Professional Disciplines (professional + discipline)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


DIAGNOSING FROUDE'S DISEASE: BOUNDARY WORK AND THE DISCIPLINE OF HISTORY IN LATE-VICTORIAN BRITAIN

HISTORY AND THEORY, Issue 3 2008
IAN HESKETH
ABSTRACT Historians looking to make history a professional discipline of study in Victorian Britain believed they had to establish firm boundaries demarcating history from other literary disciplines. James Anthony Froude ignored such boundaries. The popularity of his historical narratives was a constant reminder of the continued existence of a supposedly overturned phase of historiography in which the historian was also a man of letters, transcending the boundary separating fact from fiction and literature from history. Just as professionalizing historians were constructing a methodology that called on historians to be inductive empirical workers, Froude refused to accept the new science of history, and suggested instead that history was an individual enterprise, one more concerned with drama and art than with science. E. A. Freeman warned the historical community that they "cannot welcome [Froude] as a partner in their labors, as a fellow-worker in the cause of historic truth." This article examines the boundary work of a professionalizing history by considering the attempt to exclude Froude from the historian's discourse, an attempt that involved a communal campaign that sought to represent Froude as "constitutionally inaccurate." Froude suffered from "an inborn and incurable twist," argued Freeman, thereby diagnosing "Froude's disease" as the inability to "make an accurate statement about any matter." By unpacking the construction of "Froude's disease," the article exposes the disciplinary techniques at work in the professionalization of history, techniques that sought to exclude non-scientific modes of thought such as that offered by Froude. [source]


DISCIPLINING THE PROFESSIONAL: THE CASE OF PROJECT MANAGEMENT*

JOURNAL OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES, Issue 6 2002
DAMIAN HODGSON
Despite its rapid growth in recent years, Project Management has received very little critical attention, particularly when compared to the more ,hyped' managerial fashions such as TQM (cf. Wilkinson and Willmott, 1995) and BPR (cf. Grey and Mitev, 1995; Grint, 1994). My intention in this paper is to critically examine the ongoing construction of Project Management as a professional discipline in modern organizations. Drawing on an understanding of ,discipline' based in Foucauldian work, I will briefly trace the historical construction of Project Management as a form of managerial knowledge, outlining the key models and techniques which make up contemporary Project Management. Through an empirical study of the articulation and reproduction of Project Management within two Financial Services institutions, the everyday construction of Project Management as an ,objective' and ,abstract' body of knowledge will be described. I then contrast this with the embodied and power-laden operation of Project Management, with disciplinary effects not only on those employees whose work is restructured in line with Project Management principles but equally upon self-professed Project Management professionals themselves. [source]


Managing the risks of physical intervention: developing a more inclusive approach

JOURNAL OF PSYCHIATRIC & MENTAL HEALTH NURSING, Issue 4 2010
L. HOLLINS bsc physiotherapy
Accessible summary ,,It is imperative that the use of physical interventions be reduced. However, when they are used the safety of recipients must be maximized. ,,A focus on the ,prone restraint position' has led to a narrowed understanding of the risks associated with the application of force during restraints. ,,The ,transitional stabilizing position' offers a platform upon which to consider the broader risks arising during restraints. ,,Training staff to manage such situational risks, using a variation on the existing ABC safety check could be instrumental in reducing the likelihood of adverse outcomes associated with restraints. Abstract Since psychiatry evolved as a professional discipline, mental healthcare professionals have had to, as a last resort, physically intervene to manage physically aggressive patients. In the United Kingdom, physical intervention techniques migrated from the prison service in the mid 1980s where there was extensive use of two particularly controversial practices; ,pain compliance' and the ,prone restraint position'. This paper examines how the classification of the ,prone restraint position' has led to a narrowed focus on one technique and a resultant misunderstanding around the wider risks associated with the applying force and managing restraints. The paper goes on to propose the ,transitional stabilizing position' (TSP) as an alternative concept and puts forward a dynamic risk assessment model. It explores how a shift in staff training away from developing pure competence in the performance of tightly specified techniques to managing the patient in TSPs could conceivably reduce the relatively low risk of death or serious injury associated with the application of restraint techniques to an even lower level. [source]


Cultural Diversity: The Intention of Nursing

NURSING FORUM, Issue 1 2009
John Lowe RN
Nursing in the United States has expressed its intention of being a professional discipline that is culturally diverse. However, after examining the progress in this area, it is evident that nursing's movement toward cultural diversity has been slow and episodic. This article addresses cultural diversity progress in nursing and explores behaviors and actions that could enhance the cultural diversity of nursing. [source]


Mainstreaming Risk Reduction in Urban Planning and Housing: A Challenge for International Aid Organisations

DISASTERS, Issue 2 2006
Christine Wamsler
Abstract The effects of ,natural' disasters in cities can be worse than in other environments, with poor and marginalised urban communities in the developing world being most at risk. To avoid post-disaster destruction and the forced eviction of these communities, proactive and preventive urban planning, including housing, is required. This paper examines current perceptions and practices within international aid organisations regarding the existing and potential roles of urban planning as a tool for reducing disaster risk. It reveals that urban planning confronts many of the generic challenges to mainstreaming risk reduction in development planning. However, it faces additional barriers. The main reasons for the identified lack of integration of urban planning and risk reduction are, first, the marginal position of both fields within international aid organisations, and second, an incompatibility between the respective professional disciplines. To achieve better integration, a conceptual shift from conventional to non-traditional urban planning is proposed. This paper suggests related operative measures and initiatives to achieve this change. [source]


Parents labelled with Intellectual Disability: Position of the IASSID SIRG on Parents and Parenting with Intellectual Disabilities

