and interventions for implementing them. Objectives The aim was to determine whether there are common features of interventions which experts consider useful in changing health professionals’ behaviour, or whether there are important contextual differences in views. Methods Fifty semi-structured interviews explored experts’ views and experiences of strategies across five countries. Interviews were carried out in person or over the phone, transcribed verbatim and translated into English, if not already in English, for analysis. Results Themes were remarkably consistent across the countries, and these could be summarized as five sets of recommendations: guidelines should be developed by health care professionals to better fit GPs’ needs; address GP concerns about recommendations and explain the need for guidelines; design flexible interventions to increase feasibility across primary care practice; provide interventions which engage GPs; and provide consistent messages about antibiotic use for patients, professionals and the public. Conclusions Key features need to be addressed when developing future guidelines and interventions in order to improve their implementation. Consistency in experts’ views across countries indicates the potential for the development of interventions which could be implemented on a multinational scale with widespread support from key opinion leaders. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This study aims at generating new interview methods for obtaining more detailed information regarding human emotional factors by utilizing sensing technology. It can improve the weaknesses of qualitative research past discussions have pointed out, and develop the validity of collected data and more objective analysis of collected data in qualitative research. As the first step for a new research method, the study uses two types of sensing device which assess the emotional condition of an interviewee. The first device is ST technology, voice analysis software and a system of emotion estimation. This device using voice analysis defines what emotional condition the interviewees have. When the interviewee makes a statement, the ST technology can investigate his-her emotional condition, such as whether the interviewee stated it disappointedly, delightly, or angrily, while the conventional coding simply relies on text data. The second device is WHS-1, portable sensing device. This device investigates whether the interviewee stated certain things in a relaxed or stressed condition by measuring heart rate and analysing the condition of autonomic nerves. The study finally adopts both devices to precisely assess the interviewee's emotional condition, and demonstrates that the two devices enable the researcher to obtain closer view of the interviewees. The study suggests that generally the two types of sensing device can play a supportive role in analysing emotional factors for interview research. While the researcher can only ascertain stressful or delightful factors based on coding analysis, using sensing devices enables the researcher to identify how stressful or joyful the interviewee is, and why they are in this state, ie. are they stressed due to anger or sorrow? It is expected to enable the researcher to more deeply consider the reason the interviewee is in a certain emotional condition, and also lead to contextual or theoretical discussion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are currently over 8 million children in the USA living in households where at least one parent is dependent on or abusing substances. Research has shown a link between parental substance use and children initiating substance use. This article uses qualitative data to give a contextual understanding of the experience of growing up in substance using homes. Results found that the habitus of homes was so immersed in substances that children's initiation into substance use was expected and became a ‘rite of passage’ into full acceptance as an adult member of the family. Furthermore, in many cases youth described a role reversal between child and parent roles or parentification in the family. The conclusion calls for early identification in treatment of youth who use substances with family members to target new norms and behaviors for the entire family posttreatment and to enhance successful recovery when returning to the family. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report our experiences of teaching compensation management using two short case studies that we developed to help students examine key concepts in an integrated manner. We note that cases anchored in the socio-economic context can evoke deeper discussions due to participants' contextual familiarity. We also highlight the role of instructors in directing class discussions to relevant themes in a creative manner so that participants can see less obvious issues and interconnections among issues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To examine how health caregivers in under-resourced South African settings select from among the healthcare alternatives available to them during the final illness of their infants, qualitative interviews were conducted with 39 caregivers of deceased infants in a rural community and an urban township. Nineteen local health providers and community leaders were also interviewed to ascertain opinions about local healthcare and other factors impacting healthcare-seeking choices. The framework analysis method guided qualitative analysis of data. Limited autonomy of caregivers in decision-making, lack of awareness of infant danger-signs, and identification of an externalizing cause of illness were important influences on healthcare- seeking during illnesses of infants in these settings. Health system factors relating to the performance of health workers and the accessibility and availability of services also influenced