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cfp Extended deadline:‘Psychosocial Reflections on a Half Century of Cultural Revolution: The 50th anniversary of seasons of love and protest

Association for Psychosocial Studies Biennial Conference

Bournemouth University, 5th-7th April 2018

‘Psychosocial Reflections on a Half Century of Cultural Revolution:

The 50th anniversary of seasons of love and protest’

Join us to reflect on revolutionary relationships and revolutionary politics which challenged authority then and which influence us now.

The cultural forces and the political movements of 1967 and 1968 aimed to change the world, and did so. Recent development of some populist and protest politics could be seen as a continuation of the revolutionary movements in the 1960s. Hedonic themes that recall the summer of love suffuse contemporary life, and self-reflection and emotional literacy have also become prominent values, linked towards human diversity and the international community.

We invite you to offer psychosocial analyses of the development and legacy today of the ‘revolutions’ in love, sex and politics. This could be via explorations of contemporary issues in politics, culture and artistic expression, or through historical studies. All proposals for papers must indicate how they address both psychological and social dimensions of their topic.

Send your abstract of 250-300 words to: APS2018@bournemouth.ac.uk

Deadline: 1st October 2017. Confirmation of acceptance: 1st November.

We welcome contributions from academics and practitioners from different fields and disciplines and very much look forward to seeing you there!

 

 

 

 

 

http://aps2018.bournemouth.ac.uk/

 

FMC Placement Development Advisor Vianna Renaud presents at the RAISE17 Conference in Manchester

conferences, Student Engagement

Last week Faculty Placement Development Advisor Vianna Renaud presented at the RAISE17 Conference at Manchester Metropolitan University. With over 235 delegates representing institutions throughout the UK and Ireland, this conference was focused on student engagement with the theme, “Perspectives on student engagement; looking forward..thinking back.” This was the perfect event to share best practice and information regarding the latest trends in the sector.

Presenting on the campus wide Placement PAL pilot project last year, it was a wonderful opportunity to share with colleagues from a variety of institutions. I found the conference to be of great benefit as there was an open and collaborative atmosphere in the room. The delegates were clearly passionate about this subject area with the same desire to share and learn with colleagues.

RAISE is a network of academics, practitioners, advisors and student representatives drawn from the Higher Education Sector who are working and/or interested in researching and promoting student engagement.  For further information, conference programme and proceedings:

RAISE 17 Conference

 

ADRC attend the Fifth Annual Wessex Clinical Research Network Ageing Research Meeting

Jane Murphy from the Ageing and Dementia Research Centre (ADRC)  was invited to join the ‘Fifth Annual Wessex Clinical Research Network Ageing Research Meeting’ on 13th September 2017  at Royal Bournemouth Hospital.  There were a wide range of interesting and insightful presentations  by clinicians of mostly NIHR funded research in ageing including frailty, dementia and neurodegenerative disorders and stroke. The Specialty National Lead for Ageing, and Lead for Ageing and Dementia Theme NIHR CLAHRC Professor Helen Roberts chaired the morning session  followed by Dr Divya Tiwari,  Clinical Research Network (CRN) Wessex Ageing Specialty Lead who chaired the afternoon session.

Martine Cross, The Research Delivery Manager for  Ageing at the  Wessex CRN presented a key update on projects and plans.  Please note that Martine will be coming to BU and for academics with an interest in ageing research and considering applying to NIHR, it would present an ideal opportunity to meet Martine and know more about  the Wessex CRN and discuss your plans.

For expressions of interest to join the meeting, please email  Michelle O’Brien, ADRC  administrator (adrc@bournemouth.ac.uk) and  we will send further details.

 

 

Conference on the impact of complications and errors in surgery held at BU

conferences, Fusion, REF Subjects, Research Ethics

Things can go wrong in surgery, and dealing with the consequences of complications and errors is part and parcel of a surgeon’s life. Last week a conference was held at BU’s Executive Business Centre which explored the impact that adverse events have on surgeons and examined how these effects can be ameliorated. Eminent presenters from across the UK shared insights from their surgical careers and personal experiences, presented the latest research in the area, and considered how better support and training could be provided for surgeons.