JOURNAL OF APPLIED RESEARCH IN INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES, Issue 4 2008
IASSID Special Interest Research Group on Parents, Parenting with Intellectual Disabilities
Background, On August 5th, 2006, the third meeting of the International Association for the Scientific Study of Intellectual Disabilities (IASSID) Special Interest Research Group (SIRG) on Parents and Parenting with Intellectual Disabilities was convened in Maastricht, The Netherlands, coinciding with the 2nd International Congress of IASSID-Europe. The SIRG Parents and Parenting with Intellectual Disabilities membership includes scholars from a number of countries including the United States, Canada, England, Germany, The Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark, Iceland, Japan, Australia and New Zealand. These scholars come from a range of academic and professional disciplines, including sociology, psychology, education, nursing, social work and occupational therapy. Method, This position paper developed by the Parenting SIRG brings into sharp relief the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities adopted by the General Assembly in December 2006. The convention affirms the right of persons with disabilities to marry and found a family (Article 23, (1)(a)). Further, states parties are bound to ,take effective action and appropriate measures to eliminate discrimination against persons with disabilities in all matters relating to marriage, family, parenthood and relationships,' (Article 23 (1)), and ,,render appropriate assistance to persons with disabilities in the performance of their child-rearing responsibilities' (Article 23 (2)). Results, This position paper synthesizes messages from research about the challenges that parents labelled with intellectual disability face, and how they can be assisted in their parenting role. [source]


The role of the YMCA in the origins of U.S. nonprofit management education

NONPROFIT MANAGEMENT & LEADERSHIP, Issue 3 2010
Mordecai Lee
The given narrative of the origins of nonprofit management education tends to begin in the 1970s or 1980s, recognizing earlier efforts that were limited to individual professional disciplines, such as social work administration. This historical inquiry examines whether the origins of generic nonprofit management education can be traced further back. It identifies the 1911 bachelor of association science degree from the Chicago YMCA College as at least a proto-nonprofit management degree and a 1935 text by Ordway Tead, issued by the YMCA's publishing house, as a contender for the first text in generic nonprofit management. [source]


Project success as a topic in project management journals

PROJECT MANAGEMENT JOURNAL, Issue 4 2009
Lavagnon A. Ika
Abstract This article highlights the characteristics of articles on project success published between 1986 and 2004 in the Project Management Journal (PMJ) and the International Journal of Project Management (IJPM). The analysis covers references, concepts like project management success, project success, success criteria, and success factors; features of the samples, data collection, and analysis techniques used; and professional disciplines. The results show that research on project success is characterized by diversity except in epistemological and methodological perspectives. The article suggests a shift to project, portfolio, and program success and concludes with a discussion on the traditional state of the research, criticizes its assumptions, and offers alternative metaphors and recommendations for future research. [source]


Development of guidelines for the safe prescribing, dispensing and administration of cancer chemotherapy

ASIA-PACIFIC JOURNAL OF CLINICAL ONCOLOGY, Issue 3 2010
Christine CARRINGTON
Abstract Aim: The issue of medication safety is highly significant when anti-cancer therapy is used due to the high potential for harm from these agents and the disease context in which they are being used. This article reports on the development of multidisciplinary consensus guidelines for the safe prescribing, dispensing and administration of cancer chemotherapy undertaken by a working group of the Clinical Oncological Society of Australia (COSA). Methods: A working group of pharmacists, nurses and medical oncologists was convened from the COSA membership. A draft set of guidelines was proposed and circulated to the COSA council and the wider membership of COSA for comment. The final version of the guidelines was then distributed to 25 key stakeholders in Australia for feedback and endorsement. Results: An initial draft was developed based on existing standards, evidence from the literature and consensus opinion of the group. It was agreed that published case studies would be used as evidence for a particular statement where related processes had resulted in patient harm. The group defined 13 areas where a guidance statement was applicable to all professional disciplines and three individual sections based on the processes and the professionals involved in the provision of cancer therapy. Conclusion: The guidelines development represents a multidisciplinary collaboration to standardize the complex process of providing chemotherapy for cancer and to enhance patient safety. These are consensus guidelines based on the best available evidence and expert opinion of professionals working in cancer care. They should be seen as a point of reference for practitioners providing chemotherapy services. [source]


Parental satisfaction with follow-up services for children with major anatomical congenital anomalies

CHILD: CARE, HEALTH AND DEVELOPMENT, Issue 1 2010
M. Van Dijk
Abstract Background Since 1999 a multidisciplinary follow-up programme for parents and children with major anatomical congenital anomalies is in place in our hospital, run by a dedicated team. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the services of this team from a parental perspective. Methods Parents completed a questionnaire including open and closed questions about satisfaction with the various professional disciplines involved in the follow-up, statements on usefulness of the follow-up services and suggestions for improvement. Results Four hundred and sixty-nine surveys were sent out, of which 71% were returned. Non-responding parents included significantly more parents of non-Dutch origin (P= 0.038) and parents who never responded to invitations for follow-up examinations (P < 0.001). Parental satisfaction differed for the various disciplines. Eighty per cent of the parents were (very) satisfied with the social worker, compared with 92% with nurses. More than half of the parents agreed that the follow-up services give peace of mind. Almost a quarter of parents, however, considered the follow-up services as redundant. The children of these parents had significantly shorter intensive care unit stay (P= 0.02), were older at the time of the questionnaire (P= 0.04), of higher socio-economic status (P= 0.001) and less likely to be of non-Dutch origin (P= 0.008). Sixty-one per cent of the parents had contacted the 24-h helpline. Ninety per cent of the parents were satisfied with the intensive care unit, almost 80% with the general ward. Conclusion Overall, parents were satisfied with the services of the follow-up team. Some parents, however, saw room for improvement related to better communication, recognizability of the team and better planning and organization. [source]