Bridging the Gap Between Research and Practice: The Agile Research Network

We report an action research-oriented approach to investigating agile project management methods which aims to bridge the gap between academic research and agile practice. We have set up a research network of academics from two universities, through which we run focussed project-based research into agile methods. Organisations are invited to suggest an ‘agile challenge’ and we work closely with them to investigate how challenge affects them. Our approach is both academic and practical. We use appropriate research methods such as interviews, observation and discussion to clarify and explore the nature of the challenge. We then undertake a detailed literature review to identify practical approaches that may be appropriate for adoption, and report our findings. If the organisation introduces new practices or approaches as a result of our work, we conduct an academic evaluation. Alternatively, if we uncover an under-researched area, we propose undertaking some basic research. As befits the topic, we work iteratively and incrementally and produce regular outputs. In this paper we introduce our approach, overview research methods used in the agile research literature, describe our research model, outline a case study, and discuss the advantages and disadvantages of our approach. We discuss the importance of producing outputs that are accessible to practitioners as well as researchers. Findings suggest that by investigating the challenges that organisations propose, we uncover problems that are of real relevance to the agile community and obtain rich insights into the facilitators and barriers that organisations face when using agile methods. Additionally, we find that practitioners are interested in research results as long as publications are relevant to their needs and are written accessibly. We are satisfied with the basic structure of our approach, but we anticipate that the method will evolve as we continue to work with collaborators

Overcoming challenges in collaboration between research and practice: the agile research network

There is wide acceptance in the software engineering field that industry and research can gain significantly from each other and there have been several initiatives for encouraging collaboration between the two. However there are some often-quoted challenges in this kind of collaboration. For example, that the timescales of research and practice are incompatible, that research is not seen as relevant for practice, and that research demands a different kind of rigour than practice supports. These are complex challenges that are not always easy to overcome. For the last year we have been using an approach designed to address some of these challenges and to bridge the gap between research and practice, specifically in the agile software development arena. So far we have collaborated successfully with two partners and have investigated two practitioner-driven challenges with agile. In this short paper we will introduce the approach, how it addresses the collaboration challenges between research and practice, and describe the lessons learned from our experience

AUDIENCE RESPONSE TO THE NATURE/SOCIETY BINARY IN KUROSAWA’S DERSU UZALA: AN OBSERVATIONAL ONLINE ETHNOGRAPHY

Geographers researching cinema have predominantly been interested in how geographic meaning is constructed and negotiated within film, but have been less productive in accounting for how these constructs are received by viewers. Using the method of observational online ethnography, I therefore investigate how fans in online reviews have interpreted the nature/society binary in the film Dersu Uzala. Working from a social constructionist view of nature I begin by deconstructing the binary as it appears in Dersu Uzala before proceeding to illustrate the way this constitutive absence is made up for by the visuality of the film’s landscapes and techniques of geographic realism. Turning to the fan reviews I find that, rather than challenge the historical and constructed division between nature and society, many fans accept the binary as inevitable and consistent with their ideas about contemporary reality. More than passive consumption however, this concurrence is actively rearticulated in the ways that the fans incorporate the binary into their own lives and in the new discursive practices of the internet. In so doing I make headway into the exploration of audience analysis by geographers and continue to advance geography’s foray into cultures of the internet

Collaboration in Pair Programming: driving and switching

This paper reports on an empirical study about the mechanisms of the collaboration of drivers and navigators in Pair Programming (PP) sessions. Based on video recordings of professional software developers, we analysed the mechanisms of role switches and how developers split the task of driving. We found that developers do not evenly contribute to the task of driving and that they spend on average a third of the session without any computer interaction focusing mainly on communication. In addition, our results show that most pairs switch roles frequently and that the frequency and fuidity of switches indicate a high level of engagement on the part of both developers

Staged Introduction of Blended Learning – To Blend or Not to Blend?