The conference was organised by the Bournemouth Adverse Events Research Team, a joint research venture between psychologists at BU and surgeons at Royal Bournemouth Hospital, who are currently researching the impact of complications and errors which inevitably arise during surgery on surgeons.  Professor Siné McDougall, one of the research team, said: “Today is about trying to think about what we can do to support surgeons. When things do go wrong, the focus is rightly on patients and their family. However, surgeons are also dealing with their own feelings, particularly if they have made a mistake which they deeply regret.”

It was clear that the conference had touched on a key issue for surgeons.  This was summed up by the keynote speaker, Professor Sir Miles Irving, Emeritus Professor of Surgery at Manchester University, who said “The proceedings were excellent and clearly demonstrated that you have latched on to a problem which has the potential to become even more significant if not addressed.”  The Bournemouth Adverse Events Team is looking forward to continuing research in this area which will address this issue.

Tax Research Network (TRN) 26th Annual International Conference, 4-6 September 2017

Tax Research Network (TRN) 26th Annual International Conference, 4 – 6 September 2017

The Accounting, Finance & Economics Department of the Faculty of Management has this week hosted the Tax Research Network (TRN) 26th Annual Conference at the EBC.  Professor John Vinney opened the TRN Conference 2017 with a welcome address on behalf of the University and the event was run by Dr Alan Kirkpatrick and Dr Phyllis Alexander over three days (including a Doctoral Colloquium).

The event was a great success and thanks are due to our colleagues Charmain Lyons, Research & Knowledge Exchange Office and Rebecca Marney, BU Events Management Team for their considerable help.

The TRN has a wide international membership.  The delegates attending included some of the best known international and UK-based academics in taxation as well as senior figures from the professional bodies that sponsored the event: Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW), both the global body and the regional organisation, ‘ICAEW Southern’ and the Chartered Institute of Taxation as well as Chartered Accountants Ireland.

The Keynote sessions were a particularly successful feature of the Conference.   The themes were:

  • ‘Challenges for taxation policy makers’ presented by Professor Judith Freedman of Oxford University:
  • ‘Making Tax Digital’ presented by Professor John Hasseldine of the University of New Hampshire: and,
  • ‘Tax and Trade – implications of Brexit and the special case of the UK-Irish border’ with presentations by Dr Brian Keegan who is Director of Taxation Policy at Chartered Accountants Ireland and by BU academics Dr Alan Kirkpatrick and Professor Tim Lloyd from the panel with further contributions from Professor Jens Holscher.  The other panellists were Judith Freedman (Oxford Univ), Ian Young (ICAEW) and Anne Fairpo (Temple Tax Chambers and a past President of the Chartered Institute of Taxation).

This event has helped to showcase BU’s facilities and expertise in the field of taxation research and education.

Dr Alan K Kirkpatrick, PhD MSc (Oxon) BA (Hons) Econ SFHEA FCA

Senior Academic in Accounting and Taxation, Director of TRIBUTE Tax Research,

Faculty of Management

 

Digital Health Technology Catalyst 2017 – Round 1. DEADLINE 11/10/17

Are you working with an SME on a digital health project?  Innovate UK have announced funding opportunities related to Digital Health. Feasibility projects funding is between £50-£75k for a one year project.  Industrial research and developmental project have funds available for £500k-£1m for projects lasting up to three years and work with at least one other partner.  All projects must start by February 1st 2018.  Projects must have the potential to achieve at least one of the following:

  • Improve patient outcomes
  • Transform healthcare delivery
  • Enable more efficient delivery of healthcare

Please note, all projects must be led by a UK business.  For further details, please go here.

