This research explores the business model (BM) evolution process of entrepreneurial companies and investigates the relationship between BM evolution and firm performance. Recently, it has been increasingly recognised that the innovative design (and re-design) of BMs is crucial to the performance of entrepreneurial firms, as BM can be associated with superior value creation and competitive advantage. However, there has been limited theoretical and empirical evidence in relation to the micro-mechanisms behind the BM evolution process and the entrepreneurial outcomes of BM evolution. This research seeks to fill this gap by opening up the ‘black box’ of the BM evolution process, exploring the micro-patterns that facilitate the continuous shaping, changing, and renewing of BMs and examining how BM evolutions create and capture value in a dynamic manner. Drawing together the BM and strategic entrepreneurship literature, this research seeks to understand: (1) how and why companies introduce BM innovations and imitations; (2) how BM innovations and imitations interplay as patterns in the BM evolution process; and (3) how BM evolution patterns affect firm performances. This research adopts a longitudinal multiple case study design that focuses on the emerging phenomenon of BM evolution. Twelve entrepreneurial firms in the Chinese Online Group Buying (OGB) industry were selected for their continuous and intensive developments of BMs and their varying success rates in this highly competitive market. Two rounds of data collection were carried out between 2013 and 2014, which generates 31 interviews with founders/co-founders and in total 5,034 pages of data. Following a three-stage research framework, the data analysis begins by mapping the BM evolution process of the twelve companies and classifying the changes in the BMs into innovations and imitations. The second stage focuses down to the BM level, which addresses the BM evolution as a dynamic process by exploring how BM innovations and imitations unfold and interplay over time. The final stage focuses on the firm level, providing theoretical explanations as to the effects of BM evolution patterns on firm performance. This research provides new insights into the nature of BM evolution by elaborating on the missing link between BM dynamics and firm performance. The findings identify four patterns of BM evolution that have different effects on a firm’s short- and long-term performance. This research contributes to the BM literature by presenting what the BM evolution process actually looks like. Moreover, it takes a step towards the process theory of the interplay between BM innovations and imitations, which addresses the role of companies’ actions, and more importantly, reactions to the competitors. Insights are also given into how entrepreneurial companies achieve and sustain value creation and capture by successfully combining the BM evolution patterns. Finally, the findings on BM evolution contributes to the strategic entrepreneurship literature by increasing the understanding of how companies compete in a more dynamic and complex environment. It reveals that, the achievement of superior firm performance is more than a simple question of whether to innovate or imitate, but rather an integration of innovation and imitation strategies over time. This study concludes with a discussion of the findings and their implications for theory and practice.

This study explores the plausible explanations for corporate social responsibility reporting (hereafter CSRR) practices in Saudi Arabian firms. It investigates the different factors that motivate companies to report their corporate social responsibility (hereafter CSR) activities from managerial perspectives, as well as the challenges that companies face when reporting their CSR activities. The study also investigates and tries to understand the role of non-corporate actors from the media, academia, NGOs, CSR consultants, and regulators in influencing companies to report their CSR activities and their perceptions of current CSRR practices in Saudi companies. An interpretive approach has been utilised in this research study, with neo-institutional theory, as proposed by DiMaggio and Powell (1983) and Scott (2008), employed as the main theoretical framework to interpret the findings. The major limitation of the neo-institutional theory in recognising active role of agents has been addressed through the work of Batillana (2006) and Battilana et al. (2009). Qualitative data collection methods were used to obtain data. A total of 34 semi-structured interviews were conducted and represented the main data collection method. In addition, documentary analysis was used as a secondary source. The findings reveal that institutional motivational factors exemplified in normative and mimetic pressures are the main drivers for CSRR. There is no evidence of coercive pressures. In addition, it is confirmed that in some cases, organizations are not merely “black boxes” in which managers have no role other than complying with the external pressures exerted on organizations, but managers and CEOs can also be drivers for CSRR. The findings also shed light on the different internal and external challenges that companies experience in reporting their CSR activities. Managerial perceptions indicate that these challenges have affected the companies’ CSRR, and sometimes led to the absence of reporting on some CSR issues. Meanwhile, the interviews allowed for identification of the different roles and perceptions of non-corporate actors in CSRR. This study concludes by providing some implications and suggestions for improvements to CSRR practices, and by proposing a number of potential avenues for future research.

