Factors Influencing Business Succession Planning among SMEs in Tanzania

The study intended to investigate factors influencing business succession planning among Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs). It assessed how demographic characteristics, business size, and family related factors influence business succession planning. The research methodology involved surveying 25 SMEs and among 104 interviewed owners/supervisors, only a sample of 88 was analyzed by Chi-square to establish the relationship between independent and dependent variables. The findings show that the higher the age of SMEs owners, the higher the possibility of preparing the business successors.  Also, males are associated with more chance of being involved in business succession planning, the sons having a big chance of being the successors. Furthermore, increase in the level of education of SMEs owners has a positive influence in preparing the successors. Similarly, business size has a positive influence on business succession planning, the bigger business being given the first priority. In contrary, increase in involvement of family members in SMEs has no influence on business succession planning. Lastly, increase in communication among family members has a positive influence on business succession planning. The study concludes that SMEs owners don’t prepare the business successors while still energetic. It further concludes that gender has an effect on business succession planning and that the owners who have low level of education die with their businesses because they rarely prepare the successors. The study recommends that the owners of SMEs should prepare the right business successors in time to make their businesses remain sustainably. Key words: Business succession planning, demographic characteristics, SME

Recruiting and Retaining People with Disabilities for Qualitative Health Research: Challenges and Solutions

There are 56.7 million people with disabilities (PWD) living in the United States; yet, PWD are significantly underrepresented in health research. Even when researchers purposively seek to include PWD in studies, challenges emerge related to recruitment and retention, leading to inadequate representation and surface understandings of this population. This in turn contributes to the perpetuation of implicit and explicit health disparities that are already experienced by this population. Grounded within a qualitative, community-based participatory health research framework, we highlight challenges associated with recruiting and retaining PWD in health research, including a critical analysis of the research enterprise structure, how this disables accessible research practices for PWD, and leads to continued skepticism among PWD regarding the value of participating in research. Finally, we propose solutions to create and maintain a culture of access and inclusion as well as long-term collaborative and equity-focused partnerships

Tour Company’s Service Quality and Tourists’ Revisit Intention in Arusha Region Tourist Destinations

This study investigated the effect of tour companies’ service quality on tourists’ intention to revisit tourism destinations in the Arusha region. The general objective of this study is to examine the effect of tour companies’ service quality on tourists’ revisit intentions in Arusha tourist destinations. This study used a cross-sectional research design and employed a survey as the data-collection method. Respondents were selected using simple random sampling; 384 respondents were included in this study. Questionnaires were used to collect data from respondents at Arusha tourist destinations. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and a binary logistic regression model. The findings revealed that tangibles, responsiveness, and assurance had positive indices, implying that tourists were delighted by the service provided. The study establishes a positive relationship between tangibles, responsiveness, and assurance dimensions and tourists' revisit intentions, with a specific emphasis on the statistically significant connections of tangibles and responsiveness at p < 0.05, emphasizing the need to enhance these aspects to promote repeat visits to Arusha tourist destinations. However, assurance was found to have an insignificant relationship with tourists’ intentions to revisit. Therefore, tour companies, government entities, and tourism authorities should focus on improving tangibles and responsiveness dimensions to enhance tourists' intention to revisit

Racial differences in neurocognitive outcomes post-stroke: The impact of healthcare variables

AbstractObjectives:The present study examined differences in neurocognitive outcomes among non-Hispanic Black and White stroke survivors using the NIH Toolbox-Cognition Battery (NIHTB-CB), and investigated the roles of healthcare variables in explaining racial differences in neurocognitive outcomes post-stroke.Methods:One-hundred seventy adults (91 Black; 79 White), who participated in a multisite study were included (age:M=56.4;SD=12.6; education:M=13.7;SD=2.5; 50% male; years post-stroke: 1–18; stroke type: 72% ischemic, 28% hemorrhagic). Neurocognitive function was assessed with the NIHTB-CB, using demographically corrected norms. Participants completed measures of socio-demographic characteristics, health literacy, and healthcare use and access. Stroke severity was assessed with the Modified Rankin Scale.Results:An independent samplesttest indicated Blacks showed more neurocognitive impairment (NIHTB-CB Fluid Composite T-score:M=37.63;SD=11.67) than Whites (Fluid T-score:M=42.59,SD=11.54;p=.006). This difference remained significant after adjusting for reading level (NIHTB-CB Oral Reading), and when stratified by stroke severity. Blacks also scored lower on health literacy, reported differences in insurance type, and reported decreased confidence in the doctors treating them. Multivariable models adjusting for reading level and injury severity showed that health literacy and insurance type were statistically significant predictors of the Fluid cognitive composite (p&lt;.001 andp=.02, respectively) and significantly mediated racial differences on neurocognitive impairment.Conclusions:We replicated prior work showing that Blacks are at increased risk for poorer neurocognitive outcomes post-stroke than Whites. Health literacy and insurance type might be important modifiable factors influencing these differences. (JINS, 2017,23, 640–652)</jats:p