 

BU Briefing – Lawfare in Hybrid Wars

Our BU briefing papers are designed to make our research outputs accessible and easily digestible so that our research findings can quickly be applied – whether to society, culture, public policy, services, the environment or to improve quality of life. They have been created to highlight research findings and their potential impact within their field. 

Hybrid Warfare as a method of war is not new. Hybrid Warfare as a method of warfare has its roots in methods of war fighting of past conflicts; while not necessarily new as a category of conflict, it has the potential to change the future conceptualisation of conflict.

This paper introduces the reader to the mutating military concept of Hybrid Warfare and Lawfare, the use of law as a weapon. By examining several present and past examples, the paper tries to foster discussion and thought on how to use Lawfare affirmatively in support of own objectives and to prevent opponents from successfully using law maliciously for their own purposes and objectives.

It also includes some reflection on The North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s (NATO) open source perspective on ‘Hybrid Threats’.

Click here to read the briefing paper.

For more information about the research, contact Dr Sascha-Dominik Bachmann at sbachmann@bournemouth.ac.uk.
To find out how your research output could be turned into a BU Briefing, contact research@bournemouth.ac.uk.

EU Info Day: ‘Health, demographic change and well-being’, Brussels 8/12/17

Fusion Investment Fund, Info Days, innovation, Research themes

There will be an EU Societal Challenge 1 Health & Wellbeing Info day on 8 December 2017, in Brussels. As you can see form the outline below, there are opportunities for BU across all four faculties within this part of the Work Programme for 2018-2020, due to be released in October.

 

With the principle of better health for all at its core, Horizon 2020’s Societal Challenge 1 (Health, demographic change and well-being) focuses on personalised health and care, infectious diseases and improving global health, innovative and sustainable health systems, decoding the role of the environment (including climate change) for health and well-being, digital transformation and cybersecurity in health and care. Horizon 2020′ Societal Challenge 1 Work Programme 2018-2020 will be expected to offer calls for proposals with an overall budget of about €2 billion.

Draft programme and registrations are to follow at the end of September.

Related to the Health Open Info Day, the Directorate-General for Research & Innovation supports the following two events which will be organised on 7 December 2017, also in Brussels

Partnering Event – organised by the EU-funded project Health-NCP-Net 2.0 – the event aims at helping you find the right project partners for the upcoming 2018 health calls. Registration opens on 8/10/17.

Satellite event on Innovation Procurement in health care – Limited to 80 participants – First come, first served basis, with booking already open.

Booking links and further information are on the main Info Day page.

Please let Emily Cieciura, RKEO Research Facilitator: EU & International, know if you plan to attend.

Back to the future, what are the most in demand skills/attributes of our graduates?

Fusion Investment Fund, Student Engagement, student research

This article was written by Brandon Clark and Edward Court, graduates of the BA (Hons) Business Studies degree at Bournemouth University.  They also completed their consultancy project in industry.

 

Skills…every job description has them, every experience enhances them, but what are the key skills prospective employers want 21st century university graduates to have?

With the UK exiting the European Union, Andrews et al (2010) highlighted the significance to employers of the UK graduate pool. They also stressed the importance for students to have a global mind set and to be culturally aware as many positions will involve working within diverse organisations and potentially with colleagues in other countries. Another factor that needs to be considered is from Marjanis’ (2008) research into challenges for Generation Z. The research finds that Gen Z students find the ‘psychological stress’ of graduate positions very demanding. This, coupled with the changing skills set required from graduates, presents a challenging and changing environment where students need to do everything they can to stand out in the employment market.

Through our research we have found a variety of skills that current employers are looking for (Vora 2008; Diamond et al 2011; Singh et al 2013; Adams 2015; QAA 2015; Levy et al 2016; Target Jobs 2017). These have been collated in to a matrix that can be seen below (Figure 1). Whilst it is clear about the key skills that are currently in demand, our research points towards a future shift, and there are several reasons that are cited for this.

Figure 1 – Matrix depicting the skills that are currently in demand from UK graduate employers.

