Initiating the use of Computerised information systems (CISs) has become a global trend, including in Taiwan. Although CISs sound promising for improving clinical effectiveness and efficiency, evidence demonstrating their actual benefits is still limited. How CISs influence nursing practice and professionalism is not widely known, and the actual implementation process is not well understood. Hence, this study explores (1) the impact of CISs on the role of nurses and their practice, (2) the context of developing and implementing CISs, and (3) the practice politics underlying the use of information technologies in a Taiwanese hospital. A single, embedded, qualitative case study was conducted. Data collection used multiple methods, combining elite interviews with nurse managers (n=13) and informatics staff (n=3), five focus groups with front-line registered nurses (n=25) and 47 hours of non-participant observation in six wards in the case-study hospital. Data analysis followed a thematic approach, comparing and contrasting patterns among multiple perspectives. Four major themes emerged from the analysis. Firstly, the development of CISs was a result of negotiated order and relied upon interdisciplinary collaboration. Through interdisciplinary interactions of negotiations, covert negotiations and renegotiations, the exercise of power and power imbalances were recognised. Secondly, a top-down approach was adopted in the implementation process. In order to move computerisation forward, head nurses acted as change agents in gaining compliance from nurses. Front-line nurses showed generally positive attitudes towards computerisation. Being daily system users, front-line nurses were relatively powerless and were compliant with the top-down implementation; however, they grumbled at the same time. Thirdly, through system design strategies to structure clinical activities and increase information transparency, CISs became helpful tools in achieving standardised practice, tightening up managerial surveillance and control and clearly defining employees' accountabilities. Finally, whilst convenience and efficiency were perceived as the results of computerisation, hardware problems and the burdens of the computerisation process created hidden work in nursing practice, which required nurses to care for computers whilst caring for patients. Through the lens of several social theories, the study findings indicated that power in developing and implementing CISs was not in the hands of the nursing profession. The findings manifested the disciplinary power of computer technology and also suggest that computerisation may de-skill the nursing profession which may reignite the technology and skilling debate. Although generally believed to facilitate performance efficiency, this study found that computer technology created unfavourable consequences, for example hidden work, which seems to be unrecognised in the literature. Computers became the nurses 'co-client' and consequently took time away from patient care so computerisation may not be as efficient and effective as expected. Finally, a qualitative case study was found to be an appropriate methodology to explore this complex issue comprehensively and holistically. However, this small, single case study was conducted in one location in Taiwan. More research is needed to verify the findings which may have significant implications for management, policy and practice.

