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Respondents' Views (respondent + views)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Humanities and Social Sciences	80%

Selected Abstracts

Stakeholders' views on measuring outcomes for people with learning disabilities

HEALTH & SOCIAL CARE IN THE COMMUNITY, Issue 1 2006
Anita F. Young PhD DipCOT
Abstract What works and how do we know? These are recurring questions for health and social care professionals, although mediated through differing philosophies and historical perspectives. The aims of the study reported here were to discover views of managers and commissioners of services for people with learning disabilities in Scotland regarding (a) current approaches to service evaluation (as an indication of what is to be measured) and (b) healthcare outcome measurement (as an indication of preferences regarding how this should be measured). A postal questionnaire was used to survey 94 stakeholders from the NHS, Local Authorities, and non-statutory organisations across Scotland. Respondents' views were sought on current approaches to service evaluation within learning disabilities; outcome measurement; appropriateness of specified methods of measuring health outcomes; desired future methods of outcome measurement within learning disabilities; and service user involvement in care. A 77% (73/94) response rate to the questionnaire was achieved. Different methods of service evaluation were used by different stakeholders. Staff appraisal was the most frequently identified method (used by 85% of respondents). Specific outcome measures were used by 32% of respondents although there were differences of opinion as to what constitutes specific outcome measures. Overall there was strong support for goal-setting and reviewing (83%) and individualised outcome measures (75%) as appropriate methods for use with people with learning disabilities. The hypothetical question asking what outcome measures should be introduced for this client group had by far the lowest response rate (51/73). The overwhelming majority of all respondents, 68 (92%), reported user involvement in their service. Staff ambivalence to outcome measurement was evident in the research and respondents highlighted the complexity and multidimensional nature of outcomes for this service user group. Managers recognised that outcome measurement was expected but were uncertain how to go about it. [source]

An exploration of corporate attitudes to the significance of environmental information for stakeholders

CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY AND ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT, Issue 4 2003
David Collison
This paper reports on a questionnaire survey sent to environmental managers in quoted UK firms from environmentally sensitive sectors. A total of 58 usable responses was received, with most but not all being returned by environmental managers. While contextual information regarding perceptions of their companies' environmental sensitivity and management systems was sought, the main focus of the questionnaire was on respondents' views about stakeholder concerns. There was broad agreement that external stakeholders attached importance to environmental communications. The results indicate that respondents' perceptions of these issues were associated with the formality of their internal management systems and with the role of the respondents within their firms. It was also found that shareholders were thought to be the least interested stakeholder group. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment. [source]

SURVEYING UNIVERSITY STUDENT STANDARDS IN ECONOMICS

ECONOMIC PAPERS: A JOURNAL OF APPLIED ECONOMICS AND POLICY, Issue 2 2005
Peter Abelson
In late 2003 and early 2004 the Economic Society of Australia surveyed the Heads of Economics Departments in Australia to determine their views on three main issues: student standards; major factors affecting these standards; and policy implications. This paper describes the main results of the survey, reviews the conduct and value of this kind of survey, and discusses policy implications for economics in universities. Most respondents considered that student standards have declined and that the main causes include lower entry standards, high student/staff ratios, and a declining culture of study. However, some respondents argued that standards are multi-dimensional and that people may properly attach different weights to different attributes. Strong precautions assuring anonymity to respondents minimised strategic responses, but may not have eliminated them entirely. However, the respondents' views were based largely on experience rather than evidence and a major finding of this paper is the need for more evidence on standards and on the factors that influence them. Most respondents favoured a decentralised university-based approach to dealing with these issues, contending that centralised accreditation is inappropriate and that market forces would promote quality issues. In the writer's view, externally set and assessed exams as part of university examination procedures would lift standards and send out improved market signals. [source]

Between East and West: Geographic Metaphors of Identity in Poland

ETHOS, Issue 1 2004
Marysia H. Galbraith
As Poland enters the European Union, questions of national identity relative to wider group loyalties become particularly salient. This study considers how individual life stories contribute to the discourse on what constitutes the Polish nation, and contemplates the implications of respondents' views for the achievement of European integration. I focus on Polish youths' use of metaphors of "betweenness," in which Poland fills the conceptual space between East and West, and "nested identities," based on simultaneous attachments to region, nation, and Europe, and consider how they might provide alternatives to models of identity which assume conflict with outside groups. In postcommunist Poland, more protectionist or conflict-based stances are sometimes taken, not so much because of political threats as in the past, but more in response to economic inequalities within Poland, and between Poland and the West. [source]

Save the Young,the Elderly Have Lived Their Lives: Ageism in Marriage and Family Therapy,

FAMILY PROCESS, Issue 2 2000
David C. Ivey Ph.D.
The paucity of literature addressing mental health issues concerning geriatric populations represents the perpetuation of ageist practices and beliefs in the field of marriage and family therapy. The purpose of this study was to assess whether client age and clinical training relate to the evaluation of couples who present for conjoint therapy. Written vignettes describing two couples, one older and one younger, who report issues involving the absence of sexual intimacy, increased frequency of arguments, and increased use of alcohol were evaluated by practicing marriage and family therapists, therapists-in-training, and individuals with no clinical background. It was hypothesized that respondents' views would vary in connection with the age of the couple and with the three levels of participant training. Results indicate that client age and participant training are associated with perceptions of individual and couple functioning. Our findings suggest that the relational and mental health concerns experienced by elder couples are not perceived as seriously as are identical concerns experienced by younger couples. Contrary to our expectations the observed differences between views of the two age conditions did not significantly differ between levels of participant training. Training and experience in marriage and family therapy may not significantly mitigate vulnerability to age-discrepant views. [source]