Disability, (auto)mobility and austerity: shrinking horizons and spaces of refuge

In Britain, many disabled people have access to a car through the Motability Scheme. However, with recent news of thousands of disability claimants losing their cars in cuts, it is worth reflecting on the cultural and symbolic importance of the motor car. This article considers the car’s ability to expand spatial and experiential horizons and offer a site of sanctuary for disabled people, and asks what can be lost in the wake of the recent government reassessment of the scheme.     

Employees' perceptions of organizational restructuring: The role of social support

Organizational change and restructuring is often perceived as leading to increased occupational stress, impacting negatively on the psychological well-being of employees. This pragmatic study investigates the role of social support and dispositional affect as moderators of role stress post-restructuring for employees in a public utility company. A total of 176 employees, including 37 managers, 60 graded staff and 78 industrial staff completed a self-report questionnaire, approximately 1 year postrestructuring, retrospectively assessing role conflict, ambiguity, overload and positive and negative feedback pre- and post-restructuring. Results suggested that overall role stress increased for managers/ senior officers and graded staff, but not for industrial staff. Social support was linked with lower role stress, more positive feedback and less negative feedback at post-restructuring. For certain role stressors this impact was moderated by dispositional affect, but the effect was not consistent across occupational groups. Positive affect enhanced the effect of manager support in reducing role conflict for graded staff, and the effect of co-worker support in increasing positive feedback and reducing negative feedback for industrial staff. Findings suggest that managers should pay particular attention to support and feedback for employees during periods of chronic occupational stress following organizational restructuring.     

燃气轮机实际循环熵产分析与性能参数评价

基于热力学第二定律,引入无量纲熵产数Ns表示燃气轮机装置热力性能完善程度,对其进行热力性能熵产分析.研究了表征燃气轮机装置热力性能参数:回热度σ、温度比τ、压力比π、循环有用功系数λ等对循环性能的影响及其相互关系.结果表明,采用有回热的循环Ns相比无回热的循环Ns明显减小,且在σ较大的情况下,Ns随π增大而增大,但变化不明显,随τ增大而减小.因此可通过增大τ、增大σ(≥0.7)和适当选取π以获得较大的循环热效率ηi及较小的Ns.在较高τ的情况下,尽量提高λ,以减小Ns.     

Employees' perceptions of organizational restructuring: the role of social support

Organizational change and restructuring is often perceived as leading to increased occupational stress, impacting negatively on the psychological well-being of employees. This pragmatic study investigates the role of social support and dispositional affect as moderators of role stress post-restructuring for employees in a public utility company. A total of 176 employees, including 37 managers, 60 graded staff and 78 industrial staff completed a self-report questionnaire, approximately 1 year postrestructuring, retrospectively assessing role conflict, ambiguity, overload and positive and negative feedback pre- and post-restructuring. Results suggested that overall role stress increased for managers/ senior officers and graded staff, but not for industrial staff. Social support was linked with lower role stress, more positive feedback and less negative feedback at post-restructuring. For certain role stressors this impact was moderated by dispositional affect, but the effect was not consistent across occupational groups. Positive affect enhanced the effect of manager support in reducing role conflict for graded staff, and the effect of co-worker support in increasing positive feedback and reducing negative feedback for industrial staff. Findings suggest that managers should pay particular attention to support and feedback for employees during periods of chronic occupational stress following organizational restructuring.     

Euro-myth: nationalism,war and the legitimacy of the European Union

This article engages with Montserrat Guibernau's argument about the ‘non-emotional’ nature of European identity. In critiquing this argument, this article also advances a broader argument of its own: that we are witnessing an emergent European nationalism. The article suggests that although there are few people who passionately defend European integration today, those that do are increasingly resorting to arguments that depend simultaneously on invoking and rejecting collective memories of intra-European conflict derived from the ‘emotive’ period of European integration in the 1940s to shore up the increasingly challenged legitimacy of the European Union today in its hour of greatest crisis.     

“Learning to become a better man”: Insights from a fathering programme for incarcerated Indigenous men

This paper reports a qualitative study of incarcerated Indigenous fathers in Australia, using a framework of generative fathering. Researchers interviewed 28 imprisoned Indigenous men about their experiences of parenting and their responses to a parenting programme. Participants identified how the programme supported their learning and their capacity to embrace the role of parenting the next generation. Responses indicate that the programme's format and content were relevant to their experience as Indigenous fathers, and enhanced by the skills of the facilitator, and provision of a safe learning environment. It facilitated their growth as individuals and as parents through acknowledging their cultural identity and roles.     

"The young ones are the condom generation": condom use amongst out-of-school adolescents in rural southwest Uganda

This article reports on factors influencing condom use among out-of-school adolescents in rural southwest Uganda. Despite an abundance of negative discourses and myths about condoms in the community, these adolescents believe condoms protect them from sexually transmitted infections, HIV, and premarital pregnancies. Girls want partners to use condoms, but most lack the confidence to insist. Girls aged 13 to 14 reported the least difficulty asking for condoms; older girls attributed this to coming-of-age in the era of AIDS when condom use is the norm. Boys under 16 years want to use condoms, but lack confidence in application skills. Boys over 17 years always use condoms with casual partners, but only occasionally for pregnancy prevention with steady partners. Girls need skills training to improve confidence in negotiating condom use. Younger boys require training to improve confidence in skills with condom application. These findings are compared with studies conducted with in-school adolescents in the same study area. Health promotions that provide this skills training and focus on the need to think of the health of future family would be most effective for out-of-school adolescents. This study shows that it is self-confidence, rather than years of schooling, that has the greatest impact on condom use in this cohort.     

人道主义的拓宽与超越——艾特玛托夫小说的悲剧意蕴探微

人道主义是人类用以达到和平协议的共同语言。艾特玛托夫的悲剧小说正是对人道主义思想上的弘扬。通过分析艾特玛托夫的悲剧小说,探讨其作品的悲剧意识、悲剧人物的生存境况,以及小说体现的人道主义思想内涵,从而揭示出作者对整个人类命运的深情关注。他作品中的悲剧性不是导致悲观主义和消极无为而是饱含着乐观的基调和积极的因素。     

研究生英语听说课堂中输出驱动假设的应用

通过研究生听说课堂的教学实例从语言输出的作用角度阐释了在研究生英语听说课堂中该假设的实践应用以及与此相应的语言输出实施策略。