INSTITUTIONAL HUMAN CAPACITY AND PUBLIC PROCUREMENT IN TERTIARY INSTITUTIONS IN WEST NILE SUB-REGION OF UGANDA

The study aimed to establish how institutional human capacity affects performance in public procurement in tertiary institutions in West Nile sub-region of Uganda. A cross-sectional study design was used. Both quantitative and qualitative approaches were adopted in the study. This study targeted a sample of 122 respondents. Simple random sampling technique was used to select participants amongst user departments' staff. Purposive sampling was used to select the Accounting Officers and the Contracts Committee members. Quantitative data analysis mainly consisted of descriptive statistics (frequencies and percentages) and inferential statistics (Spearman Rank Order Correlation). Findings revealed a strong positive correlation ( = .611) between institutional human capacity and procurement performance. Thus, it was concluded that institutional human capacity measured in terms of professionalism and competence affected performance in public procurement in tertiary institutions in West Nile sub-region of Uganda. It is recommended that tertiary institutions in West Nile sub-region of Uganda should focus on institutional human capacity building to improve performance in public procurement in the tertiary institutions.  Article visualizations

The Post–endodontic Adhesive Interface: Theoretical Perspectives and Potential Flaws

Introduction The aim of this review was to analyze the potential of successful bonds of endodontic posts to radicular dentin as well as the limitations of the post–endodontic adhesive interface. Methods The MEDLINE/PubMed and Web of Science electronic databases were searched. The search was augmented by a manual search of the pertinent bibliographies. Results The post–endodontic adhesive interface finds application in the endodontic cohesive units. Many techniques and materials exist to improve the bond between endodontic posts and resin-based materials as well as between resin-based materials and radicular dentin. Different techniques used for the adhesion of metallic and fiber-reinforced posts are discussed and critically analyzed. Conclusions Although adhesive cementation of endodontic posts is popular, a long-term predictable bond may be compromised because of procedures related to the endodontic treatment and/or the adhesive cementation procedures. Microleakage and degradation phenomena may further jeopardize the post–endodontic adhesive interface

Exercise: a path to wellness during adjuvant chemotherapy for breast cancer?

Background: Breast cancer treatment can represent a threat to a patient’s wellness. The role of exercise in perceived wellness in women with breast cancer merits further study. Objective: The objective of this study was to describe how exercise is perceived by women to influence their physical and psychosocial wellness at the time they were receiving chemotherapy. Methods: Five focus group interviews with a total of 27 women with early-stage breast cancer were conducted. Prior to the focus groups, the women had participated in an exercise intervention during chemotherapy treatment. Results: Three themes emerged from the analysis: exercise shapes feelings of psychological wellness; exercise stimulates feelings of physical wellness; and exercise influences social wellness. The women reported feeling stronger in a psychological sense after exercising, that the strength exercise improved their upper-limb functioning, and that engaging in exercise triggered social support and interactions. Conclusions: Exercise during breast cancer treatment is perceived to enhance the patients’ wellness on several dimensions and in particular psychological wellness. Exercise might support the patients’ efforts to restore their sense of wellness and enhance their level of daily life functioning. Implications for Practice: Cancer nurses should promote exercise as a wellness-fostering intervention during chemotherapy treatment. Focusing on how exercise can contribute to feelings of wellness may help women with breast cancer choose exercise as a health-promoting activity that contributes to their recovery

Foundation to Promote Scholarship and Teaching 2012-2013 Awards

Proposal abstracts of 2012-2013 award recipients in a wide range of disciplinary areas

Exploring Patterns of Resilience in Individuals Who Identify as Native American

Native Americans experience a higher rate of homicide, suicide, and injury, on average, than do others in the United States. There has been little research, however, on turning point and epiphany experiences as factors that contribute to resilience in Native Americans. The purpose of this study was to add to this body of knowledge, and promote social change such as greater engagement and dialogue within Native American communities. The theory that informed the study was resilience theory. Two questions were answered: (a) the ways in which turning point life experiences have correlated with resilience in Native American individuals, and (b) the manner in which characteristics (e.g., gender, age, socioeconomic status, spirituality, disability, and sexual orientation) are influential with respect to the turning point experiences that Native Americans report relative to resilience. Inclusionary criteria were purposefully broad in order to encourage participation in the process. Narratives were invited that detailed life histories, for a psychological study. Snowball methodology was also employed in an area where census records indicated that Native Americans resided, resulting in a sample of 4 adult individuals (2 men and 2 women) of Native American descent. Data from the autobiographical narratives were analyzed for themes. These participants experienced a pivotal experience or group of experiences that led them to engage in behavior that produced beneficial results impacting career prospects and producing subjective life satisfaction. Findings support the theory that certain turning point experiences (specifically, interactions with supportive family and community members) enhance resilience in Native American individuals