Comparison of walking performance over the first 2 minutes and the full 6 minutes of the Six-Minute Walk Test

BackgroundAlthough the Six-Minute Walk Test (6MWT), as recommended by the American Thoracic Society, is widely used as a measure of functional endurance, it may not be applicable in some settings and populations. We sought to examine, therefore, performance over the first 2 minutes and the full 6 minutes of the 6MWT. Specifically, we investigated completion rates, distances walked, test-retest reliability, and the relationship between distances walked over the first 2 and the full 6 minutes of the 6MWT.MethodsCommunity-dwelling children and adults age 3-85 years (n = 337) were asked to walk back and forth on a 15.24 meter (50 ft) course as far as possible without running over a 6 minute period. Test completion and the distance covered by the participants at 2 and 6 minutes were documented. The reliability of distances covered at 2 and 6 minutes was determined by retesting a subsample of 54 participants 6 to 10 days later. The relationship between distances covered at 2 and 6 minutes was determined for the 330 participants completing the 6MWT.ResultsAll 337 participants completed at least 2 minutes of walking, but 7 children less than 5 years of age ceased walking before 6 minutes had elapsed. For the remaining 330 participants the mean distance walked was 186 meters at 2 minutes and 543 meters at 6 minutes. The distances covered at 2 and 6 minutes were reliable between sessions (intraclass correlation coefficients = 0.888 and 0.917, respectively). The distances covered over 2 and 6 minutes were highly correlated (r = 0.968).ConclusionsThe completion rate, values obtained, test-retest reliability, and relationship of the distances walked in 2 and 6 minutes support documentation of 2 minute distance during the 6MWT. The findings also provide support for use of a Two-Minute Walk Test as the endurance component in the Motor Battery of the NIH Toolbox

Health literacy and public health: A systematic review and integration of definitions and models

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Health literacy concerns the knowledge and competences of persons to meet the complex demands of health in modern society. Although its importance is increasingly recognised, there is no consensus about the definition of health literacy or about its conceptual dimensions, which limits the possibilities for measurement and comparison. The aim of the study is to review definitions and models on health literacy to develop an integrated definition and conceptual model capturing the most comprehensive evidence-based dimensions of health literacy.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A systematic literature review was performed to identify definitions and conceptual frameworks of health literacy. A content analysis of the definitions and conceptual frameworks was carried out to identify the central dimensions of health literacy and develop an integrated model.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The review resulted in 17 definitions of health literacy and 12 conceptual models. Based on the content analysis, an integrative conceptual model was developed containing 12 dimensions referring to the knowledge, motivation and competencies of accessing, understanding, appraising and applying health-related information within the healthcare, disease prevention and health promotion setting, respectively.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Based upon this review, a model is proposed integrating medical and public health views of health literacy. The model can serve as a basis for developing health literacy enhancing interventions and provide a conceptual basis for the development and validation of measurement tools, capturing the different dimensions of health literacy within the healthcare, disease prevention and health promotion settings.</p

Management succession planning and family-owned manufacturing businesses survival: The moderating role of firm’s background variables

It remains unclear how lack of management succession planning relates to the collapse of 87% of the Tanzanian family-owned manufacturing businesses (FOMBs) after the first generation.  Also, the question of whether a firm’s background variables, namely; executive’s education level, business age, and business size, moderate the relationship between management succession planning and the survival of FOMBs remains unanswered. Therefore, this study investigated the relationship between succession planning and the survival of FOMBs, moderated by the firm’s background variables through the lens of resource-based theory as well as agency theory. A sample of 339 executives was randomly drawn from the FOMBs in Dar es Salaam city where the collapse of FOMBs after the first generation was revealed to be significant and surveyed using a structured questionnaire. Multiple linear regression was used as a quantitative data analysis technique with the support of SPSS as an analytical tool. Results revealed that management succession variables, namely; training the successor, successor involvement in business management and successor factors-work fit had a positive and significant relationship with the survival of FOMBs. However, the internal recruitment of the successor had an insignificant relationship with the survival of FOMBs. Therefore, management succession planning sustains the leadership pipeline and survival of the FOMBs through the involvement of the successor in business management, sufficiently training the successor, and handing over power to the successor whose competency and factors fit with the relevant work. The study contributes to an understanding of management succession planning variables and how they relate to the survival of family-owned manufacturing businesses. The study also provides a new conceptual framework on transgenerational management succession planning in the FOMBs