Job satisfaction has effects that touch both the employee and employer, these effects include career success, work-family facilitation, turnover intentions, engagement, absenteeism, and quality of work. Having work flexibility measures in the work place can lead to improved job satisfaction. In this dissertation, we study the relationship between work flexibility and job satisfaction through investigating the mediating role of employee empowerment. Building on extant theories, a partial least square structural model is developed to study the relationships between work flexibility, empowerment, and job satisfaction. Perceptions of pay and turnover intentions are included in the model as dependent constructs. The model shows strong links between work flexibility and job satisfaction. Also, it is concluded that empowerment plays an important role in mediating the relationship between work flexibility and job satisfaction. It is observed that empowerment leads to improved perceptions of pay and that improved perceptions of pay together with job satisfaction lead to lower turnover intentions.

Healthcare in the UK is a very important sector; it provides state of the art accommodation that meets the need of patients, visitors, medical professionals and other staff. The UK Government is currently cutting costs within the different sectors of the economy, while there are raising figures in UK National Health Service (NHS) spending. These are due to a growing and ageing population, advancement in modern healthcare delivery and special needs for different facility users. There is a UK Government proposal set out that requires the delivery of ??15-20 billion in efficiency savings over the three year period from 2011 (Department of Health, 2010-2015). This study has understood that cost savings can be achieved by adopting and implementing a framework that supports refurbishment, flexibility, standardisation and Building Information Modelling (BIM). These cost savings can be achieved through Mechanical Engineering and Plumbing (MEP) clash detections using (BIM). 65% of hospital designs are centred on MEP services (interviews). The NHS needs to save cost when responding to possible future changes without compromising the quality of standard provided to the public. A change-ready healthcare facility is proposed to address the issue of change and the design of quality spaces that can enhance effectiveness and efficiency in the delivery of health and social care. A change-ready healthcare facility can be described as a facility that accommodates known or proposed future changes creating novel pathways to increase the quality and life span of facilities. There is also a large chunk of NHS estates that is underutilised EC Harris, (2013). Therefore, healthcare facilities need to respond to future changes in order to optimise their spaces. To achieve quality and cost efficiency in healthcare buildings, key considerations are refurbishment and reconfiguration, optimisation of flexibility, maximising standardisation and implementation of BIM. This research explores opportunities to save costs, time and improve quality of healthcare facilities by making emphasis on the design delivery process. Therefore, the new RIBA Plan of Work 2013 was used as a mechanism to help translate ideas into physical form and yet has been hindered by lack of development and ability to keep up with technological development such as BIM. This is the rationale for developing a framework. The RIBA Plan of Work is accepted nationally. Due to the UK BIM mandate by 2016, this research is focused on the use of BIM to support both space standardisation and space flexibility within a refurbished or new building. Space is a vital component competent in every healthcare facility. It provides the environment for healthcare services to be performed, and links one functional space to another, it can be designed for multifunctional usage. Healthcare spaces are complex entities due to the range of services and technology they support and the number, variety and quality of requirement combined with a rapidly changing environment. Flexibility enables a facility to easily respond to changes, while the introduction of standardisation supports staff performance by reducing the reliance on memory which will reduce human error. But the main question that emerges from current literature is how healthcare designers and planners manage healthcare spaces that cannot easily be standardised due to the constraints of existing structures, diversity in patient and staff needs? With analysis of different flexibility frameworks in the Architecture, Engineering and Construction (AEC) industry, there is a need to improve the existing frameworks. Therefore, a framework for designing a change-ready healthcare facility was developed through a sequence of data analysis starting with literature, preliminary data, questionnaire survey and interviews. Three frameworks for designing a change-ready facility were revised, organised and merged to produce a state of the art framework. Three frameworks were revised as different research methods were required. The successful framework can guide the design process of embedding different flexible design options for a defined project brief to save costs and improve design efficiency. The framework was validated with some of the top 100 architectural practices in the UK, NHS Estates, facility managers and the RIBA through an interview process. Further research and development arising from this research focuses on the process of applying BIM to record or identify key decisions taken for each of the different design options generated from a single brief to inform the designers, clients or other stakeholders involved while collaborating. Findings of this research are described in five peer-reviewed papers. The only certainty in healthcare is change Gressel and Hilands, (2008).