As members of Gen Z ourselves, we both agree that a wider variety of skills are being demanded from graduates. We experience this through the application processes we are put through, and the countless job descriptions we read. These skills have been enhanced through a multitude of experiences throughout university, from group-work assignments and presentations to extra-curricular activities like volunteering and involvement in societies and most notably our placement year. Without this invaluable experience of a year in industry, neither of us would feel as prepared as we currently do to enter the graduate job market. We each worked with a number of people during our time on placement, including those based in different time zones and continents. This experience has provided us with an edge over what many are citing as the future requirements of UK graduates. However, whilst there are still a number of programmes that do not include a placement opportunity as part of the degree, or there are students who are not successful in securing a year in industry, will the future crop of UK graduates meet industry needs by simply obtaining a degree level education?

Newman et al (2017) points out that these questions are not just the concern of students, but that universities also have a huge role to play. Their report found that 80% of HE students believed that digital skills were vital for their careers however, half of the students felt that their courses weren’t developing these skills. Moreover, The World Economic Forum’s report, Future of Jobs (2016) stated “widespread disruption” in the jobs market with industries such as artificial intelligence growing rapidly. This suggests that students and education systems need to be interlinked with industry in order to future-proof students and develop the best graduates, equipped with the most in-demand skills.

Both of us have recently completed our Business Studies degrees and feel some disconnect between the skills we have gained through the taught part of the course and those that are expected of us when we apply for graduate positions. Whilst many of our assessments were based around verbal and written communication and teamwork, i.e. fundamental graduate skills skills that our research confirmed are in demand , these sorts of skills are required within any role.  We have found personally, through our placement year and through research on this project, that skills need to be more specific to job roles and industry sectors.  For example, we both found data processing and analytical skills using tools like MS Excel were crucial while on our placement year. This kind of in-depth skills assessment is not embedded in our programme.  However, we acknowledge that this may be the right approach. As specific skills such as Excel, need to be chosen by the student as they are the ones who know what roles and industries they want to pursue. The Quality Assurance Agency (QAA) (2015) states that business and management degrees “equip students to become effective and responsible global citizens” through the “enhancement of a range of general transferable intellectual and study skills”. Whilst this direction provides some confidence that the current HE curriculum is focusing on enhancing the skills demanded by recruiters, are graduates fully prepared for what is ahead?

References:

Adams, S., 2015. The 10 Skills Employers most want in 2015 Graduates [online]. Forbes. Available from: https://www.forbes.com/sites/susanadams/2014/11/12/the-10-skills-employers-most-want-in-2015-graduates/#30ac69b22511 [Accessed 26 June 2017].

Andrews, J. and Higson, H. (2008). Graduate Employability, ‘Soft Skills’ Versus ‘Hard’ Business Knowledge: A European Study1. Higher Education in Europe, [online] 33(4), pp.411-416. Available at: http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/03797720802522627?needAccess=true  [Accessed 3 July 2017].

Diamond, A., Walkley, L., Forbes, P., Hughes, T., and Sheen, J., 2011. Global Graduates into Global Leaders [online]. AGR, CIHE & CFE.

Hawawini, G., (2017)., Higher Education Must Still Go Global. [online] INSEAD Knowledge. [Online} Available at: https://knowledge.insead.edu/leadership-organisations/higher-education-must-still-go-global-6276 [Accessed 3 July 2017].

Levy, F. and Cannon, C., 2016. The Bloomberg Job Skills Report 2016: What Recruiters Want [online]. NYC: Bloomberg.

Marjani, A., Gharavi, A., Jahanshahi, M., Vahidirad, A. and Alizadeh, F. (2008). Stress among medical students of Gorgan. Kathmandu University Medical Journal, [online] 6(23), pp.421-425. Available at: http://www.nepjol.info/index.php/KUMJ/article/view/1726 [Accessed 3 July 2017].

Newman, T., and Beetham, H., 2017. Student digital experience tracker 2017: the voice of 22,000 UK learners [online]. Bristol: JISC.

