British trade unions and the academics: the case of Unionlearn

Unionlearn and union learning representatives were developed by the British TUC to match workers with education and training opportunities, strengthen the economy, foster market inclusion and facilitate social mobility. Their contribution to union revitalisation was emphasised. This article questions whether, with unions confronting global crisis, this is a necessary initiative. It stemmed from TUC failure to achieve policy goals, institutional needs, consequent acceptance of a lesser role, and the availability of state finance. Claims by academics that it provides influence over state policy and contributes to revitalisation remain inadequately evidenced. Union resurgence is not immanent. The way forward is through adversarial grassroots organising and socialist education, not through retooling capital, improving members’ marketability and partnership with a hostile state

British trade unions and the academics: the case of Unionlearn

Unionlearn and union learning representatives were developed by the British TUC to match workers with education and training opportunities, strengthen the economy, foster market inclusion and facilitate social mobility. Their contribution to union revitalisation was emphasised. This article questions whether, with unions confronting global crisis, this is a necessary initiative. It stemmed from TUC failure to achieve policy goals, institutional needs, consequent acceptance of a lesser role, and the availability of state finance. Claims by academics that it provides influence over state policy and contributes to revitalisation remain inadequately evidenced. Union resurgence is not immanent. The way forward is through adversarial grassroots organising and socialist education, not through retooling capital, improving members’ marketability and partnership with a hostile state

An Elite Sporting Organization’s Perceptions to the Uptake of Information Technology

In recent years, technology has enabled sporting organizations to become innovators in the global sports arena. Elite sporting teams and bodies are becoming increasingly dependent on technology for daily operations and subsequently these organizations are more and more reliant on technological developments in sport. Player training and management technologies and team performance tools have given sporting organizations the avenues to become more competitive. Organizations invest in information technology for many reasons, for example cutting costs, increase in production and services without increasing costs, improving the quality of services or products and sporting organizations and bodies are no different in looking to technology to gain competitive edges as well as improvement of athlete preparation. However, in spite of these innovations and the potential to gain competitive edges, some seem to struggle with technology resulting in ambiguous and sometimes negative perceptions of IT services. Through a qualitative case study and using interviews with a short survey, the building of credibility in sporting organizations through education and the development of positive perceptions of information technology was examined. The findings provide a basis for further studies and possible trials of differing education formats in technology to further develop both the positive acceptance of sports related technologies and assist in improving the sporting organization’s environment

Examination of a Parent-Assisted, Friendship-Building Program for Adolescents with ADHD

Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a common childhood disorder that often contributes to impairment in multiple domains, including peer functioning. Specifically, youth with ADHD tend to have fewer friends and lower quality friendships, experience greater peer victimization, and engage in more inappropriate social behaviors than typically developing peers. Researchers have highlighted the need for long-term interventions that directly address peer difficulties, emphasize dyadic friendship-building, and include a parent component. Thus, the current pilot study will examine the effectiveness of PEERS, a parent-assisted, friendship-building program, at establishing mutual friendships and improving current peer relationships in adolescents with ADHD. Participants in the study included 20 adolescents with ADHD (ages 11-16) and their parents. At baseline, adolescents completed measures related to friendship quality, social knowledge, social self-efficacy, get-togethers, and peer conflict. They also participated in a brief observation task as a measure of social interaction behavior. Parents completed measures related to get-togethers and peer conflict. All families completed the Program for the Evaluation and Enrichment of Relational Skills (PEERS), a 14-week intervention. Following the intervention, families completed post-treatment measures and responded to a question regarding the initiation of a new friendship. Analyses were conducted using a series of paired-samples t-tests examining differences from baseline to post-treatment. Results indicated that the majority of parents and adolescents reported the initiation of a new friendship over the course of treatment. Additionally, there was a significant improvement in adolescent social knowledge and a significant increase in hosted get-togethers. Effect sizes for these variables were large. While the remaining variables demonstrated changes in the expected direction, none of the analyses were significant. Effect sizes ranged from small to moderate. The current pilot study demonstrated that, following participation in PEERS, adolescents demonstrated improvement in several peer functioning variables. While some analyses were not significant, moderate to large effect sizes were established for some variables, indicating that small sample size may have contributed to non-significant results. A larger sample will allow for better understanding of the effectiveness of PEERS for youth with ADHD and may highlight components of the program that require modification in order to better target the ADHD population

Effects of Mindfulness Practice on Performance and Factors Related to Performance in Long-Distance Running: A Systematic Review

Fatigue, boredom, pain, performance anxiety, and negative thoughts are challenges characteristic of competitive running. One psychological technique that is gaining support and has been successfully implemented in sport is the practice of mindfulness. Where conventional psychological skills training interventions aim to change dysfunctional thoughts and emotions, mindfulness focuses on altering the relationship to physiological and psychological states. This could help in dealing with the demands of distance running but this has yet to be examined. This article was focused on reviewing mindfulness interventions on performance and performance-based factors in long distance running, assessing (a) mindfulness scores, (b) physiological performance-related factors, (c) psychological performance-related factors, and (d) performance outcomes. A search of relevant electronic databases yielded seven studies which met the inclusion criteria. The review provided some tentative support for the use of mindfulness interventions regarding: reducing competitive anxiety, attenuating immune responses to high-intensity running, and increasing state mindfulness. However, due to the methodological weaknesses of studies more research is required using high-quality randomized controlled trial designs

Strategies for Improving the Diversity of the Health Professions

Evaluates programs and strategies that were designed to increase the number of underrepresented African Americans, Native Americans, and Latinos in the health professions in California. Includes recommendations

Examining the perceptions of information technology in an elite sporting organization

Copyright © 2016 International Business Information Management Association In recent years, technology has enabled sporting organisations to become innovators in the global sports arena. Elite sporting teams and bodies are becoming increasingly dependant on technology for daily operations and subsequently these organisations are more and more reliant on technological developments in sport. Player training and management technologies and team performance tools have given sporting organizations the avenues to become more competitive. Organizations invest in information technology for many reasons, for example cutting costs, increase in production and services without increasing costs, improving the quality of services or products and sporting organizations and bodies are no different in looking to technology to gain competitive edges as well as improvement of athlete preparation. However, in spite of these innovations and the potential to gain competitive edges, some seem to struggle with technology resulting in an ambiguous and sometimes negative perceptions of IT services. This work examines the building of credibility in sporting organizations through education and the development of positive perceptions of information technology. The findings provide a basis for further studies and possible trials of differing education formats in technology to further develop both the positive acceptance of sports related technologies and assist in improving the sporting organization's environment