INTRODUCTION: Tightness of the hip flexor muscle group may contribute to altered sagittal plane kinematics of the lumbo-pelvic-hip (LPH) complex during dynamic movements. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to analyze the effects of a three-week home-based stretching program on passive hip extension (PHE), as well as on active hip extension (AHE), anterior pelvic tilt (APT), and lumbar spine extension (LSE) when running. METHODS: Twenty healthy subjects with limited PHE underwent a 3D gait analysis both prior (PRE) and following (POST) a three-week static hip flexor stretching program. RESULTS: Following the stretching program, peak PHE increased significantly (P < 0.001), while no significant improvements were reported in AHE, APT, or LSE. In addition, no relationship was found between the change in PHE with either the change in AHE, APT, or LSE. Finally, a high relationship was observed between AHE and APT during running (r = 0.83, p < 0.001), and low relationships were observed between APT and LSE (r = -0.41, p = 0.08) and AHE and LSE (r = -0.34, p = 0.15). CONCLUSION: A three-week static stretching program of the hip flexor musculature resulted in an increase in PHE, but the sagittal plane kinematics of the LPH complex during running remained unchanged. The correlations observed between AHE, APT, and LSE suggest there is a kinematic relationship between the hip, pelvis, and spine.

No description available.

Sėkmingam įvairių pratimų ir jų kombinacijų atlikimui labai svarbi koordinacija. 8 – 10 metų gimastės dar sunkiai jaučia muzikos tempo pagreitėjimą ir sulėtėjimą, reikiamu metu sunkiai sutelkia dėmesį bei ne visada greitai greitai įvertina situaciją. Visą tai jos turi susikoncentravusios atlikti meninė gimnastikos šokio metu tik per 1 min. 30 s. Visa tai šiek tiek panašu i estafečių atlikimą su įvairiais įrankiais per kuo trumpesnį laiką. Matydami šią problemą, manome, jog būtų tikslinga parengti estafečių kompleksus, lavinančius koordinacinius gebėjimus. Tyrimo tikslas: Ištirti 8-10 metų mergaičių koordinacinių gebėjimų lavinimo aspektus, taikant estafečių variantus per meninės gimnastikos pratybas. Tyrimo tikslo įgyvendinimo metodai: literatūros analizė, pedagoginis eksperimentas, testavimas, matematinės statistikos metodai. Eksperimentinės programos sudarytų estafečių kompleksų turinį sudarė bėgimo su kaspinais ir be jų, kamuolių varymo, gimnastikos šuolų su šokdynėmis ir be jų, šuolių pro lankus, statinė pusiausvyra, akrobatiniai ir kiti neįprasti pratimai. Testavome kai kurių fizinių ypatybių, o plačiau atskirų koordinacinių gebėjimų lygį tyrimo pradžioje ir pabaigoje. Eksperimento pradžioje visi gauti tyrimų rezultatai buvo statistiškai nepatikimi (3 lentelė). E1 grupės mergaitės kas antrą treniruotę, užsiėmimų pabaigoje buvo suskirstytos į dvi grupes, ir bėgo keturias skirtingo turinio estafetes. Jos efektingai pagerino šios grupės mergaičių koordinacijos gebėjimų... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / To the succesful performance of different combinations and exercises very important is coordination. For 8 - 10 years gimnasts still hard to feel the music tempo acceleration and deceleration, at the appropriate time hardly focuses their attention quickly and not always quickly assess the situation - flight of the tool path, the balance suport. All this is concentrated in the rhytmic gymnastics dance at just 1 min. 30 sec. Seeing this problem, we believe that it would be appropriate to prepare a relay of complexes training coordination skills at early age. Research purpose: analyse coordinating skills develpment peculiarity of 8-10 years old girls during the rhythmic gymnastics practical training. Research purpose methods: pedagogical experiment, the testing, mathematical statistics methods, analysis of literature. Experimental program relayed the contents of running with or without ribbons, balls, gymnastic jumps with and without ropes, jumps through hoops, static balance, acrobatic and other unusual exercises. We tested certain physical features, and more widley coordination of individual skills levels at the beginning and end of the experiment. At the beginning of the experiment all test results were unreliable (3 table). E1 group girls every second training at the end of it were divided into two groups, and ran four relays with different content. They had efectively improved coordination skills, physical features results during the experimental period, but only the... [to full text]