Over the last three decades, Chinese society has experienced dramatic social change. China is now turning into a global superpower, both economically and militarily but not necessarily politically. Western media often embarrass Chinese political leaders for their suppression on free speech and deviation from political democracy. This is the wider social context in which this thesis locates its enquiries. The Chinese media are deeply involved in this social transition. This thesis intends to provide an up-to-date investigation into journalistic culture in contemporary China, where journalism undergoes political suppression, commercial imperatives, and technological upgrades. This thesis examines the key tenets of practising journalism. It focuses on three areas: (1) the norms of practising journalism under political suppression, (2) the main forms of and roots of journalistic corruption that have brought forth by media commercialisation, and (3) the changes and continuities in journalistic practices associated with social media. This research is mainly based on six individual interviews and six focus group interviews, carried out between January 2012 and February 2012 in Beijing and Shanghai. The research is also supported by materials gained through personal communication in these cities. The research concludes that self-censorship and journalistic corruption are two prominent features of contemporary Chinese journalism. Social media have brought both changes and continuities to journalistic practices and media control methods. In analysing the factors shaping contemporary journalism, journalists tend to highlight the impact of traditional Chinese culture. This research, however, suggests that culture does not always play a determinative role. Political, economic and cultural factors, alongside other elements, all contribute to shaping journalism. We need a more dynamic and comprehensive perspective in examining journalism, which should be spatial-temporally constructed.

The aim of this thesis was to investigate, using the real-time test case of the 2014 Commonwealth Games, whether the realist synthesis methodology could contribute to the making of health policy in a meaningful way. This was done by looking at two distinct research questions: first, whether realist synthesis could contribute new insights to the health policymaking process, and second, whether the 2014 Commonwealth Games volunteer programme was likely to have any significant, measurable, impact on health inequalities experienced by large sections of the host population. The 2014 Commonwealth Games legacy laid out ambitious plans for the event, in which it was anticipated that it would provide explicit opportunities to impact positively on health inequalities. By using realist synthesis to unpick the theories underpinning the volunteer programme, the review identifies the population subgroups for whom the programme was likely to be successful, how this could be achieved and in what contexts. In answer to the first research question, the review found that while realist methods were able to provide a more nuanced exposition of the impacts of the Games volunteer programme on health inequalities than previous traditional reviews had been able to provide, there were several drawbacks to using the method. It was found to be resource-intensive and complex, encouraging the exploration of a much wider set of literatures at the expense of an in-depth grasp of the complexities of those literatures. In answer to the second research question, the review found that the Games were, if anything, likely to exacerbate health inequalities because the programme was designed in such a way that individuals recruited to it were most likely to be those in least need of the additional mental and physical health benefits that Games volunteering was designed to provide. The following thesis details the approach taken to investigate both the realist approach to evidence synthesis and the likelihood that the 2014 Games volunteer programme would yield the expected results.

This Dissertation takes the form of a case study exploring the position of university Careers Services working under a neo-liberal paradigm. The study was motivated by a wish to explore the changes that have taken place in university Careers Services since 1997 in order to understand the changed landscape, and to provide a snapshot of the current setting that might be of use to those considering entry to and those working in careers advisory work. Additionally the study was intended to inform my own professional practice and understanding. I consider the position of Careers Services through the commentary of eight University Careers Advisers from four institutions in Scotland. Through semi-structured interviews I explore their perceptions and views about their work and the environment in which they work. Specifically, changes to work in the areas of careers education, careers information and careers guidance are considered alongside changes to the concept of career, changes in graduate employer practices, and the students and graduates organisations seek to employ. The study highlights the challenges faced by the Careers Service in universities in Scotland and explores the experiences and views of the professionals that work in that Service against a backdrop of an employability agenda and increasingly instrumentalised expectations. Giroux’s (1993) notion of education as a vehicle for individual empowerment and Nussbaum’s (2011) Capabilities Approach provide the theoretical framework to support the analysis of the state of university Careers Services and to offer a defence of the importance of careers advisory and guidance work. My data confirms that the role of university Careers Services has changed significantly post- Dearing (1997) and that, increasingly, Services based in traditional research lead universities and those in newer institutions are differentiated. The changing landscape has allowed Careers work to flourish and gain a more prominent role in some institutions, raising the profile of those Services. However, some Careers Services, the study indicates, have struggled to carve out a niche for themselves and these Services risk becoming marginalised within their institutions. A Careers Service that contributes to its university’s graduate employability objectives may secure a strong institutional position but raise questions about its activity with respect to long held underlying assumptions about careers guidance work and the ethical purpose of the activity of the Careers Service. I conclude by anticipating possible futures for the university Careers Service with a call to maintain and strengthen the function of guidance and advisory work within these Services.

