Preliminary evaluation of the comprehension of basic concepts in Finnish 3-year-olds in the Boehm-3 Preschool test : comparisons between the Finnish sample and the US standardization sample

Tavoitteet. Tämän Pro gradu -tutkimuksen tavoitteena oli tehdä esiselvitys suomalaisten 3-vuotiaiden suhdekäsitteiden ymmärtämisestä Boehm-3 Preschool -arviointimenetelmän avulla ja verrata näitä tuloksia Boehmin (2001) validointitutkimuksen aineistoon. Tutkimuksessa tarkasteltiin lisäksi yleisen kielellisen taitotason sekä tutkittavien sosioekonomisen taustan, päiväkodissa vietetyn ajan, iän ja sukupuolen yhteyttä suhdekäsitteiden ymmärtämiseen. Menetelmät. Osallistujiksi haettiin 3-vuotiaita tyypillisesti kehittyviä ja yksikielisiä helsinkiläisiä. Rekrytointikirje lähetettiin Helsingin julkisiin päiväkoteihin, joista ne jaettiin vanhemmille. Kaikkiaan tutkittaviksi valikoitui 35 lasta kahdeksasta eri päiväkodista. Boehm-3 Preschool -arviota varten alkuperäinen testilomake käännettiin suomeksi. Yleistä kie-lellistä taitotasoa arvioitiin Reynellin kielellisen kehityksen testin (Reynell Developmental Lan-guage Scales III – RDLS III, Edwards ym., 1997; suom. Kortesmaa ym., 2001) avulla. Tuloksia analysoitiin tilastollisin menetelmin. Tulokset ja johtopäätökset. Tutkittavat ymmärsivät useita suhdekäsitteitä Boehmin (2001) aineiston englannin-ja espanjankielisiä lapsia paremmin molemmissa ikäryhmissä. Nuoremmassa ikäryhmässä näitä käsitteitä oli kuitenkin enemmän. Yleinen kielellinen taitotaso oli merkitsevästi yhteydessä suhdekäsitteiden ymmärtäminen. Sosioekonominen tausta, sukupuoli tai ikä eivät olleet merkitsevästi yhteydessä suhdekäsitteiden ymmärtämiseen. On mahdollista, että suomalaislapset oppivat suhdekäsitteitä amerikkalaisia varhaisemmin. Tulosten tulkinnassa on kuitenkin huomioitava tutkimusaineiston pieni koko sekä tämän tutki-muksen ja Boehmin (2001) tutkittavien erilaiset sosioekonomiset taustat.Purpose of the study My aim was to assess the knowledge of basic relational concepts among Finnish three-year-olds and to conduct a preliminary comparison between their results and those of their American peers in the Boehm-3 Preschool validation sample. Another goal was to look into whether age, gender, months spent in the early education services, socio-economic factors or the level of general language skills were linked to the knowledge of these concepts among the Finnish sample. Methods The subjects were recruited by contacting the early education services in the city of Helsinki. All 35 subjects from 8 different daycare centers were typically developing monolingual 3-year-olds living in Helsinki. The subjects were subdivided into two different age groups: 3 years 0 months to 3 years 5 months and 3 years 6 months to 3 years 11 months. For the purpose of the assessment the Boehm-3 Preschool test form was translated into Finnish. The level of general language comprehension and production was assessed by using the standardized Finnish version of Reynell Developmental Language Scales III (Edwards ym., 1997; Kortesmaa ym., 2001). The results were statistically analyzed. Results and conclusions The subjects in the sample of this study scored higher than their peers in the Boehm-3 Preschool samples. Several of the concepts were passed by a significantly greater portion of the group in the Finnish than in the American samples. There were fewer concepts that were easier for the Finnish group, however, in the older group. Unlike the socio-economic factors, gender and age, the level of the general language skills significantly correlated with the knowledge of the basic relational concepts. The results suggest that Finnish children might learn the basic relational concepts earlier than their American peers and have a stronger knowledge of them at this age. The results of the study are however preliminary at best given the small sample size and the great differences between the socio-economic factors between the Finnish and the American samples

Exploring the Renewal of IT-enabled Resources from a Structural Perspective

Organizations are exposed to ever-increasing dynamic environments, making sustaining the derivation of IT benefits critical. However, researchers have observed that IT benefits are short-lived and have called for studies on how organizations can sustain the derivation of IT benefits, especially in dynamic environments. Research shows that the integration of IT assets and other organizational resources needed to form IT-enabled resources from which organizations derive IT benefits can also constrain the renewal of IT-enabled resources to sustain the derivation of IT benefits. In this study, we draw on relevant theories, published empirical cases, and a primary case study to explore, from a structural perspective, the renewal of IT-enabled resources to sustain the derivation of IT benefits. We find that certain structural properties (i.e., component flexibility, component centrality, and component coupling) emerge during the formation and modification of IT-enabled resources and influence the renewal of IT-enabled resources. We extend Nevo and Wade’s model on the formation of IT-enabled resources with the structural properties and offer eight propositions on how the structural properties and organizational capabilities influence the renewal of IT-enabled resources. We discuss the theoretical and managerial implications and identify areas for future research