PURPOSE: Obese women have increased rates of metabolic diseases compared to those of healthy weight status. Additionally, African-American (AA) women have higher rates of metabolic disease compared to Caucasian (CA) women. Metabolic inflexibility is the inability to adjust substrate oxidation in response to dietary intake; potentially leading to weight gain and the development of metabolic disease. Few studies have investigated the impact of weight status and/or ethnicity on the metabolic response of women to a single high fat meal. An acute unfavorable metabolic response may contribute to the higher incidence of metabolic disease among not only obese, but also AA women. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine the impact that weight status (lean vs. overweight/obese) and/or ethnicity (CA vs. AA) has on metabolic health in women in response to a single high fat meal. METHODS: CA (n= 15; age=26.27±5.65 yrs; BMI=30.72±11.92kg/m2) and AA (n= 12; age=26.75±6.65yrs; BMI=28.32±6.91kg/m2) women consumed a high fat shake (1062 calories, 56% fat). Blood was drawn and resting energy expenditure (REE) and substrate oxidation (estimated using indirect calorimetry) were assessed at baseline/fasted (T1), 120 minutes post-shake, (T2) 240 minutes post-shake (T3). RESULTS: Lipid and carbohydrate oxidation significantly increased among all women in response to the high fat meal (p<0.01). Significant increases in fat oxidation were seen from T1-T2 for all women (CA lean: +57.9±24.5%; CA overweight/obese: +30.2±11.8%; AA lean: +10.2±18.1%; AA overweight/obese: +40.6±52.6%; p<0.01). Among the CA women only, CA lean women displayed a significantly higher increase in fat oxidation in response to the meal compared to CA overweight/obese women, but there were no differences among lean and overweight/obese AA women. Similarly, weight status influenced changes in apolipoproteins after consuming the high fat meal among CA women, but not AA women. CONCLUSIONS: CA lean women displayed the most metabolic flexibility in response to the high fat meal. A metabolic system that is less able to respond to metabolic stimuli such as a high fat diet (as noted in all groups compared to lean CA women) may play a role in the increased metabolic disease prevalence among obese and AA women.

Psychological flexibility (PF), the core process of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT; a third-wave cognitive-behavioral therapy), is the ability to stay focused on the present moment and intentionally engage in value-driven behavior despite experiencing difficult thoughts or feelings. This multifaceted construct includes components that target processes occurring both internally (e.g., cognitive processes) and behaviorally (e.g., value-consistent actions). Psychological flexibility has been applied to studies of adjustment in non-clinical samples and may be beneficial for college students as individuals navigate novel developmental stressors. Despite evidence suggesting the benefits of PF for psychological distress, additional work is needed to examine the potential of PF to foster adaptive functioning. The current study builds on previous research by a) conceptualizing distinct internal and behavioral components of PF as promotive factors and b) emphasizing competence-focused outcomes. This research examined the influence of components of PF over the course of an academic semester. A sample of college students (N = 250) completed self-report measures online at the beginning (Time 1) and end (Time 2) of a college semester. Measures included components of PF, competence, and demographic and academic information. Structural equation modeling was used to examine associations between components of PF at Time 1 on competence at Time 2, while accounting for the influence of competence at Time 1. Findings suggested that within the social domain, value-consistent action at Time 1 was associated with increased social competence at Time 2. Additional results indicated that baseline competence accounted for associations between components of PF and Time 2 competence. Implications for the dissemination of ACT-informed efforts to promote positive adjustment among college students are reviewed, and future research directions are discussed.

