The experiences of privately practising midwives in Australia who have been reported to the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency: A qualitative study

BackgroundIn Australia the majority of homebirths are attended by privately practising midwives (PPMs). In recent years PPMs have been increasingly reported to the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) mostly by other health professionals.Purposeto explore the experiences of PPMs in Australia who have been reported to the AHPRA.MethodsA qualitative interpretive approach, employing in-depth interviews with eight PPMs was undertaken and analysed using thematic analysis. A feminist theoretical framework was used to underpin the research.ResultsThe majority of reports made to AHPRA occurred when midwives supported women who chose care considered outside the recommended Australian College of Midwives (ACM) Consultation and Referral Guidelines. During data analysis an overarching theme emerged, “Caught between women and the system”, which described the participants’ feelings of working as a PPM in Australia. There were six themes and several sub-themes: The suppression of midwifery, A flawed system, Lack of support, Devastation on so many levels, Making changes in the aftermath and Walking a tight rope forever. The findings from this study reveal that midwives who are under investigation suffer from emotional and psychological distress. Understanding the effects of the process of investigation is important to improve the quality of professional and personal support available to PPMs who are reported to AHPRA and to streamline processes.ConclusionIt is becoming increasingly difficult for PPMs to support the wishes and needs of individual women and also meet the requirements of the regulators, as well as the increasingly risk averse health service.     

On a control chart for the Gini index with simulations

In this work we suggest the use of the Gini index on control charts. The asymptotic properties of Gini index are presented and the control charts based on appropriate confidence intervals are constructed. The suitability of the proposed charts are investigated by means of extensive simulations.     

民办幼儿园教师专业素养培训方式实验研究

随着现代教育的发展，提升幼儿园教师专业素养已成为促进学前教育发展的必然要求。以探究民办幼儿园教师专业素养为视角，提出通过干预行为提升教师专业素养水平的构想。实验随机选取成都市某民办幼儿园的20名教师为实验组，再选取与其办园环境、办园背景相似的另一所民办幼儿园的20名教师为对照组，对实验园教师的专业理念与师德、专业知识、专业能力3个维度进行干预。实验结果表明：与对照园相比，实验园教师的专业能力提升显著；与实验园实验前后相比，教师在专业知识、专业能力维度及专业素养总体水平方面均有提升。对教师培训的具体建议为：（1）单一与混合相结合的培训方式对提升民办幼儿园教师专业素养总体水平有现实意义；（2）民办幼儿园教师专业知识的提升需理论培训与自主学习相结合；（3）专家"现场诊断-指导式"培训方式对提升民办幼儿园教师专业能力有显著作用。综上，建议民办幼儿园在了解本园教师专业素养水平的基础上，针对教师专业素养的不同方面，分别采取不同的有效培训方式。     

网络空间个人信息保护的民事法律责任

网络空间个人信息权利保护日益受到重视,个人信息保护的义务及民事法律责任在学界却没有引起足够的关注。由于网络空间个人信息保护的特殊性,从本质上看是个人信息利用中的保护。个人信息保护的义务主体应进行类型化的研究,并赋予主体积极的义务。根据网络空间个人信息收集与利用情况的不同,网络空间个人信息保护的民事法律责任应当包括合同责任与侵权责任。网络空间个人信息侵权责任的归责原则是一个多元化的体系,便于信息主体的权利救济。结合我国法治建设的具体情况和信息产业的发展,网络空间个人信息保护宜采用综合立法的模式。     

Technology as a Weapon in Domestic Violence: Responding to Digital Coercive Control

ABSTRACT

Technology-facilitated domestic violence is an emerging issue for social workers and other service providers. The concept of Digital Coercive Control (DCC) is introduced to highlight the particular nature and impacts of technology-facilitated abuse in the context of domestic violence. While practitioners have become more adept at working with women experiencing DCC, there is still little known about its dynamics and whether this violence requires a change in current service responses. This article explores findings from survey research conducted with 546 Australian domestic violence practitioners about the ways perpetrators use technology as part of their abuse tactics. The findings demonstrate that DV practitioners believe perpetrator use of technology is extensive and has significant impacts on the safety of clients. A major dilemma faced by practitioners is how to promote and facilitate client safety from DCC while still enabling safe use of technology so clients can remain connected to family, friends, and community.

