Die Zukunft der Coachingforschung

The article presents a brief summary of the current state of research findings regarding both effectiveness (outcome) and factors contributing to the outcome (process) of coaching. The findings are presented along the dimensions outlined in Greif??s (2008) ??structural model of coaching effects?? as well as Kirkpatrick??s (1994) four-level evaluation taxonomy. The current state of research is critically analyzed and challenges for future research are outlined. It is suggested that coaching research needs to draw on both psychotherapy research and training evaluation in order to do justice to the process nature of coaching and its embeddedness in the organizational context. Promising research scenarios, namely the collaboration between academic research groups and professional coaching associations, and selected research approaches are described.     

Triage and Ethics: Social Workers on the Front Line

ABSTRACT

This article highlights the results of an international qualitative study examining the impact of terrorism and other disasters—both human-made and natural—on social work agencies and their labor force. The study was conducted with focus groups of social workers in health care and social service settings. The major research question concerned the impact of disaster—both natural and human-made—on agencies and social work practitioners. Focus was placed on the ethical dissonance experienced by social workers under pressure to prioritize how services and resources are distributed to those in need.     

Methods to Explore Uncertainty and Bias Introduced by Job Exposure Matrices

Job exposure matrices (JEMs) are used to measure exposures based on information about particular jobs and tasks. JEMs are especially useful when individual exposure data cannot be obtained. Nonetheless, there may be other workplace exposures associated with the study disease that are not measured in available JEMs. When these exposures are also associated with the exposures measured in the JEM, biases due to uncontrolled confounding will be introduced. Furthermore, individual exposures differ from JEM measurements due to differences in job conditions and worker practices. Uncertainty may also be present at the assessor level since exposure information for each job may be imprecise or incomplete. Assigning individuals a fixed exposure determined by the JEM ignores these uncertainty sources. We examine the uncertainty displayed by bias analyses in a study of occupational electric shocks, occupational magnetic fields, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.     

Allometry and photosynthetic capacity of poplar (Populus deltoides) along a metal contamination gradient in an urban brownfield

The value of urban green space has become an increasingly controversial issue. In particular, development of novel vegetative assemblages on vacant lands may have many formerly unrecognized benefits. However, questions remain regarding the functional impairment of these assemblages due to degraded soils. We investigated the effects of elevated concentrations of soil metals on allometry and photosynthetic capacity of naturally colonized poplars (Populus deltoides Michx.) growing at Liberty State Park, New Jersey. We found that allometries of harvested trees did not differ significantly between the low metal load (LML) and high metal load (HML) sites suggesting that metal contamination did not negatively affect carbon allocation patterns of the target species. Likewise, photosynthetic parameters did not differ significantly between the LML and HML sites, suggesting that soil metal contamination did not negatively affect photosynthetic capacity. However, trees from the LML site were significantly younger for a given size than trees from the HML site. Trees from the medium metal load site (MML) differed significantly in allometry and photosynthetic parameters from the other two sites suggesting other edaphic and ecological factors are a stronger driver for carbon allocation patterns and photosynthetic capacity in these trees. Taken together, this research suggests that sapling establishment and growth may be impaired by heavy metals and that trees in HML sites may incur more maintenance costs than trees in LML sites. However, given enough time, poplars can provide considerable rehabilitation of urban brownfields, particularly those that exhibit soil metal contamination.     

The choice agenda in the Australian supported housing context: a timely reflection

The last 30 years has seen significant developments in the Australian housing sector for people with disabilities. Despite much change in the sector, and advancements in disability services, the range of current supported housing options for younger Australian adults with a neurological disability remains vastly under-developed. This is despite a widely accepted and endorsed recognition that, as is the general population, people with all forms of disability have a right to housing of their choice. This paper presents a timely critique of the key actions made by the Australian disability and housing sectors and subsequently proposes a more informed approach to supported housing design and development: one that is based on a comprehensive understanding of consumer housing priorities and preferences, and is conducive to a person’s biopsychosocial health.     

A Delphi Method Expert Survey to Derive Standards for Flood Damage Data Collection

For the purpose of flood damage analyses reliable, comparable, comprehensive, consistent, and up-to-date data are an indispensable need. Like in many other countries a database with this kind of datasets does not exist in Germany. To establish it, standards have to be set for flood damage data collection. We approached this problem by questioning experts about their information needs for flood damage analysis. This survey is done by applying a Delphi survey approach. The aptitude of the Delphi approach to assess, structure, and standardize expert knowledge is evaluated in this article. In the survey a panel of 55 experts working in the field of flood damage analysis for insurances, engineering companies/consultancy, public water management, and universities and other scientific institutions helped to identify common information needs. The multi-step Delphi method proved to reduce the deviation of answers thereby enabling consensual results and also enhanced the quality by modifying group answers in the direction of experience based answers. There was also a high level of congruence in information needs between experts from different fields of employment that allowed the derivation of common standards.     

In search of disability: a critical discourse analysis of a Key Stage 1 guided reading scheme

This paper employs critical discourse analysis to examine the representation of disability in the children’s Oxford Reading Tree Series Read with Biff, Chip and Kipper. The representation is found to influence self-identity and social attitudes towards disability, for it grants ‘normalcy’ a status of idolatry. Such elevation of normalcy elicits ‘normate’ culture, which, in turn, can generate ‘aesthetic nervousness’. This hegemonic tradition therefore produces a replicative process that is consequential to the production of future texts, social justice and an inclusive society.