Chapter 1: Objective: The systematic review aimed to review the literature on burnout and its relationship to depression within the acute in-patient mental health services: psychiatric units and specifically, secure forensic mental health services. Methods: The review process included a systematic search across five databases (Medline, PsychINFO, Cinahl Plus, EMBASE and SCOPUS). Eligible studies included a cross-sectional design, using validated measures on burnout and depression. Results: A strong relationship between depression and emotional exhaustion was found. The relationship between depression and two other burnout dimensions (personal accomplishment, depersonalisation) was weaker and better explained in the context of other predicting (anxiety) and mediating (transformational leadership) variables. While depression severity across the studies was mostly mild with average burnout, service-specific variations were observed. Chapter 2: Objective: The empirical study aimed to explore any direct relationships of subjectively perceived understanding, predictability, control (job demands) with burnout and job satisfaction, and direct/in-direct effects of social support, psychological mindedness and psychological inflexibility (external and internal resources) on these relationships. Methods: Data was collected among Scottish National Health Service (NHS) employees (n=198) working in secure mental health services; forensic (58.65%) or intellectual disability (41.35%). Data gathered from the final sample of 141 nursing staff was analysed using t-tests, bi-variate correlations, hierarchical regressions and a series of mediation, moderation and moderated-mediation analyses. Results: The empirical study revealed that individual burnout dimensions were predicted by different job demands. Social support appeared as predictor rather than a moderator of job satisfaction and emotional exhaustion while psychological inflexibility was a mediator for job demands and burnout. Overall Conclusions: Concluding remarks for both, systematic review and empirical study, identify the need for further research, especially within the forensic mental health speciality. Both highlight that direct and in-direct effects may be important in explaining burnout while the empirical study makes further suggestion with regards to likely individualised pathways and two important resources of social support and psychological flexibility.

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) is designed to target psychological flexibility, broadly defined as engagement with personal values regardless of the presence of difficult private events. As engagement with valued behaviors is imperative to psychological flexibility, clarification of values is an essential skill for clients to learn. Practicing of skills in treatment has historically been a difficult hurdle for clinicians to implement between sessions for clients as well. The present study examined the utility of a novel values card sort activity, as well as the utility of a rubber band to act as a reminding agent for engagement with values. 112 undergraduate students were randomly assigned to one of three conditions: a values card sort condition, a values card sort condition with a rubber band given to the participant, and a control card sort condition. Each participant completed questionnaires assessing connection with values, lack of contact with values, negative affect, and quality of life at baseline and at a one-week follow-up. A series of ANCOVAs were conducted to determine if there were any group differences between the three conditions at follow-up, with baseline scores as a covariate. The analyses indicate no significant difference between the conditions at follow-up across any of the variables of interest. Endorsement of prior therapy experience suggested unique trends and differential reaction to the card sorting activity. These findings suggest the values card sort may not be an effective intervention for subclinical populations but may be a fruitful intervention for clinically-elevated individuals.

Multi-skilling, an organisational strategy aimed at increasing the skill repertoire of the worker with the intent of facilitating the role and task flexibility among organisational members, is investigated.A literature review on the subject identified a number of factors contributing towards the development of a multi-skilled workforce. These ranged from the abolition of demarcation restrictions between jobs and skill-based pay systems, to the modification of the supervisory role. However, the literature fails to consider the role of technology in such developments. It was suggested that this was central to the development of skills.A framework was proposed that hypothesized a relationship between technological uncertainty the extent to which task activities are varied and difficult and skill requirements. It was further hypothesized that technology influences the structuring of activities within organisational subsystems. It was suggested that these would act either to facilitate or inhibit multi-skilling development.The structuring of activities within a unit consist of specialisation (the number of different tasks assigned to the unit); standardisation (the degree to which policies, rules, and procedures are formalised and used to guide action); interchangeability (the extent to which A can perform Bs job at short notice, and vice versa); locus of authority (the source of decision-making authority within the unit, for example, the supervisor rather than the worker); and skill heterogeneity (the variability in skill composition among unit members).A preliminary evaluation of the framework was carried out in an organisation engaged in the processing of mineral ore, with a largely semi-skilled workforce (N=165), where a multi-skilling programme was in progress.Evidence was presented that suggested a relationship between the level of technological uncertainty and ++ / skill development. However, the results failed to confirm the pervasive influence of technology with regard to the structuring of activities within subsystems. Instead, technological uncertainty was significantly related to the design of jobs, and specifically to the degree of the standardisation of jobs of organisational members. Also, contrary to the anticipated direction, there was an association between perceived standardisation of activities within subsystems and job satisfaction.