QAA., 2015. Subject Benchmark Statement for Business and Management [online]. Gloucester: QAA.

Singh, P., Thambusany, R. X. and Ramly, M. A., 2013. Fit or Unfit? Perspectives of Employers and University Instructors of Graduates’ Generic Skills [online]. Malaysia: Elsevir LTD.

Target Jobs., 2017. The top 10 skills that’ll get you a job when you graduate [online]. Oxfordshire: Target Jobs. Available from: https://targetjobs.co.uk/careers-advice/career-planning/273051-the-top-10-skills-thatll-get-you-a-job-when-you-graduate [Accessed 26 June 2017].

The Future of Jobs Employment, Skills and Workforce Strategy for the Fourth Industrial Revolution. (2016). Global Challenge Insight Report. [online] Geneva: World Economic Forum, pp.19-20. Available at: http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Future_of_Jobs.pdf [Accessed 3 July 2017].

Vora, T., 2015. Skills for Future Success in a DIsruptive World of Work. qaspire.com [online]. 31 August 2015. Available from: http://qaspire.com/2015/08/31/skills-for-future-success-in-a-disruptive-world-of-work/ [Accessed 3 July 2017].

World Economic Forum., 2016. The Future of Jobs [online]. Switzerland: World Economic Forum.

UK Info day on Horizon 2020 Societal Challenge 5 – funding for cities, climate change

Funding opportunities

European Union - Horizon 2020When: 26th of September 2017 from 9.30 am – 6.30 pm

Where: Glaziers Hall, SE1 9DD London

Why attend: This event is a unique opportunity for SMEs, research organisations and cities interested in working on projects relating to sustainable cities, nature-based solutions, water and cultural heritage. You will hear directly from the European Commission on the background and content of the opportunities. The UK National Contact Point, Enterprise Europe Network, Knowledge Transfer Network and Future Cities Catapult will provide information on the help available and new ways in which we can support UK organisations. Case study speakers will give further hints and tips on how to become successful applicants.

This event is free of charge however places are limited so we advise early booking.

Event Agenda:

Morning Session (9.30am – 1pm) – Information on European funding opportunities and UK support tools available.

  • European policy and priorities: Cities, nature-based solution and cultural heritage – Dr Ugo Guarnacci, European Commission, DG RTD
  • European priorities: Water – Ewa Bloch, Innovate UK
  • UK Case study: An innovative city – Manchester Climate Change Agency and GROW GREEN project, Dr Jonathan Sadler
  • Insights into H2020: Participation conditions, Brexit clarifications – Ewa Bloch, Innovate UK
  • Support in the UK – including announcement on travel grants available for organisations
  • Introduction to Enterprise Europe Network, the Knowledge Transfer Network and Future Cities Catapult
  • UK Case study: What’s in it for an SME
Afternoon session (1pm – 4pm) – Interactive session with experts providing guidance on proposal development and requirements for the relevant calls and consortia building.

Drinks Reception (4pm – 6.30pm) – Networking with international organisations to develop partnerships.

Click on the ‘OK’ button of this page to register.

BU Academic holds Women’s Career Development Workshop in Tokyo

Dr Sachiko Takeda, in collaboration with colleagues from the University of Sheffield and Women and Work Research Center (Japan), has been carrying out a research project ‘Developing Women’s Careers in Japan’, funded by the British Academy and Leverhulme. As part of the research finding dissemination, Sachiko and the team recently hosted a workshop at J.P. Morgan’s head office in Tokyo; welcoming 40 attendees from industry, mainly representatives of large organisations’ CSR and diversity related activities. The venue was provided through Ms Tsui, Head of Global Philantropy, Asia Pacific at J.P. Morgan Chase, who supported the project’s purport.