INSTITUTIONAL POLITICS AND PERFORMANCE OF PROCUREMENT IN TERTIARY INSTITUTIONS IN WEST NILE SUB-REGION OF UGANDA

This study aimed to establish how institutional politics affect performance in public procurement in tertiary institutions in West Nile sub-region of Uganda. A cross-sectional study design was used. Both quantitative and qualitative approaches were adopted in the study. The study targeted a sample of 122 respondents. Simple random sampling technique was used to select amongst the user department staff. Purposive sampling was used to select the Accounting Officers and Contracts Committee members. Quantitative data analysis mainly consisted of descriptive statistics (frequencies and percentages) and inferential statistics (Spearman Rank Order correlation). Findings revealed a very weak negative correlation ( = -.292) between institutional politics and performance of procurement. Thus, it was concluded that institutional politics, measured in terms of relationship between principals and agents and pursuit of individual agendas/self-interest, significantly affected performance of procurement in tertiary institutions in West Nile sub-region of Uganda. It is recommended that tertiary institutions in West Nile sub-region of Uganda should focus on institutional politics to improve their performance in public procurement.  Article visualizations

A qualitative study exploring the experience and motivations of UK Samaritan volunteers: "Why do we do it?"

Telephone helplines offer a valued service for those in distress. However, little research has explored the experience of helpline volunteers. Through semi-structured interviews, in this article we explore the volunteering experiences of nine long-term UK Samaritan volunteers. Interviews were analysed using Interpretive Interactionism. The analysis highlighted that this volunteering impacted participants' experience of their sense of self. The decision to volunteer was framed as part of a search for personal meaning, tied to experiences of loss and reparation. They reflected positively on their volunteer identity, but highlighted tensions between a sense of vocation and the experience of care burden. The Samaritan Community also offered a sense of belonging and social support. They experienced involvement as personally meaningful, enabling the construction of a positive self-identity

Teacher Preparation for Linguistically Rich Classrooms : A Qualitative Study of Take-up in Relation to Linguistically Responsive Teaching

This qualitative study followed four urban early childhood teachers through their participation in a teacher education program designed to enhance their linguistically responsive teaching and into the first four months of the new school year in an effort to identify what the teachers indeed “took up” from the opportunities presented to them regarding linguistically responsive teaching. The sociocultural concept of funds of knowledge was used to frame this study and to ensure that each teacher’s work was analyzed with the understanding that individuals bring to each learning moment unique knowledge and knowhow that impacts learning and practice. All was undertaken with the intent of providing research-based answers to the following question: While following general education early childhood teachers through a formal learning program and into their classrooms, what “take-up” from the range of opportunities designed to help this small group of teachers become more linguistically responsive in their classrooms seems to be demonstrated? By focusing on individual teacher “take-up” this research study gave proper recognition to teachers trying to teach English language learners (ELLs) more effectively. Moreover, this study aimed to add insight into what a small group of general education early childhood teachers can reasonably “take-up” after participating in teacher education opportunities that are research-based and specifically designed to help general education teachers become more effective teachers of ELLs. Findings were presented as four themes to better understand the nuances as well as the ebbs and flows of teacher take-up of linguistically responsive teaching. The four themes that emerged were as follows: (1) take-up of linguistically responsive teaching manifested as a commitment to giving prominence to home languages; (2) take-up of linguistically responsive teaching involved personal introspection; (3) take-up of linguistically responsive teaching manifested as an understanding and incorporation of home language as a learning resource; (4) and the take-up of linguistically responsive teaching evolved over time into community sense-making

Carving out new business models in a small company through contextual ambidexterity: the case of a sustainable company

Business model innovation (BMI) and organizational ambidexterity have been pointed out as mechanisms for companies achieving sustainability. However, especially considering small and medium enterprises (SMEs), there is a lack of studies demonstrating how to combine these mechanisms. Tackling such a gap, this study seeks to understand how SMEs can ambidextrously manage BMI. Our aim is to provide a practical artifact, accessible to SMEs, to operationalize BMI through organizational ambidexterity. To this end, we conducted our study under the design science research to, first, build an artifact for operationalizing contextual ambidexterity for business model innovation. Then, we used an in-depth case study with a vegan fashion small e-commerce to evaluate the practical outcomes of the artifact. Our findings show that the company improves its business model while, at the same time, designs a new business model and monetizes it. Thus, our approach was able to take the first steps in the direction of operationalizing contextual ambidexterity for business model innovation in small and medium enterprises, democratizing the concept. We contribute to theory by connecting different literature strands and to practice by creating an artifact to assist managemen