The Importance of Health in Promoting Employability in the East Midlands

This paper analyses the relationship between health and employability in the context of the East Midlands, a high employment region with a history of manufacturing and coal mining, though both sectors\' importance has declined due to considerable industrial restructuring. It is argued that the health of the unemployed and economically inactive cannot be considered without an understanding of such contextual factors. Gender, age, the socio-economic context and other external factors are key to the complex relationship between health and employability. Within a broad framework of employability, health is not merely a personal characteristic. The paper argues for more qualitative research into employability and health to establish what factors influence the relationship.Employability, Health, Economic In-/activity, Employment, Unemployment

Routines in management accounting research: Further exploration

Purpose This paper seeks to enhance the eminent work of Burns and Scapens (2000) by introducing broader conceptualisations on organisational routines and rules in to management accounting. Design/methodology/approach The paper sets out with the Burns and Scapens (2000) framework. The paper is primarily conceptual in nature and with the addition of some more recent literature on organisational routines serves to bolster the underpinnings of the Burns and Scapens (2000) framework. Drawing especially on the work of Feldman and Pentland (2003), the nature of management accounting routines in particular is explored in some detail. By association, rules are also explored. Findings This paper proposes that an ostensive-performative distinction of routines augments our conceptualisation of how management accounting routines can represent both a source of stability and of change (simultaneously). Also, by showing how routines can represent both structure and action simultaneously, some light is shed on the ongoing interrelationship between routines and rules as highlighted in the Burns and Scapens (2000) framework and some concerns in recent literature addressed. In particular, a refined view of both routines and rules not only bolsters the work of Burns and Scapens (2000), but potentially increases its applicability as a theoretical lens to empirical studies in less formal organisations. Practical implications The proposed refinements to the Burns and Scapens (2000) framework, which aim to clarify the nature of rules and routines in a management accounting context, may be particularly useful for researchers studying less formalised (or, less rules-based) organisations. The findings emphasise the potentially more important role of the less formal concept of routines in most organisations

The Scythe Statistical Library: An Open Source C++ Library for Statistical Computation

The Scythe Statistical Library is an open source C++ library for statistical computation. It includes a suite of matrix manipulation functions, a suite of pseudo-random number generators, and a suite of numerical optimization routines. Programs written using Scythe are generally much faster than those written in commonly used interpreted languages, such as R and \proglang{MATLAB}; and can be compiled on any system with the GNU GCC compiler (and perhaps with other C++ compilers). One of the primary design goals of the Scythe developers has been ease of use for non-expert C++ programmers. Ease of use is provided through three primary mechanisms: (1) operator and function over-loading, (2) numerous pre-fabricated utility functions, and (3) clear documentation and example programs. Additionally, Scythe is quite flexible and entirely extensible because the source code is available to all users under the GNU General Public License.

Functional assessment for acute stroke trials: properties, analysis, and application

A measure of treatment effect is needed to assess the utility of any novel intervention in acute stroke. For a potentially disabling condition such as stroke, outcomes of interest should include some measure of functional recovery. There are many functional outcome assessments that can be used after stroke. In this narrative review, we discuss exemplars of assessments that describe impairment, activity, participation, and quality of life. We will consider the psychometric properties of assessment scales in the context of stroke trials, focusing on validity, reliability, responsiveness, and feasibility. We will consider approaches to the analysis of functional outcome measures, including novel statistical approaches. Finally, we will discuss how advances in audiovisual and information technology could further improve outcome assessment in trials

MCMCpack: Markov Chain Monte Carlo in R

We introduce MCMCpack, an R package that contains functions to perform Bayesian inference using posterior simulation for a number of statistical models. In addition to code that can be used to fit commonly used models, MCMCpack also contains some useful utility functions, including some additional density functions and pseudo-random number generators for statistical distributions, a general purpose Metropolis sampling algorithm, and tools for visualization.

New Public Management a re-packaging of extant techniques? Some archival evidence from an Irish semi-state power company

Purpose The objective of this paper is to explore, if like some other management initiatives, New Public Management may be a repackaging of already existent concepts. Emerging in the 1970s and 1980s as an innovative way to manage public sector elements, New Public Management has affected both the ownership and management of public sector companies, services, and utilities. Minimal research has been undertaken previously, using historic archival sources of public entities, to explore if elements of the concept originated prior to the 1970s. Design/methodology/approach This research draws on archival records from a publicly-owned electricity company, covering about three decades from 1946, during which a large investment project was undertaken by the company. We draw on key tenets of what is today called New Public Management, examining prior research to ascertain if similar elements were present in the case organisation. Findings When reviewing the progress of the investment project, many of the key elements of New Public Management emerged, even during the early part of the project. Originality/value There is little historical research on the origins of New Public Management, and the findings here suggest it may not be entirely new. While this does not at all invalidate existing research, it suggests New Public Management may be to an extent a repackaging of previously extant techniques. This opens up possibilities for future historic research in terms of how and why it was repackaged, and also what was/was not repackaged

Evidence of new public management during the rural electrification scheme

In recent years, much attention has been given to various New Public Management (NPM) initiatives. Hood (1991) suggests NPM emerged as a set of doctrines in the late 1970s. In this paper, we explore NPM during the Rural Electrification Scheme (RES) using archival material from the Electricity Supply Board (ESB). One of the ESB’s key projects was the electrification of rural Ireland, spanning a time period of mid-1940s to late 1970s. This project involved accountants, and emerging and evolving accounting and management practices. It is thus, at first sight, a project which may include elements of NPM