Open access to educational resources in energy and sustainability: Usability evaluation prototype for repositories

The purpose of this paper is to show a PhD dissertation research plan, which aims to assess whether the users’ experience of users to perform various tasks in an open access repository, increases by integrating Discovery Tools. The tasks to perform by the users are management and information design, dissemination and searches of open educational resources (OER) of sustainability energy. This research aims to develop a usability evaluation prototype which will offer new insights in the design of the information architecture. In the first stage, the criteria will be selected to measure the level of usability of the tasks to evaluate and develop the analysis of the current interactive design of the web repository. In the second stage, will consist of measure, once implemented the Discovery Tools in the web repository and check the usability level increase in relation with the criteria. In this paper you could find aspects as the motivations and the context in which it will develop this research, state of the art, hypothesis, research objectives, aspects of the methodology of the research, developed under the method of mixed layout, the current an expected contribution, the results and the validation and dissertation status. The results will contribute for detect new criteria and parameters for provide flexible interfaces, specifically for the web repositories, which are a part of the technological ecosystem of the scientific activity

The politics, fashions, and conventions of research methods.

The results of an empirical study of any set of phenomena, whether investigating structures, processes, or combinations thereof, are influenced by the theoretical framework as well as the research methods employed. This text examines the influence of research methods on how phenomena under investigation are conceptualized, defined, measured, and interpreted. It will be argued that qualitative, quantitative, and, by extension, mixed methods research influence how phenomena are studied, and how these methods are concurrently subject to politics, fashions, and conventions. Inconsistent and impoverished research may be the consequence, particularly for mixed methods research

Food activities and identity maintenance in old age: a systematic review and meta-synthesis

This article has been made available through the Brunel Open Access Publishing Fund.Objectives: Services provided to older people should be developed based on active ageing policies. Nutrition is one aspect of active ageing, but little is known about how food activities contribute to psychological well-being in later life. This is a systematic review of qualitative and quantitative research that answers the question ‘What is known about the relationship between food activities and the maintenance of identities in old age?’

On the attributes of a critical literature review

Exploring and evaluating findings from previous research is an essential aspect of all research projects enabling the work to be set in the context of what is known and what is not known. This necessitates a critical review of the literature in which existing research is discussed and evaluated, thereby contextualising and justifying the project. In this research note we consider what is understood by being critical when reviewing prior to outlining the key attributes of a critical literature review. We conclude with a summary checklist to help ensure a literature review is critical

Project manager-to-project allocations in practice: an empirical study of the decision-making practices of a multi-project based organization

Empirical studies that examine how managers make project manager-to-project (PM2P) allocation decisions in multi-project settings are currently limited. Such decisions are crucial to organizational success. An empirical study of the PM2P practice, conducted in the context of Botswana, revealed ineffective processes in terms of optimality in decision-making. A conceptual model to guide effective PM2P practices was developed. The focus of this study is on deploying the model as a lens to study the PM2P practices of a large organization, with a view to identify and illustrate strengths and weaknesses. A case study was undertaken in the mining industry, where core activities in terms of projects are underground mineral explorations at identified geographical regions. A semi-structured interview protocol was used to collect data from 15 informants, using an enumeration. Integrated analysis of both data types (using univariate descriptive analysis for the quantitative data, content and thematic analysis for the qualitative data) revealed strengths in PM2P practices, demonstrated by informants’ recognition of some important criteria to be considered. The key weaknesses were exemplified by a lack of effective management tools and techniques to match project managers to projects. The findings provide a novel perspective through which improvements in working practices can be made

Making fluency research accessible to second language teachers: the impact of a training intervention

The study reported in this paper was aimed at investigating whether making the findings of second language fluency research accessible to language teachers has an impact on their self-reported understanding of the concept of oral fluency, confidence in promoting it, and classroom practice in short and medium term. The data come from 106 initial and 32 delayed questionnaires and nine interviews, eliciting both qualitative and quantitative data, from second language teachers in England after attending a one-day research-informed and practice-oriented training workshop. The results indicate a positive impact on teachers’ understanding of fluency, confidence in helping their learners, and self-reported practice in short term, with the positive impact being reported in medium term (e.g., two to six months after the intervention). The findings confirm previous research (e.g., Lennon, 1990) that adopting a narrow perspective to defining and conceptualizing fluency is linked with a more in-depth understanding of fluency and enhanced confidence and ability for using fluency-focused classroom activities

Bouncing back from failure: Entrepreneurial resilience and the internationalization of subsequent ventures created by serial entrepreneurs

This paper examines the impact over international propensity of past negative entrepreneurial experience for those who re-enter into entrepreneurial activity; referred to as resilient serial entrepreneurs. We first hypothesize on the effects over entrepreneurial re-entry that such negative past experience may have and highlight the link between the past entrepreneurial experience of resilient entrepreneurs and their subsequent propensity towards international markets. Building on insights from the generative experiential learning process of entrepreneurial activity and from cognition theories, we propose that resilient entrepreneurs who re-enter business despite having faced negative entrepreneurial experiences in the past benefit from enriched cognitive schemas leading them to greater export propensity. The proposed hypotheses are tested on a unique sample drawn from a Spanish adult population survey. Results from the sequential deductive triangulation analysis (QUAN -> qual) reveal that practical experience is an essential prerequisite for entrepreneurial learning, and that the resilience of those with negative entrepreneurial experience induces the generative entrepreneurial learning especially suitable for subsequent internationally oriented ventures.Peer ReviewedPreprin

Micro-Ethical Decision Making Among Baccalaureate Nursing Students: A Qualitative Investigation

Nursing students frequently encounter micro-ethical nursing practice problems during their clinical experience. The purpose of this study was to understand the lived experiences of senior-level baccalaureate students faced with making micro-ethical clinical decisions in practice settings. A descriptive qualitative design was used, and five central themes emerged. A dominant finding was the experience of unapplied and forgotten ethics education revealing a mismatch between what faculty perceived was taught and students’ experiences of that education. When faced with micro-ethical decisions, participants trusted and deferred to staff nurse recommendations, even if the advice contradicted best-practice standards. Contextual naivete was brought out of concealment, contributing to the experience of moral disequilibrium (i.e., students felt conflicted about what they learned in school as best practice and what they observed being role modeled in the clinical environment). This study resulted in theory-guided implications for nursing education and recommendations for future study