Photo courtesy of Kanae Tomiyama

The project corresponds to a recent call for emergency measures to create a better work environment for women’s career development. Despite that, Japan has one of the most educated female populations in the world, women are often reported to face substantial difficulties in advancing careers at Japanese firms. Nevertheless, some women do manage to progress to senior levels, and it is the aim of the project to understand their career experience, particularly the problems they had faced and how they overcame those barriers. To achieve this aim, Sachiko conducted 25 face-to-face interviews with Japanese women who held managerial and professional roles in large enterprises.

At the workshop, the project team presented the summary of findings and made the following three suggestions to Japanese organisations: 1) organise workshops to raise awareness of male managers; 2) establish practices of women-to-women mentoring; and 3) improve work-life balance for both men and women. In the panel discussion that followed the presentation, the panellists encouraged women to propose, create and implement new systems themselves at organisations for women’s career development. At the same time, the importance of including small and medium sized organisations, which are the majority in Japan, in the movement and extinguishing prejudice against single and/or childless women was also claimed.

Photos courtesy of Kanae Tomiyama

For more information, please contact Dr Sachiko Takeda at stakeda@bournemouth.ac.uk.

Approaching the Case for Support – Book Now!

As part of the Research and Knowledge Exchange Development Framework, RKEO are hosting a session on ‘Approaching the Case for Support’.

This interactive morning session will provide an overview of RCUK funding, and an overview of the anatomy of a proposal before detailing approaches to tackling the case for support, with the aim of increasing the likelihood of receiving funding. There will be an opportunity to gain feedback from the external facilitator, on the day and subsequently.

All academics and researchers are welcome to attend, but as places are limited we ask that participants have a funding application they plan to submit within 12 months. The application can be to any funder.

Date: Wednesday 4th October 2017

Time: 09:30-12:30

Venue: Talbot Campus

For more information and to book your space please see the RKE Development Framework page for this event.

For any other queries please contact Lisa Gale-Andrews, RKEO Research Facilitator.

Food Security: What’s on your Plate? Wednesday 25th October 2017

BU Challenges

On Wednesday, 25th October 2017, BU’s Research and Knowledge Exchange Office (RKEO) will be hosting a STEAMLab on Food Security.

Which means…?

We have renamed ‘Sandpits’ to the new name of ‘STEAMLab’.  This demonstrates the purpose of the STEAMLabs as being open to all disciplines and encouraging truly interdisciplinary research ideas.  The ‘Lab’ part demonstrates the working environment that leads to the creation of novel research ideas and partnerships. In a nutshell, the STEAMLabs offer the opportunity to meet new people from all disciplines and sectors, and to spend dedicated time developing novel ideas for research projects.

For this STEAMLab, we’re seeking to come up with novel research which addresses challenges in food security. With increasing pressure on food sources and the food industry, we need to consider how food security can be guaranteed for the future. Potential areas to address this challenge may include but are not limited to, malnutrition/nutrition, agriculture, logistics, robotics, supply chain, new forms of food, sustainability, political/economic problems, food policy, food waste & recycling, and climate & the environment.

So, who should attend?

STEAMLabs cover broad themes to ensure that they are open to everyone from all disciplines. So if you think you have something to contribute then come along.  If you think that they don’t include you then please have a chat with your RKEO Facilitator who can explain how your research could make a vital contribution to new ideas and approaches. In order to encourage wider partnerships, each STEAMLab will include academics from other universities, as well as representatives from industry and other sectors.

What do I need to prepare in advance? What will the STEAMLab entail?

Absolutely nothing in advance. During the session, you’ll be guided through a process which results in the development of research ideas. The process facilitates creativity, potentially leading to innovative and interdisciplinary research ideas. These ideas will be explored with other attendees, and further developed based on the feedback received.

What if I don’t have time to think about ideas in advance?

You don’t need to do this but it will help. Attendees will come from a range of backgrounds so we expect that there will be lively conversations resulting from these different perspectives.

What about afterwards? Do I need to go away and do loads of work?