The main motivations of this thesis are to bring new insights into the different forms of international assignment in a non-multinational context. For this purpose, the dissertation provides new evidence on the roles of different forms of international assignees in offshore insourcing and outsourcing arrangements. The thesis is based on four research essays. The first chapter develops a conceptual framework that links the extent of international assignments to the characteristics of service offshoring strategies in terms of drivers, task complexity, governance mode, and host country location. We argue that offshoring strategies are associated with different needs for control, coordination and transfer of tacit knowledge. Those needs are in turn best served by using a different combination of international assignments. The model suggests that opting for extensive international transfers when the offshoring strategy does not require doing so, exposes firms to unnecessary extra costs. On the contrary, limiting the use of international transfers below the level required to guarantee cross-border control, coordination and knowledge transfer increases the risk of not being able to integrate the offshored services. Therefore, the adequate use of various forms of international assignments (such as expatriation, inpatriation and virtual assignments) constitutes an important capability for the offshoring organization to be able to integrate globally dispersed value chain activities whilst at the same time containing costs. The aim of Chapter 2 is to develop a comprehensive integrative framework that provides a deeper understanding of the use of expatriates and inpatriates to exert control in the specific context of offshore outsourcing. This study extends the agency theory by investigating different practices used by expatriates and inpatriates to exert control on third party providers in order to reduce the agency problems of the client-provider relationships. The research approach consists of an exploratory qualitative study of 32 offshore outsourcing initiatives from 32 companies located in Belgium. The model suggests that even though expatriates and inpatriates play a vital role in exerting control through different strategic control practices implemented in the client company or the third-party provider, they may differ in various matters. Companies prefer to use inpatriates than expatriates as the latter is difficult to find, costly, have an attitude of dominance, and have difficulties in adjusting to the new environment. The specific advantage of using inpatriates is that they provide unique understanding and insight into ‘why things are happening’, which is difficult for expatriates to decipher. This emphasises that the process of inpatriating offshore members into the client company appears to hold significant potential in exerting control in offshore outsourcing relations. Control is a role that has traditionally been attributed to expatriates. Our research shows that inpatriates offer valid alternative with several advantages in the context of offshoring.Chapter 3 develops a comprehensive framework of potential factors responsible for hindering the learning process of offshore team members that should be considered in an offshore insourcing context. This paper adopts a longitudinal case study approach for over a period of one year for studying a large firm in the financial services sector based in Belgium and offshoring its service in Poland. The study focuses on a firm that has set up its own service operations abroad using an offshore insourcing arrangement. Based on a longitudinal study, this research recognizes delayed barriers that still hinder the learning process of offshore team members. Unexpectedly, the study demonstrates that the role of expatriates and inpatriates is an influencing factor (positive or negative) in the learning process of offshore team members. In addition, the results highlighted the fact that short-term perspectives for companies to fully benefit from their actions may not be the solution to enable offshore team members to learn their tasks efficiently in the long-run. Even though offshoring provides access to lower costs and specialised resources, the primary challenge faced by companies is to be able to manage its knowledge efficiently across locations and facilitate the access of knowledge to its offshore team members. The purpose of chapter 4 is to explore how a large firm in the financial service sector transfers different types of knowledge, particularly through different forms of international assignees in an offshore insourcing arrangement. This study adopted a single in-depth case study of a firm based in Belgium where his offshore location is in Poland. The findings from 31 interviews concluded that different forms of international assignees are used in the form of complementary sequences to transfer various types of knowledge during the offshore insourcing arrangement. Therefore, all international assignments are not the same and should not be generalised into one category. Further, the findings offer qualitative evidence to support the roles of different forms of international assignees for creating and retaining new knowledge and avoiding knowledge loss for the organisation. / Doctorat en Sciences économiques et de gestion / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) are becoming increasingly prevalent in peoples’ daily lives due to the presence of e-government. This research aims to identify and understand factors affecting the adoption and use of e-government services in a public sector organisation in a developing country, in this case, Abu Dhabi Police Force (ADPF) in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). For this purpose a theoretical framework based on existing e-government and e-services literature was developed. To determine its applicability, a qualitative approach involving 200 participants’ interviews was used in this study. The questions for the interviews were based on the constructs derived from classic theories in the literature. The theories are: Diffusion of Innovations Theory (DOI), Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), Decomposed Theory of Planned Behaviour (DTPB) and e-Commerce’s Trustworthiness models. The research study results revealed that departments that had roles and responsibilities aligned with government online products and services, adopted e-services better. Where training and awareness was provided, individuals adopted e-services better, and where trust in the provision of e-services was divided in two. The first relates to e-services being better than a manual service as e-services provide clarity and transparency. The second form of trust aligns with confidentiality and privacy. A subset of the research revealed that demographic factors that include, an organisational structure position and the role that one has, inhibit or encourages the use and adoption of e-services. The contributions from this research are anticipated to be a better understanding of the adoption, diffusion and use of e-services in the UAE region. For theory, this research study provided a diverse approach (qualitative research) in an organisational context, the development of a conceptual framework specific to Abu Dhabi’s public sector department and finally, there is research conducted on government to employee e-services in Abu Dhabi, a rare occurrence. For policymakers, the contribution of this research is that the research can understand the impacts of policies and strategies used for developing and implementing e-services. For practice the contribution can be in the form of results that organisations providing external consultancy services in the UAE can identify and understand. Therefore, results such as, lower positions individuals in departments not utilising e-services emerged and suggest that awareness should be inherent within the organisation. By doing so, fewer risks and waste of resources in the form of time and personnel can be avoided.

Online courses are complex, human-driven contexts for formal learning. Little has been said about the environment emerging from the interaction of instructor(s), learners, and other resources in such courses. Theories that focus on instructional settings and methods that are designed to accommodate inquiry into complex phenomena are essential to the systematic study of online courses. Such a line of research is necessary as the basis for a common language with which we can begin to speak holistically about online courses. In this dissertation, I attempt to generate better questions about the nature of online instructional environments. By combining prior works related to educational criticism and qualitative research case study with original innovations, I develop a model for studying the instructional experiences of online courses. I then apply this approach in the study of one specific online course at the University of Central Florida (UCF).

The aim of the Master's thesis was to evaluate the level of access of kindergartens in the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the development of reading literacy, and the concrete use of reader strategies by nursery teachers. In the theoretical part, I dealt with the definition of reading literacy and grammar, I referred to teacher education through a reader's continuum. I also discussed the issues of reading strategies. Then I compared the Czech and Slovak educational system as a whole and also in relation to the reader's literacy. I have added some of the programs to support reading literacy and comparing them in both of republics. In the research section, I used a mixed research design to get as much data as possible. At the beginning, I collected the data using questionnaires with closed and open questions, then I conducted in-depth interviews with two teachers from the Slovak Republic and two teachers from the Czech Republic. I followed these teachers in their pedagogical activities. On the basis of the results, I have come to the conclusion that, on the practical side, Slovak teachers of reading literacy do more than Czech ones. Although they have better theoretical abilities in the Czech Republic, and more they are devoted to the subject of reading literacy. Stimulating would be to continue...

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