IMPLICATIONS

• The use of digital technology in domestic violence creates a significant practice issue for Australian domestic violence practitioners.

• The development of a practice framework for responding to digital coercive control may assist practitioners to highlight the risks posed by this abuse, while still enabling women and children the freedom to participate in the digital realm.

     

From primacy to purpose commitment: How emerging profit-with-purpose corporations open new corporate governance avenues

This paper aims at contributing to corporate governance theory by developing a model of governance that takes into account a recent legal innovation: the introduction of purpose-driven legal business forms in the corporate law of several countries. Current debates in such theory oppose models that grant “primacy” (i.e., ultimate control rights) to different constituencies. The resulting uncertainty proves problematic in the face of new, urgent social and environmental stakes that are difficult to represent in traditional governance bodies. Newly adopted profit-with-purpose corporate forms' introduction of a “purpose” in corporate contracts renews these debates. We show that through the “purpose commitment” model it enables, the distribution of control rights in the governance system is decoupled from the objectives assigned to the corporation. This new approach renews the formal role of management, and corporations’ accountability to society. We explore the theoretical, practical, and political consequences of this new model.     

母国区域制度质量对民营企业海外市场进入模式的影响

  海外市场进入模式是跨国企业实现国际化战略目标的重要战略决策。虽然国内外学者已经意识到制度因素对新兴市场跨国企业海外市场进入模式的影响，但大多集中在对东道国制度环境影响的研究，很少考虑母国区域制度环境的复杂性，且缺乏相应的实证检验。         在此背景下，基于制度理论和社会资本理论，探讨母国区域制度质量对中国民营企业海外市场进入模式的影响机理。以规制差异和文化差异为调节变量，以社会资本为中介变量，构建母国区域制度质量与民营企业海外市场进入模式之间关系的概念模型，并以2015年进行海外市场投资的210家中国民营上市企业为研究对象进行实证研究。         研究结果表明，①母国区域制度质量与民营企业海外市场进入模式呈正相关关系，即所处的母国区域制度质量越好，民营企业更倾向于选择独资的海外市场进入模式；②母国与东道国间的规制差异和文化差异负向调节母国区域制度质量与民营企业海外市场进入模式的正向关系；③社会资本对母国区域制度质量与民营企业海外市场进入模式的关系起部分中介作用，即民营企业获得的社会资本越多，对市场信息等方面的把控能力越强，越倾向于采用独资的海外市场进入模式。         研究结果展现了中国市场分割情景下民营企业海外市场进入模式的独特性，拓展了国际商务领域对新兴国家制度环境的理解和认识，促进了制度理论和社会资本理论在国际商务领域的应用和发展。在管理实践中，民营企业在进行海外市场进入模式决策时，应充分考虑其所在的区域制度环境，同时也要善于构建不同类型的社会资本，以提高企业战略决策的可靠性和有效性。     

A neuroeconomic theory of (dis) honesty

We develop a theory of dishonesty based on neurophysiological evidence that supports the idea of a two-step process in the decision to cheat. Formally, decisions can be processed vía a costless “honest” channel that generates truthful behavior or vía a costly “dishonest” channel that requires attentional resources to trade-off costs and benefits of cheating. In the first step, a decision between these two channels is made based on ex-ante information regarding the expected benefits of cheating. In the second step, decisions are based on the channel that has been selected and, when applicable, the realized benefit of cheating. The model makes novel predictions relative to existing behavioral theories. First, adding external complexity to the decision-making problem (e.g., in the form of multi-tasking) deprives the individual from attentional resources and consequently decreases the propensity to engage in dishonest behavior. Second, higher expectations about the benefits of cheating results in a higher frequency of trial-by-trial cheating for any realized benefit level. Third, multiplicity of equilibria (characterized by different levels of cheating) emerges naturally in the context of illegal markets, in which expected benefits are endogenous.