This thesis explores the impact of neoliberalism on the political identity of social workers. It discusses social work as an inherently political activity that has been under attack since the advent and domination of neoliberalism since the early 1980s. It explores social work's roots in social reform and social justice and how today social work has become a depoliticised and technocratic activity. The thesis explores these phenomena through an empirical study of fourteen social workers who have a declared and enacted political identity, such as parliamentarians. It takes a biographical inquiry approach to examining their identity from early development of social reformist and social justice perspectives to facing the dilemma of neoliberalism in social work. It also deploys a constructivist grounded theory analytical process to analyse the biographical interviews and construct a substantive theory. What emerges is a study of social workers managing their social work identity in the face of changes within the social work profession and sustaining a stable social reformist political identity throughout their life course to date. It also demonstrates how strongly attached the participants are to their social work identity during their political careers. The thesis has importance for the social work profession not least because this cohort can advocate on behalf of the profession in powerful places.

This thesis explores the impact of material objects on people’s identity at work. I address the significance of this question, arguing that materiality, particularly the place it holds in the lives of individuals, has been less considered in relation to people at work than in other disciplines such as consumer studies. My research questions are: to consider how people conceptualise objects at work, to ask how objects and people are mutually implicated at work and to identify how this interactivity impacts on people’s identity at work. I review studies on material objects in organizations and studies on identity, using literature from organization studies and psychology . My data collection uses a qualitative approach based on participant-led photography. The literature review had raised the issue of many studies focusing on people at the same level in an organization. In order to develop this work, the participant group were selected from multiple organizations and different levels of employment. Participants were asked to photograph all objects in their immediate working spaces which had meaning for them. They were then asked about the meaning of the objects and completed a repertory grid analysis exercise. The thesis’ contributions consist in a specific focus on the place of materiality in identity in organizations for a wide range of workers. It draws on psychology in its use of mixed methods. It develops previous work in offering a view of materiality in practice as both representational and performative, affording practices and meeting areas of lack. It indicates that objects act as a collection through their connection to personal values which otherwise have no means of expression in the social and legal ordering of the workplace. It is recommended that organizations take cognizance of, and respect, the place which things seen as personal objects play at work.

This study aims to discuss the changing hegemonic struggles among the state, business and NGOs in the development of environmental governance of China's rare earth industry. Although rare earths are indispensable to myriad clean technologies, mining and processing rare earth ores cause heavy pollution. As the world's largest supplier, China's rare earth industry has developed at huge environmental cost. Environmental pollution in the upstream supply chains of the high-tech and new-energy industries becomes one of the most thorny issues in China's environmental governance. With the critical reviews on the varieties of capitalism approach and the neo-Gramscian governance studies, the study proposes a neo-Gramscian perspective on varieties of environmental governance, through merging a macro-level analysis of institutional diversity with a micro-level understanding of Gramscian hegemonic struggles. In line with an interpretivist stance, the study employs a qualitative case study approach to investigate the institutional variations of the state in China's varieties of governance from a planned economy to a market economy and the changing hegemonic struggles involved, with consideration of the complex historical trajectories and distinctive political economies in China. Based on the empirical evidence collected via semi-structured interviews and documentary reviews, the study carries out a critical discourse analysis to discuss a series of contested environmental issues in China's rare earth industry. Empirical findings conclude that the genres of China's varieties of governance have been transformed from highly prescriptive planning to government supervision, and the state still plays a leading role in regulating and coordinating contemporary alliance building. The study enriches the abstract VoC typologies with China's institutional diversity; extends the Gramsci framework to China‟s regime with particular emphasis of state power; provides a more plural and dynamic understanding of the hegemonic struggles within China's varieties of governance.