Exploring the renewal of IT-enabled resources from a structural perspective

Organizations are exposed to ever-increasing dynamic environments making the need to sustain the derivation of IT benefits critical. However, researchers have observed that IT benefits are short-lived and have called for studies on how organizations can sustain the derivation of IT benefits especially in dynamic environments. Research shows that the integration of IT assets and other organizational resources needed to form IT-enabled resources from which organizations derive IT benefits can also constrain the renewal of IT-enabled resources to sustain the derivation of IT benefits. In this study, we draw on relevant theories, published empirical cases, and a primary case study to explore, from a structural perspective, the renewal of IT-enabled resources to sustain the derivation of IT benefits. We find that certain structural properties (i.e., component flexibility, component centrality, and component coupling) emerge during the formation and modification of IT-enabled resources and influence the renewal of IT-enabled resources. We extend Nevo and Wade’s model on the formation of IT-enabled resources with the structural properties and offer eight propositions on how the structural properties and organizational capabilities influence the renewal of IT-enabled resources. We discuss the theoretical and managerial implications and identify areas for future research

Laadukkaalla saattohoidolla kohti hyvää kuolemaa

Saattohoito ei riipu ihmisen iästä eikä diagnoosista, se kuuluu kaikille, joilla on parantumaton sairaus ja jäljellä olevan eliniän odotetaan olevan lyhyt. Saattohoidolla pyritään lievittämään ihmisen oireita ja kärsimystä elämän viime vaiheessa, tukemaan häntä ja hänen omaisiaan ennen kuolemaan ja sen jälkeen. Nyt ja tulevaisuudessa hoidot monipuolistuvat, väestörakenne muuttuu, elinikä pitenee ja kroonisten sairauksien todennäköisyys kasvaa. Samanaikaisesti tiukka taloustilanne asettaa kustannustehokkuusvaatimuksillaan omat haasteensa saattohoidon kehittämiseksi. Tämän laadullisen opinnäytetyön tarkoituksena oli kuvata yksilöä huomioivia laadukkaan saattohoidon menetelmiä. Tavoitteena oli selvittää, mistä osatekijöistä hyvä suomalainen saattohoito muodostuu, ja miten sairaanhoitaja voi niitä hyödyntäen turvata kuolevalle ihmiselle oikeudenmukaisen ja ihmisarvoa kunnioittavan hoidon ja kuoleman. Opinnäytetyö toteutettiin kuvailevana kirjallisuuskatsauksena. Tutkimusaineistoon valittiin kaksi teosta, yksi opas, yksi väitöskirja, kaksi pro gradu tutkielmaa ja 17 aiheeseen liittyvää tutkimusta ja artikkelia. Saadusta aineistosta pyrittiin luomaan ydinkohdat sisältävä yhtenäinen kokonaisuus aineistolähtöistä sisällönanalyysiä käyttäen. Tuloksista ilmeni, että tärkeintä on kuolevan ihmisen kokonaisvaltainen hoito, jossa hänen fyysiset, psyykkiset, sosiaaliset ja hengelliset tarpeensa huomioidaan omaisia unohtamatta. Aito läsnäolo, potilaan ja omaisten kohtaaminen ja kunnioittaminen sekä hyvä oireiden hoito takaavat inhimillisen, elämänarvojen mukaisen saattohoidon. Jatkotutkimusaiheita voisivat olla saattohoidon toteutuminen omaisten näkökulmasta sekä hoitoneuvottelukäytännöt ja niiden toteuttaminen.Everyone having an incurable disease with a short prognosis has the right to hospice care. The aim of hospice care is to relieve the symptoms and suffering and to offer support to the patient, and the family members. The selection of available treatments is constantly improving, structure of the population keeps changing, people live longer than ever and chronic diseases will become even more common. The purpose of the study was to describe methods of quality hospice care from the individual perspective. The aim was to examine what elements high-quality hospice care in Finland consists of and how nurses could use the different methods to secure decent and dignified care and death for a dying person. The study was carried out by using descriptive literature review as the research method. Two books, one guide book, one doctoral thesis, two master’s theses and 17 articles were included in the research material. The data was analysed with content review. The aim was to create a coherent conception of the topic containing the key points. The results of the study indicate that the most important aspect is to nurse the dying patient holistically. All physical, psychological, social and emotional needs should be taken into account and family members should not be disregarded. Care with genuine presence as well as respectful treatment will ensure humane and individual hospice care. Further studies could be carried out on hospice care that consider the perspective of the family as well as consultation meetings and their practices