The Master’s Degree in Global Mental Health (GMH) is in its sixth year as an on-campus course and in its second year as an online distance learning (ODL) course. A significant review of ILOs, course content, Moodle resource, the role of graduate attributes and assessment types was undertaken prior to the 2017/18 launch. The optimisation of agility and cohesion between Programmes has provided an opportunity to introduce blended learning materials for the on-campus students as a means of supporting learning. With the introduction of blended learning into the on-campus course we wish to ensure that it is embedded robustly, efficiently and effectively

Efficacy of Integrating CBT for Mental Health Care into Substance Abuse Treatment in Patients with Comorbid Disorders of Substance Abuse and Mental Illness

Abstract: Multiple studies have found that psychiatric disorders, like mood disorders and substance use disorders, are highly comorbid among adults with either disorder. Integrated treatment refers to the treatment of two or more conditions and the use of multiple therapies such as the combination of psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy. Integrated therapy for comorbidity per numerous studies has consistently been superior to the treatment of individual disorders separately. The purpose of this QI project was to identify the effectiveness of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) instead of current treatment as usual for treating Substance Use Disorder (SUD) or mental health diagnosis independently. It is a retrospective chart review. The review examines CBT\u27s efficacy for engaging individuals with co-occurring mood and substance use disorders in treatment by enhancing adherence and preventing disengagement and relapse. Methods: Forty adults aged 26-55 with a DSM-IV diagnosis of a mood disorder of Major Depressive Disorder and/or anxiety and concurrent substance use disorder (at least weekly use in the past month). Participants received 12 sessions of individual integrated CBT treatment delivered with case management over a 12-week period. Results: The intervention was associated with significant improvements in mood disorder, substance use, and coping skills at 4, 8, and 12 weeks post-treatment. Conclusions: These results provide some evidence for the effectiveness of the integrated CBT intervention in individuals with co-occurring disorders. Of note, all psychotherapies are efficacious; however, it would be more advantageous to develop a standardized CBT that identifies variables that facilitate treatment outcomes specifically to comorbid disorders of substance use and mood disorders. It is concluded that there is potentially more to be gained from further studies using randomized controlled designs to determine its efficacy

The curious case of blended learning: an evaluation of a curriculum innovation in the global mental health Master’s programme

Background: This study aimed to evaluate students’ satisfaction, perceived utility and engagement with a range of Blended Learning (BL) resources, in the context of the staged introduction of BL within the MSc Global Mental Health Programme. Methods: A descriptive mixed methods design was employed. An electronic questionnaire was completed by 18 (90%) of the enrolled on-campus students. Eight of them opted to participate in a collaborative workshop aiming to corroborate and expand upon the questionnaire findings, and generate ideas for optimising the BL components. Results: Overall, students were satisfied with the quantity and usefulness of the BL materials. Specifically, the easy access to, and diversity of, learning activities were recognised as instrumental in stimulating innovative ways of thinking, in addition to improving subject-specific knowledge. Students starkly diverged according to their reported use of materials as the foundation of independent study as well as perceptions of the difficulty level of the modules. Students reported lacking the confidence and knowledge regarding integrating the breadth of learning resources effectively to support their learning. Collaboratively, the students helped generate actionable programmatic changes aimed at improving the curriculum cohesion and enhancing learner engagement. Conclusion: Systematic evaluation of the initial stages of BL is critical. This study demonstrated the complexities of the staged introduction of BL in terms of ensuring learning efficiency, student satisfaction, learner development and programme cohesion. This study enabled the identification of strategic and feasible high-impact areas for optimising BL, and transforming them into stages of change

The Criminal Justice and Licensing (Scotland) Act Section 38: The implications of Paterson v Harvie.

Examines how the Scottish courts have interpreted the actus reus of the offence of behaving in a threatening or abusive manner, under the Criminal Justice and Licensing (Scotland) Act 2010 s.38, which was introduced after the High Court of Justiciary in Smith v Donnelly restated the test for the actus reus of breach of the peace

Analysis of Responses to the Scottish Government Consultation on Free Bus Travel for People Resident in Scotland aged under 19

No abstract available