Well… that depends! The interactive day will result in some novel research ideas. Some of these may be progressed immediately; others might need more time to develop. You may find common ground with other attendees which you choose to take forward in other ways, such as writing a paper or applying for research funding. Your Research Facilitator will be on hand to support you as you develop bids for funding.

What if my topic area is really specific, and doesn’t really relate to food?

Your contribution will be very welcome! One of the main benefits of this type of event is to bring together individuals with a range of backgrounds and specialisms who are able to see things just that bit differently to one another.

So, is this just networking?

Definitely not! It is a facilitated session with the primary intention of developing innovative research ideas, which also enables the development of networks. It gives you the opportunity to explore research ideas which you may develop over time, together with the chance to find common ground with academics from across BU and beyond.

How do I book onto this event?

To take part in this exciting opportunity, BU staff should complete the Food Security Application Form and return this to RKEDevFramework by Friday 13th October. As places are limited, this will be assessed to ensure good mix of attendees with different perspectives. Places will be confirmed w/c 16th October 2017.

By applying, you agree to attend for the full duration of the event on 25th October 2017 (c. 9:30 – 16:00). This event will be held on BU’s Talbot Campus.

If you have any queries prior to submitting your application, please contact Lisa Gale-Andrews, RKEO Research Facilitator.

This event is part of the Research Knowledge Exchange Development Framework.

ADRC presented latest results at two conferences in Germany

Jan Wiener, Ramona Grzeschik and Chris Hilton represented the Ageing & Dementia Research Centre (ADRC) at the 40th European Conference on Visual Perception (ECVP) 27–31 August 2017 in Berlin and the 20th Conference of the European Society for Cognitive Psychology (ESCoP) 3-6 September 2017 in Potsdam.

The ECVP is an annual meeting that brings together researchers from Psychology, Neurosciences, Optics, Computational Sciences and more. Besides vision, other modalities are represented as well as their interaction (multisensory perception). The conference of the ESCoP is being held once every two years. The society’s mission is “the furtherance of scientific enquiry within the field of Cognitive Psychology and related subjects, particularly with respect to collaboration and exchange of information between researchers in different European countries”.

Ramona represented the ADRC at both conferences with her ESRC-funded project on Dementia-friendly environments. In particular, she presented a poster with the latest results of her wayfinding experiment where she investigated the route learning abilities and eye movements of young and old participants.

At the ESCoP conference, Jan gave a talk on “What can eye-tracking tell us about the cognitive mechanisms underlying successful navigation?” where he introduced a couple of experiments that investigated eye movements during route and place learning in Virtual Environments.

Chris presented his results at the ESCoP as well. His poster titled “An exploration into the effects of ageing on general control of attention during route learning in a complex environment.” escribed his experiment using a natural looking virtual environment called “Virtual Tübingen”. He investigated attentional engagement during a route learning task in young and old participants.

Epigenetics – written on the genome

Come join us on Saturday 23rd September at 2:30pm to hear Professor Deborah Mackay talk about Epigenetics – written on the genome!

The event is taking place at the

Bournemouth Natural Science Society,

39 Christchurch Rd,

BH1 3NS

Professor Mackay is a professor of Epigenetics at the University of Southampton. She researches on human imprinting disorders affecting the regulation of genes rather than their DNA sequence, with the aim of understanding the biology of imprinting and improving patients’ lives.

She will be sharing how Medical Epigenetics helps us to understand how development is written on the genome and what happens to an individual when it goes wrong.

We look forward to seeing you there, everyone is welcome!

Tourist codes of conduct are a bad idea – here’s why

As the detritus from another summer season is swept from the streets of holiday hot spots around the world, locals are wondering if it was all worth it. Disquiet has grown about tourists behaving badly and making local communities suffer for their pleasure. In Palma de Mallorca, graffiti recently appeared telling tourists to “go home”. In New Orleans, a “neighbours, not tourists” campaign argues that AirBnB rentals erode local communities. In Venice, posters have been put up telling tourists they are ruining the city.