Systemic Management of Architectural Decisions in Enterprise Architecture Planning : Four Dimensions and Three Abstraction Levels

This paper presents a process model for the management of architectural decisions in enterprise architecture planning. First, decisions are made at the enterprise level, with strategic business considerations on the enterprise information, systems and technology strategy and governance issues. The next step is to define the domains, to then go on with domain architecture decisions. At the systems level, the enterprise and domain architecture decisions are collected and converted into architecture descriptions accurate in precision, form and detail to be given as input to the information systems development process, following the architectural planning. The model is derived from previous work and empirical findings in three large organizations, where the enterprise architecture and enterprise systems have been developed. This case study contributes with considerations on the domains, their definition, and produces refinements to an enterprise architecture process model presented before. For the development of the model, the "living system" paradigm is followed.peerReviewe

Enterprise architecture as a collaboration tool : discursive process for enterprise architecture management, planning and development

Tieto- ja viestintäteknologiaa (ICT) hallitaan ja kehitetään kuten mitä tahansa yrityksen tai organisaation resurssia – tai ainakin näin olisi hyvä tehdä. Epäonnisia ICT-projekteja voidaan välttää nivomalla toiminnan ja teknologian suunnittelu ja kehittäminen yhteiseksi, vuorovaikutteiseksi prosessiksi, suosittelee aiheesta väittelevä Mirja Pulkkinen.Yritys- eli kokonaisarkkitehtuuri on kokonaisvaltainen lähestymistapa ICT:n hallintaan yhdessä liiketoiminnan kanssa. Johtamisessa voidaan tehdä tilaa liiketoiminnan ja teknologioiden vuoropuhelulle määrittämällä kokonaisarkkitehtuuriprosessi. Prosessi tuo toiminta-ajatuksen, tavoitteet sekä strategiat teknologiakehittäjille työn pohjaksi. Samoin teknologia-asiantuntemus tuodaan strategiseen päätöksentekoon, jolloin varmistetaan että riittävät tiedot mahdollistavista teknologioista sekä teknologiakehityksestä ovat mukana päätöksenteossa, ja arvioinnit tehdään oikea-aikaisesti sopivilla menetelmillä.Pulkkisen tutkimus tuotti erilaisiin organisaatioihin sovellettavan yleismallin tällaista prosessia varten. Prosessi on osa kokonaisarkkitehtuurimenetelmää, johon lisäksi otettiin mm. tietoturvanäkökulma ja muutosjohtamisen piirteet. Konsultointitapausten kautta päästiin tarkastelemaan parinkymmenen erilaisen, eri alojen yritysten ja julkishallinnon organisaatioiden ICT:n hallintaa, suunnittelua ja kehittämistä. Niissä tehdystä käytännön työstä otettiin teoriatiedon lisäksi parhaat käytänteet ja toimintamallit mukaan prosessimalliin, jota voidaan soveltaa organisaation oman arkkitehtuuriprosessin määrittämiseen.- Parhaat tulokset saadaan jalkauttamalla ylemmän johdon strategiapäätökset yhdessä teknologiamahdollisuuksien kanssa operatiivisen toiminnan ympäristöön. Tämä onnistuu operatiivisen toiminnan asiantuntemuksen ja teknologia-asiantuntemuksen vuoropuhelulla, Pulkkinen ehdottaa.Toiminnan ja resurssien, sekä käytössä jo olevien ja toisaalta uusien teknologioiden mahdollisuuksien ja myös rajoitteiden esille tuominen riittävän varhain, keskustelevaa prosessimallia noudattaen, auttaa välttämään päällekkäisiä, liian kalliita tai epätarkoituksenmukaisia ratkaisuja. Liiketoiminnan yksiköistä ja käyttäjätasolta tuodaan myös kokemus- ja palautetietoa päättäjille hyödyntämään koko organisaation jatkokehittämistä. Usein suuret muutokset pilotoidaan yhdessä yksikössä ennen koko organisaatioon soveltamista.- Kokonaisarkkitehtuurin kehittäminen on myös tie edullisempiin ICT-kustannuksiin. Se ohjaa purkamaan päällekkäisyyksiä sekä yhtenäistämään kirjavaa teknologiakantaa, Pulkkinen summaa.Tutkimus tehtiin toimintatutkimuksena TietoEnatorin konsultointitoiminnassa. Ennen julkaisua osatulokset arvioitiin yrityksessä ja kokeiltiin konsultointityön käytännössä. Tutkimusyhteistyöprojekteissa, joissa osatutkimukset toteutettiin, on ollut mukana myös mm. IBM Finland, Digia (aik. Yomi) ja Metso Paper.The information and communication technology (ICT) advancements change the role of ICT in organizational use to a central concern, since both business and public enterprises heavily depend on information systems and technological infrastructure. Management, planning and development of the organizational ICT are no more a task for the ICT experts only. The expertise of both business and ICT specialists is needed to align ICT deployment with organizational goals, ensuring appropriateness of related investments with respect to the enterprise resources. However, collaboration between the business and ICT communities of practice is perceived as a challenge. Enterprise architecture (EA) proposes a holistic approach to the management of organizational ICT systems and infrastructure.By structuring the collaboration, it interlinks the contributions from different communities of practice to the decision making process. From both IS and EA literature, a common framework of reference is derived and validated through practitioner experience. Distinct levels of abstraction in the framework accommodate the concerns of different decision makers: managerial overview for the whole enterprise, business operations management at the level of the activity domains, and the systems design and development concerns for the implementers. An understanding of the ICT management and planning in the context of a deploying organization is deduced as a prerequisite for an eligible EA methodology. An EA process meta-model is constructed to guide the overall EA process for well-informed strategies and decisions on the organizational ICT and, as well, for consulting assignments. The study is conducted as an action research effort within an ICT consultancy, for which it develops an EA methodology.Case studies of client projects in different industry domains and various types of organizations provide the empirical basis. The constructed results are validated in practical use along the research effort. Reflective analysis of the series of studies reported on academic fora conveys a discursive process. Establishing a common agenda and giving empowered roles for different expert groups characterize both the research process and the EA process meta-model that logically guides and coordinates the dynamics of the collaborative enterprise development