healthcare-seeking decisions. Although South African public-health services are free, the findings showed that poor families faced other financial constraints that impacted their access to healthcare. Often there was not one factor but a combination of factors occurring either concurrently or sequentially that determined whether, when, and from where outside healthcare was sought during final illnesses of infants. In addition to reducing health system barriers to healthcare, initiatives to improve timely and appropriate healthcare-seeking for sick infants must take into consideration ways to mitigate contextual problems, such as limited autonomy of caregivers in decision-making, and reconcile local explanatory models of childhood illnesses that may not encourage healthcare-seeking at allopathic services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: How might the fact that western people now spend so much of their time indoors impact upon techniques for studying urban greenspace experience? This paper takes this question as its starting point before substantiating one possible answer. It does so by using qualitative methods to examine the everyday practices of city professionals in London and what they tell us about the likelihood that this group will ever venture out into the various parks and gardens found around their offices. Many studies have considered which physical arrangements of city greenspace seem to deliver the greatest amounts of human benefit. Yet this kind of endeavour gives us only one part of the puzzle and contextual studies with those now generally found indoors have something important to add. It is with this in mind that the paper discusses how one sample of office workers quite easily forgot about these spaces, how certain social injunctions both pushed them outside and sealed them indoors, and why it sometimes made good sense for them to avoid any areas of local outdoor vegetation during the day. In so doing it highlights contextual dynamics that seem set to make significant impacts on the future of urban environmental experience and offers some novel suggestions about how best to promote positive greenspace relations in cities today. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The aim of the present study was to explore how contextual factors affect the everyday activities of women and men with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), as evident in their life stories. Methods: Fifteen people with RA, who had retired early due to the disease, were interviewed up to three times, according to a narrative biographic interview style. The life stories of the participants, which were reconstructed from the biographical data and from the transcribed ‘told story’ were analysed from the perspective of contextual factors, including personal and environmental factors. The rigour and accuracy of the analysis were enhanced by reflexivity and peer-review of the results. Results: The life stories of the participants in this study reflected how contextual factors (such as gender, the healthcare system, the support of families and social and cultural values) shaped their everyday activities. In a society such as in Austria, which is based on traditional patriarchal values, men were presented with difficulties in developing a non-paid-work-related role. For women, if paid work had to be given up, they were more likely to engage in alternative challenging activities which enabled them to develop reflective skills, which in turn contributed to a positive and enriching perspective on their life stories. Health professionals may thus use some of the women's strategies to help men. Conclusion: Interventions by health professionals in people with RA may benefit from an approach sensitive to personal and environmental factors. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In today's Europe, only 24 per cent of the labor force always works regular daytime hours. The aim of the current study was to explore conceptualizations of food and meals in relation to irregular working hours. The participants were eight bus drivers in city traffic and six assistant nurses in geriatric care. The data collection comprised participant observation and semi-structured interviews. The qualitative analysis of interview data showed that the main element in the participants' conceptualization was the importance of safety and confidence in their choices, which was managed partly within the content of food and meals: i.e. judgment of healthiness, food safety, freshness and taste, and partly within the structure of meals: i.e. management of conditions for meals and opportunities to make informed choices. Employees take past experiences as well as visualizations of the future into consideration as their basis for forming a judgment about choices of food and meals during working hours. The responsibility for food and meals during working hours is to a great extent the employee's alone, despite the fact that the irregularity of the working hours is set by the employer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Autoethnography is a qualitative research method that utilizes data about self and context to gain an understanding of the connectivity between self and others. This introductory article exposes the reader to our own praxis of collaborative autoethnography which we used to interrogate how we navigate the US academy as immigrant women faculty. Before introducing the articles in this special issue, we explore the autoethnography continuum, provide sample areas covered by autoethnographers, and explicate the practice of collaborative autoethnography. We conclude this piece with implications for future use of autoethnography as research method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista de Lingüística y Lenguas Aplicadas (RLLA) is the property of Universidat Politecnica de Valencia, Department of Applied Linguistics and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