Research: The prevalence rate of self-harm among adolescents is high and rising. This is a worrying trend, considering that self-harm is associated with poor mental health and an increased risk of suicide. However, research literature suggests that adolescents rarely seek help and that caring for them is a complex task. Furthermore, the existing research indicates that healthcare professionals’ views and responses to working with this patient group may be influenced by interplay of individual, interpersonal and institutional processes. Those working on the frontline in inpatient settings seem to be most affected by these processes. It was proposed that to support frontline healthcare professionals in caring for this patient group theory-driven therapeutic models need to be developed. It was also proposed that psychoanalytic theories were best positioned to manage the impact of the processes posing challenges to care for adolescents who self-harm. Research aims: This thesis aimed to investigate the challenges experienced by frontline professionals caring for adolescent patients who self-harmed whilst being treated on an inpatient unit, and frontline professionals responses to these challenges, including their use of Adolescent Mentalization-Based Integrative Treatment (AMBIT), a psychodynamically-oriented approach to care for adolescents with complex needs. Method: Qualitative methods were employed in this study. Twelve participants were recruited from an adolescent inpatient unit implementing AMBIT. Data were generated with semi-structured interviews and analysed with descriptive inductive thematic analysis. Findings: Four overarching themes were generated. The first three themes informed on the challenges in care for adolescent patients associated with patients’ and frontline professionals’ unhelpful relationships on the unit; and the impact of frontline team professionals’ responses to self-harm on their practices. The fourth theme elucidated frontline professionals’ use of AMBIT. Discussion: The findings provided new insights into the processes influencing frontline professionals’ work with adolescent patients who self-harmed whilst being treated on an inpatient unit. The opportunities and challenges related to the frontline professionals’ use of AMBIT were discussed.

Shore based monitoring, communication, coordination and management of vessel traffic in ports worldwide is a real world problem. Informed by ethnomethodological studies of work, this thesis explores the ordered in situ work of Vessel Traffic Service Operators (VTSOs); the coordination of vessel traffic; the fine grained artful performance and achievement of safe fairway navigation and the challenges faced by the VTS operators in the daily accomplishment of their institutional role. An important source of data in this ethnographic study is the naturally occurring interaction on the main working Very High Frequency (VHF) radio channel of the port, which helps explore institutional talk at work deployed to facilitate interaction, negotiation and the accomplishment of safe navigation. Three additional research techniques are utilised for data generation – observations, semi structured interviews and unstructured interviews. The case of a major Indian world port is utilised to explore the daily work of marine traffic coordination and the (pro)active interactional accomplishment of channel navigation. Research takes place against the dynamic backdrop of the harbour – a complex space with a myriad of social actors populating the scene – the VTS operators atop their tower; shipboard seafarers negotiating restricted waters; pilots rendering pilotage services; Dock Master commanding the station; seafarers aboard small local craft and lively fishermen who at times pepper the marine radio with colourful language. Two categories of findings emerge – port interaction order, institutional talk and the contingent practices that accomplish the safety/time critical work and the technological, organisational and social constraints that shape, affect and inform the work of the VTS operators. This study fills a gap in ethnomethodological studies of work with its focus on the VTS work site – a centre of coordination; it explores social order and contributes to the understanding of the local practical achievement of traffic coordination and channel navigation in restricted waters. It also contributes to our understanding of the constraints faced by the workers in the safety critical VTS work setting. Also discussed are the status of VTS operators and occupational hierarchy in the world port. The thick description of in situ VTS’ work informs maritime safety, particularly relevant in safety critical, congested and restricted sea areas.