User Participation in Consulting Projects: Client and Provider Role Profiles

This study presents a variation scheme of participation roles in consulting projects. Typical consulting assignments in the area known as IS planning involve strategic planning and information systems management, enterprise architecture, information management or information technology governance. Participation is a crucial issue in consulting on these issues. In the literature on participation, different roles and tasks have been found, but it is not always specified, on what types of projects or systems the results are based. The literature on consulting suggests some models for work division. In a two-phase qualitative study, we first collect possible tasks in ICT consulting projects, and then, based on further explorations, create a model for role variations in consulting. We compare roles suggested in the literature on participation and on consulting to our findings. The suggested variation model gives a common framework of reference for negotiations between the provider and the client, and helps to anticipate the needed competences and resources from both parties, and discern between their responsibilities.peerReviewe

Organizational processes in ICT Management and Evaluation. Experiences with large organizations.

In this study, we describe the managerial and administrative processes relevant in the assessment of cost, efficiency and value of ICT support within and around an end user organisation. Systems of interdependent processes have been proposed to guide the management of ICT, without looking at the organizational activities, outcomes and interdependencies closer. The changed role of ICT in organizations’ activities does no more allow for isolated management of business and ICT domains. Despite of a lot of talk about business alignment of ICT, a permanent link between the mandates of business and IT management remains yet to be established, even in organisations well aware of their information management and the business alignment issue. In our study we found that appreciated approaches of IT governance, e.g. ITIL and CobIT, and Information Systems Management models could profit from a supplementing comprehensive, architectural view of the ICT in organizations and from an enterprise architecture management process. We attempt to clarify the concept with the results of a three-year project where client organisations of an ICT provider were looked at from an ICT architecture management point of view. As complementary data, we study narratives on organizations that have some success in joint business and ICT planning and management. A map of managerial processes, and a model for different areas of ICT evaluation are results of the study. The enterprise architecture concept can be seen as a shared platform to enable efficient joint management and development of business and ICT. To steer the organization towards future success, the strategy process interacts with an EA management process that guides and supports the comprehensive ICT management and development. EA also provides a sound foundation for ICT evaluation.peerReviewe

Evaluation of Enterprise IT Architecture Solutions – How can an ICT consultant tell what is best for you?

ICT has become a key business enabler and a competitive factor for enterprises. Enterprise architecture, developed by ICT consultants and ICT end-user organizations, is emerging as the management tool for intertwined business and IT planning. For managerial decisions, there is a need to evaluate the business value of architecture development results, but only a few models for this have so far been presented. Here we present the V-model for EA testing and validation that marks the evaluation points in EA management, and guides which evaluation tools could be used.peerReviewe