There is a belief that the tourism system, like the financial system, is not working for everyone. Local residents are starting to feel like they’re receiving less than they’re giving. A combination of societal and economic concerns, a reduction in quality of life, alongside innovations that seem to push out traditional tourism work in place of a “gig economy”, is in part driving new tensions.

When Spanish taxi drivers torched ride-sharing cars, they were reacting not only to the disruption of the so-called sharing economy, but also how predatory capitalism is creating new distrust, jealousy and social distance in an industry which politicians and businesses have long heralded as bringing stable jobs, intercultural dialogue and opportunity.

Destinations such as Santorini in Greece and Cinque Terre in Italy are considering restrictions on tourist arrivals. Dubrovnik has introduced cameras to monitor the number of visitors. In Paris, incivility police tackle antisocial behaviour such as littering, while Magaluf introduced 64 bylaws to curb behaviours such as dropping cigarettes in the street, defecating, urinating or spitting in public places.

Watch your behaviour in Venice.

A climate of mistrust has created a new wave of tourist codes of conduct. The aim is to assign rules to make tourists more sensitive to local residents. Hvar in Croatia warns tourists that they face fines of €600 if they fail to dress appropriately. Dubrovnik enforces a dress code. Venice can hand out fines ranging from €25 to €500 for bad behaviour. That includes breaking a rule that states “no standing at any time” – even to eat and drink. Other codes of conduct have been introduced in Vietnam and Cambodia.

A moral code

But there’s a problem here. City authorities, and managers of tourist attractions who impose moral laws aren’t accountable to the people who are supposed to abide by them. The danger is that they perpetuate narratives about marauding tourists. They do, however, work as marketing strategies, with local politicians and businesses happy to gain reputational capital by scapegoating tourists for bad behaviour in their area.

Requiring tourists to dress a certain way does not nurture trust and solidarity. Nor does it reduce exploitation or over-commercialisation. Codes create more social and physical distance between tourists and residents. They won’t make relations between tourists and residents any warmer, protect historic buildings, increase low pay for tourism workers, or prevent AirBnB from saturating residential areas. Indeed, distrust may contribute to the decline of tourism’s cultural merits.

A message for tourists in Barcelona.
EPA

To rebuild trust and restore faith in the tourism system, authorities must step outside of their traditional roles. They need to work towards a smarter governance model that puts people rather than businesses first. It must recognise all those who have a stake in tourism and come up with strategies that work for all sides.

The ConversationMost people realise that tourism is economically and socially important. By putting people at the heart of everything they do, tourists and residents can coexist with and relate to each other without regulating behaviour or imposing codes of conduct. That might mean limiting the number of hotels that can operate or AirBnB properties that can be registered. Longer term tourism strategies could also seek to cut out the short-term political meddling that can leave local residents asking themselves who is really benefiting from tourism in their area.

Michael O’Regan, Senior Lecture in Events & Leisure, Bournemouth University

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.

Methodspace highlights BU Academics’ Innovative Approach to Reporting Focus Group Data

PG research

‘I’m Her Partner, Let Me In!’ Bringing the Narrative to Academic Papers

Lee-Ann Fenge and Kip Jones

A blog recently requested by the editor of Sage Publications’ Methodspace highlights an article representing focus group data in a new way. In a recent report, two BU Academics, Lee-Ann Fenge and Kip Jones (FHSS), took an inventive approach in writing up their findings in the online journal, Creative Approaches to Research. The Sage editor said, “I thought your paper brought up some good methodology issues”.

The authors believe that as narrative researchers and storytellers we should be promoting narrative in the content and styles of our publications. We can no longer afford to ignore the great advances that have been made in representation of qualitative data in recent history. As narrative researchers, we are natural storytellers and need to keep this in focus when reporting studies, particularly in publications. In this way, as researchers, we move to the background, and the research participants are foregrounded.

The article “I’m her partner, let me in!” in Methodspace can be read here.