When a child is born with a disability, the caregiver's life is altered. With the numerous challenges caring for a child with disability brings, caregivers may feel devastated. These challenges often result in increased stress on the caregiver, which, in many cases, places the child at risk for maltreatment. The purpose of this study is to explore issues a caregiver faces when caring for his or her child. In this contextual analysis, seven caregivers of children with moderate-to-severe disabilities completed a questionnaire, were interviewed individually, and assisted the researcher in constructing an ecomap of their current living environment. Content from the interviews was analyzed and several themes developed from the data. Implications for clinical practice and future research ideas are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study was a qualitative investigation of the impact of domestic violence on women's career development and the contextual barriers and supports that affect women's ability to access career counseling services. Our sample included 11 women who completed various stages of a community-based career counseling intervention program. The primary aim of this sampling strategy was to provide career development scholars and counselors with information about the contextual barriers and supports that influence women's decisions to access and complete career counseling services. Data indicated that emotional consequences of abuse, fear of new situations, others' judgments, and practical constraints served as barriers to accessing and completing the career program. Elements of the career group context and the career program structure served as supports to accessing career services. Recommendations for research and practice are provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author reflects on the qualitative research process as both a first- time researcher and as a white woman doing research on African American men. This includes reflections on the assumption that the primary motivation for the researcher is romantically motivated, a discussion of racist sexism, and the nature of qualitative evidence, in particular that collected in a cross-race researcher-participant relationship. The research process and experience reinforces the importance of considering the context of the research when thinking about insider-outsider positionality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article offers information on a research that focuses on the factors that influence the adoption of business-to-business (B2B) trading exchanges in small business in Western Australia. It states that small businesses play a significant role in total business activities and generating employment. It states that a research model based on qualitative field study and adoption-diffusion theories was created, to study the behavior of small business towards B2B trading exchanges. The research reveals that external influences result in awareness and development of positive attitude in small businesses towards the adoption of B2B trading. It also mentions other factors that effect the adoption of B2B trading, which includes belief, contextual and control factors.

• A quantified VRIO is presented. • The proposed approach overcomes some limitations of the traditional VRIO framework. • MCDA improves understanding of causal relationships between resources and capabilities. • The Choquet integral adds value to the Resource-based View. Strategic management has been popularized since the 1960s as a useful tool in the search for success factors in organizations' internal and external environments. Strategic management researchers have observed and created strategies now considered to be essential pillars of contemporary management operations. This approach relies on managers' ability to understand and evaluate contextual trends, but a variety of questions have been left unanswered, especially regarding analyses of combinations of quantitative and qualitative decision criteria. This study sought to enhance strategic management by developing a quantified valuable, rare, inimitable, and organized (VRIO) framework using the multiple-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) approach. To accomplish this objective, the proposed VRIO model was combined with the Choquet integral, and a real-life application was conducted to test this approach's adequacy to support strategic management. The integrated methodology developed was shown to offer an innovative business improvement process. The perceived benefits and limitations are also presented and analyzed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study is to investigate the effectiveness of context based and traditional physics problems comparatively. First of all, we reviewed the literature and assigned some criteria in order to prepare context based problems, and developed two different tests as context based and traditional based physics tests based on the described criteria. Secondly these tests were applied to 30 high school students. Also we held an interview with randomly selected five students in order to determine the views of students about the differences between these two different tests. A semi-structured interview form was used in this interview process. Finally, we used a paired-samples t test in order to compare students' achievements scores on these two different tests. Content analysis method was performed to analysis qualitative data collected through interviews. Study findings showed that there was no significant difference between students' context based and traditional test scores. However, students appreciated context based problems more understandable, concrete and interesting than traditional ones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]