Evidence‐based Management in Practice: Opening up the Decision Process,Decision‐maker and Context

Evidence‐based management (EBM) has been subject to a number of persuasive critiques in recent years. Concerns have been raised that: EBM over‐privileges rationality as a basis for decision‐making; ‘scientific’ evidence is insufficient and incomplete as a basis for management practice; understanding of how EBM actually plays out in practice is limited; and, although ideas were originally taken from evidence‐based medicine, individual‐situated expertise has been forgotten in the transfer. To address these concerns, the authors adopted an approach of ‘opening up’ the decision process, the decision‐maker and the context (Langley et al. ( 1995 ). ‘Opening up decision making: the view from the black stool’, Organization Science, 6, pp. 260–279). The empirical investigation focuses on an EBM decision process involving an operations management problem in a hospital emergency department in Australia. Based on interview and archival research, it describes how an EBM decision process was enacted by a physician manager. It identifies the role of ‘fit’ between the decision‐maker and the organizational context in enabling an evidence‐based process and develops insights for EBM theory and practice.     

Economic Restructuring,Gender, and Informal Work: A Case Study of a Rural County1

Abstract This paper combines three issues that have previously been considered separately: economic restructuring, gender, and participation in the informal economy. Drawing on two complementary data sets of interviews with the residents of a rural county, the paper first suggests that the participation in the informal economy is extensive. The second major finding is that households whose members have held on to “good” work in the formal economy participate in the informal economy in a different way than do households whose members are less fortunate. Third, the paper demonstrates that participation in the informal economy is highly differentiated by gender. Finally the intersections among location in the formal economy, gender, and informal economic activities are discussed.     

A case study of failure to thrive and inter‐agency work

Social workers and medical professionals have an ambiguous relationship. Though expected to work together within the child protection regulations of the Children Act 1989, there are many tensions. In general, social workers and health visitors enjoy close working relationships, but tensions are frequently experienced as one proceeds higher up the medical hierarchy. The reasons for this may be numerous, but in practice may obstruct speedy action in detection and prevention of disease which is social in aetiology — yet all professionals have an important role. I hope to demonstrate this in the following case study, where ‘failure to thrive’ took 18 months to evidence but, without inter‐agency working, might have proved fatal to the child. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The unequal impact of Covid-19 on the lives and rights of the children of modern slavery survivors,children in exploitation and children at risk of entering exploitation

This article discusses the unequal impact of Covid-19 on the lives of the children of survivors of modern slavery, child victims of exploitation and children at risk of exploitation in the UK. It draws on research that has analysed the risks and impacts of Covid-19 on victims and survivors of modern slavery. It explores how pandemic responses may have hindered these children's rights to education, food, safety, development and participation and representation in legal processes. It suggests that the pandemic should be used as an impetus to address inequalities that existed pre-Covid-19 and those that have been exacerbated by it.     

The stratified win statistics (win ratio,win odds,and net benefit)

The win odds and the net benefit are related directly to each other and indirectly, through ties, to the win ratio. These three win statistics test the same null hypothesis of equal win probabilities between two groups. They provide similar p-values and powers, because the Z-values of their statistical tests are approximately equal. Thus, they can complement one another to show the strength of a treatment effect. In this article, we show that the estimated variances of the win statistics are also directly related regardless of ties or indirectly related through ties. Since its introduction in 2018, the stratified win ratio has been applied in designs and analyses of clinical trials, including Phase III and Phase IV studies. This article generalizes the stratified method to the win odds and the net benefit. As a result, the relations of the three win statistics and the approximate equivalence of their statistical tests also hold for the stratified win statistics.     

Preventing child abuse and neglect: a national evaluation of Parents Anonymous groups

This evaluation assessed whether participation in Parents Anonymous mutual support groups was associated with child maltreatment prevention. Parents new to groups across the United States were interviewed at baseline, one month, and six months. Using standardized scales, all parents showed improvements in some child maltreatment outcomes, risk factors, and protective factors. Parents starting out with particularly serious needs showed statistically significant improvement on every scale. Results indicated that Parents Anonymous participation contributes to child maltreatment reduction.     

Adaptation of a community-based participatory research model to gain community input on identifying indicators of successful parenting

Parenting models are generally based on families in stable homes, rather than in transitional situations such as in foster care, homeless shelters, and other temporary, at-risk residences. Consequently, these models do not recognize the unique challenges of families in transition. This study explored the domains of the Circumplex Model and examined its fit for transitional families using tenets from community-based participatory research. Findings suggest that in addition to the Circumplex Model's components, caregivers with children living in transition believe that managing the scrutiny of external authority systems and countering the negative influences of poverty and racism are two indicators that contribute to parenting success. Obtaining consumer-informed views of parenting not only is an important contributor to standards of practice, but also a promising avenue for future research.