Changing science and ensuring our future

Science is not static but dynamic. A key challenge in its development is the reflection and accommodation of weaknesses, rather than just inherent strengths, both in its practices and institutional structures and settings. Pivotal to this are a range of issues including uncertainty, contextual issues, broader societal involvement, interdisciplinarity, and the enablement of reflexivity. These are not unrelated, autonomous concerns but intrinsically interdependent ones. For example extended characterisation and representation of uncertainty can facilitate integration between what have been regarded as separate: the technical and the contextual. This will require reflexive practices, often involving dialogue between scientists and the broader community. Much of this correlates with recent developments in social theory, such as conceptions of the risk society, and has significant implications for the relationship between the natural and the social sciences. This paper will identify, examine and describe these emergent changes to science and discuss their broader implications.     

Political Activism and Workplace Industrial Relations in a UK 'Failing' School

The paper draws on a qualitative case study of workplace industrial relations in an inner–city secondary school identified as 'failing' and subsequently closed. It considers the way unionized teachers and their representatives interpret, influence and resist the impact of centralized managerial and educational change. The local implementation of such change leads to an engagement with the debates on union renewal. In particular, the paper explores the dynamic interrelationship between political and trade union activism and the tension between workplace relations and formal union organization.     

The Establishment and Enforcement of Codes

Information and communications technology (ICT) is now used more by non-IT professional end-users than by IT professionals. A survey of 125 London-based organisations found that the majority had instituted codes of conduct designed to govern the use of ICT by their employees. However, the primary purpose of adopting such codes was to ensure the security and efficient operation of the organisation's information systems rather than for wider ethical considerations. Hence, few of the codes of conduct addressed issues relating to the collection, storage and dissemination of data about individuals (personal data); this was especially the case with codes emanating from IT departments rather than senior management. In general, codes of conduct were found to be ineffective in influencing end-user behaviour in the organisations surveyed. Codes of conduct are a means by which organisations seek to exercise power, control and ownership, but their effectiveness is compromised by the nature of ICT itself as well as the attitudes of employees. The failure of well-publicised ethical policies to influence use of ICT by business studies students – the managers of tomorrow – suggests that these tensions are likely to remain unresolved.     

Shaping Union and Gender Identities: A Case Study of Women-Only Trade Union Courses

In the context of efforts to revitalize unions and the acknowledged need to widen participation within trade unions, this paper argues that women‐only trade union education acts as a vehicle for increasing women's participation and for improving their experiences of unions. Drawing on a qualitative research study of women‐only courses in two large male‐dominated British trade unions, the findings indicate that such courses provide the conditions for women to question, reinforce or transform their social identities and thereby can lead to greater union identification and participation.     

Women and IT contracting work—a testing process

This paper explores the career and work experiences of a little researched group: highly skilled women IT contractors. It considers their reasons for entering the IT field, including the decision to become contractors. It demonstrates the complexity of power and influence of IT contractors and the resilience of the gender order in IT work.     

A NOTE ON LIVESTOCK BREEDING POLICIES IN STABLE AND DEVELOPMENT SITUATIONS

Multi-stage linear programming is used to develop sheep replacement policies in a number of different situations. Policies are developed for eight and sixteen year periods assuming, firstly a constant feed supply, and secondly, an increasing feed supply over the period. The results show the optimal flock composition together with the sheep sale activities for each year of the plan. The marginal value products indicate which constraints are the most important and whether any should be relaxed in order to make the model more realistic. It is concluded that it is not necessary to use a very long planning period in order to determine the activities for the early years. The results from the shorter planning period appear to be consistent with long-term goals.     

Organizational Failure and Turnaround: Lessons for Public Services from the For-Profit Sector

As the performance of public services is increasingly scrutinized, it is now commonplace for some schools, hospitals, local authorities and other public organizations to be deemed 'failing' and for attempts to be made at creating a turnaround in their performance. This article explores the literature on failure and turnaround in for-profit organizations, presents a number of models or frameworks for describing and categorizing failure and turnaround, and examines the relevance and transferability of theoretical and empirical studies in the for-profit sector to the emerging field of failure and turnaround in public services.     

The Early Mobilization of Women Union Leaders — A Comparative Perspective

This article explores the initial reasons for union joining of women who became union leaders in the UK and the USA by drawing on concepts from mobilization theory and the literature on women and unions. The comparative study demonstrates similarities and differences in early mobilization influences on UK and US women with respect to family, ideology, instrumentality and injustice. Informed by the women and unions literature, the article critiques mobilization theorists for failing to problematize the term ‘injustice’ and underplaying the importance of ideology which are shown to be gendered and racialized and located in time and place.     

Addressing gender in agricultural research for development in the face of a changing climate: where are we and where should we be going?

Agricultural development efforts that do not address persistent gender gaps miss opportunities for greater impact. This synthesis reflects on key findings from integrated quantitative and qualitative analyses at the nexus of gender, agricultural development, and climate change. Linked farm household-, intrahousehold-, community-, and institutional-level data highlight significant and nuanced gender differences in adaptive capacity of individuals and communities to respond to climate change. The gender gap is also substantial in exposure to climate change and its impacts, and uptake of new practices that lower vulnerability. Women in agriculture will remain largely neglected by information and service providers unless their differing needs, access to, and control over resources are considered at policy and project design stage. Yet clear guidelines for addressing the needs of both men and women in different environments and agricultural systems are still lacking. Participatory ‘action research’ approaches with a focus on co-learning, and using innovative cell phone or social media-based approaches offer exciting new opportunities. Agricultural development decision-makers and project designers need to ‘design with gender in mind’. Equipping them with tools and knowledge of innovative gender-transformative practices and intervention options and creating accountability for serving women and men will be key.