Digging the backyard: Mining and quarrying in the UK and their impact on future land use

The future demand for land for mining and quarrying will be affected by a large number of economic, technological, environmental and social issues within the UK. Global developments also have a role to play. Although mining and quarrying account for only 0.9 per cent of the land area of England, the impact of this activity is considerable. Minerals are essential to the economy, for energy, construction, infrastructure and manufacturing, while their extraction has effects on the environment and on public perception. This paper examines current scientific understanding of the context of mining and quarrying, with particular reference to its impact on land use, along with the spatial relationship between minerals – which can only be worked where they occur – and other forms of land use and designation in the ‘post-industrial’ landscape of Britain. Looking out to 2060 and beyond, developments which may influence demand for minerals include climate change mitigation and adaptation; energy, food and raw material security; and new construction, manufacturing, recycling and re-use technologies. Factors influencing the supply side include the structure and ownership of the mining and quarrying industry, new extraction, processing and environmental technologies, ecosystem service provision, societal attitudes and land access. Although prediction carries a high level of uncertainty, continuous development of the regulatory framework is, and will remain, a major and pervasive factor in the relationship between mining and quarrying and land use.     

Performance appraisals and discrimination suits: Do courts pay attention to validity?

Performance appraisals have been reviewed by courts when there is an allegation they were used in a discriminatory manner. This article evaluates several federal court cases where performance appraisals were at issue. This analysis leads to the conclusion that courts give very little direction to employers and employees as to whether a particular type of performance appraisal system will withstand judicial scrutiny.     

Organizational change and outdoor management education

This study used a randomized group experimental design combined with qualitative research methods to assess the outcomes of an outdoor management education (OME) program in one organization. Measures of trainee reactions, learning, attitudes and motivation, behavior, and organizational results were collected. The OME program positively influenced participant knowledge, organizational commitment, organizational-based self-esteem, and intentions to implement learning. It did not improve trust or self-efficacy levels. Additionally, there was evidence of behavioral change and improvements is several organizational results up to three years after the training, although attribution of cause and effect is difficult at these levels of analysis. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Research for Practice: The Management of Expatriates

The objective of this article is to identify expatriate management research questions of interest to international human resource (IHR) managers. We conducted an in‐depth literature review, interviewed a small sample of IHR managers, and reviewed commercially available large sample surveys of IHR managers. Results suggest that IHR managers are concerned about determinants of the decision to accept an offer of expatriation, why expatriates show so little interest in training, perceived equity in rewards, and other areas not well studied to date. The article discusses implications for academics wishing to make their research more relevant to IHR managers and global organizations. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Negotiating ‘ethically important moments’ in research with young people: reflections of a novice researcher

The latter half of the twentieth century witnessed a surge in interest around ethics in research. Originally focused on the compilation of ethics guidelines and the importance of having all research approved by institutional review boards before commencement, discussions of research ethics have more recently centred on how such guidelines translate into ethical practice during the research process. Leisure research has been no exception to this trend. Using as an example, a research project in Ireland centred on focus groups with young people (aged 15–19) regarding their physical activity behaviours and preferences, this paper explores the situated judgement of the interviewer, a novice researcher, as she attempted to navigate four ethically important moments. Discussions centre on moments where the interviewer’s situated judgement resulted in research ethics being compromised and moments where the interviewer experienced difficulty reconciling personal and research ethics. Our intention in sharing the situations and resulting questions from this research is to shine a light on the decision-making which takes place during the research process and consider how researchers might prepare adequately to make decisions in an ethically sound way.     

Strategy, human resource management and performance: Sharpening line of sight

This paper builds on previous theory and research on strategy and human resource management to identify important linkages between the firm's strategy, its human resources, and performance outcomes. First, we review the relevant literature focusing in particular on the role of human resources in creating competitive advantage. We then present a multi-level model illustrating how human resource management practices can effectively align organizational, group and individual factors with the organization's strategy. We redefine line of sight as the alignment of organizational capabilities and culture, group competencies and norms, and individual KSAs, motivation and opportunity with one another and with the organization's strategy. Further, we propose that such alignment contributes to the creation of human capital and social capital, both of which are necessary to achieve and sustain superior performance. We conclude the paper with some implications for future research and practice.     

Costly Enforcement of Voluntary Environmental Agreements

We examine the consequences of costly enforcement on the ability of voluntary agreements with industries to meet regulatory objectives, the levels of industry participation with these agreements, and the relative efficiency of voluntary and regulatory approaches. A voluntary agreement can be more efficient in reaching an aggregate emissions target than a conventional emissions tax, but only if: (1) profitable voluntary agreements in which members of the agreement pay for its enforcement exist; (2) members of a voluntary agreement actually bear the costs of enforcing the agreement; (3) the agreement is enforced by a third-party, not the government, and (4) this third-party enforcer has a significant advantage in monitoring technology and/or available sanctions over the government.