Gaining from interactions with universities: Multiple methods for nurturing absorptive capacity

This paper examines the various methods through which firms benefit from interactions with universities, arguing that such benefits are instrumental in nurturing the multiple facets of a firm's absorptive capacity. We bring together data collected from a survey of UK firms that collaborated with universities, and firm-level data on past partnerships with universities. The results show that benefits from interactions with universities are multifaceted, including enhancement of the firm's explorative and exploitative capabilities. Results also indicate that firms’ R&D commitments, geographical proximity to and research quality of university partners have a distinct impact on the different types of benefits from interactions with universities. We find geographical proximity is crucial for assessing problem-solving as an important benefit, while interactions with top quality universities have a positive influence on the benefits associated with firms’ downstream activities. We discuss the implications of these findings for research and policy.     

Examining stress reactivity in neonates: relations between cortisol and behavior

The association between cortisol and behavioral reactivity to a medical heel stick and a neurobehavioral exam was examined in 100 healthy African American neonates, who have been underrepresented in this area of research. Using continuous measures, behavioral distress was associated with cortisol reactivity to both stressors. High levels of behavioral distress, however, were associated with cortisol reactivity only in response to the neurobehavioral exam. In contrast, low levels of behavioral distress were associated with cortisol reactivity only in response to the heel stick. The results highlight potentially important parameters for exploring the relation between biological and behavioral reactivity to stress such as the operationalization of behavioral distress and the context in which a stress response is elicited.     

The effects of mandatory and optional use on students' ratings of a computer-based learning package

Continuing developments in educational technology and increasing undergraduate numbers in the UK have facilitated the use of computer‐based learning packages. One of the effects of the increasing use of these packages is the shift in teaching of material from being primarily lecturer‐led to student‐driven. This has a number of implications concerning using the package, since it is quite likely that students will be working in isolation, and the use of the package may be mandatory or optional. In this study we report on the usefulness ratings of a software package for undergraduate use within the context of whether or not students choose to use it. Level 1 students and lecturers in Economics were surveyed at three UK universities. Findings indicate that students whose use was mandatory rated the learning package as more useful than those whose use was optional. Reasons for non‐use centred on lack of instruction and on student apathy. These results have important implications for the use of computer‐based learning packages and for understanding user attitudes.     

The Dorothy Howard Collection: revealing the structures of folklore archives in museums

In 2015–16 researchers from the University of Melbourne and Museums Victoria undertook a collaborative project which sought to visualise archival data from the museum as a means to investigate the structure and context of the Dorothy Howard Collection. This article introduces Dorothy Howard’s work, which is part of the internationally significant Australian Children’s Folklore Collection, and looks at the project’s processes and outcomes, including the initial visualisations produced. In doing so, the authors highlight the data-intensive nature of such work, suggest the potential of visualisations to reveal collection structures, and outline possibilities for future projects and collaborations.     

Picture naming and developmental reading disorders

One of the most frequently cited papers from the twenty‐five years of the Journal of Research in Reading is ‘Object‐naming deficits in developmental dyslexia’ by Maggie Snowling, Bente van Wagtendonk and Carolyn Stafford, published in 1988. Looking back at the paper some sixteen years after its publication, it is striking to note how topical some of the issues discussed by Snowling and colleagues remain. This commentary revisits some of these issues and examines how subsequent research has consolidated and extended Snowling et al.'s findings and conclusions.     

‘It wasn't too easy,which is good if you want to learn’: an exploration of pupil participation and Learning to Learn

This article explores the process of Learning to Learnb from the pupils’ perspective. The Learning to Learn in Schools Project started in 2003 and includes teachers and pupils from primary and secondary age phases in four local authorities. Key to the project has been a focus on the collaborative exploration of metacognition in practice. With the increased prominence of pupil participation and learner voice in the rhetoric of education during this time, the inclusion of learner perspectives in the project was perhaps inevitable. However, there appears to be something beneficial about the definition of Learning to Learn (L2L) used by the project that supports the development of such participation. As the project progressed, and the incidence of pupil participation increased, evidence from the contexts needed to support learning-based dialogues also developed as well as, crucially, understanding of how the interplay between L2L and pupil participation operates. This article therefore explores the link between the rhetoric of the pupil participation agenda and an understanding of L2L from the pupils’ perspective.     

Senior female academics in the UK academy: theoretical perspectives for understanding the impact of education and familial influences on career success

This paper examines the theoretical perspectives I utilised in my doctoral research to uncover the role of class and gender in my respondents’ stories and experiences of their career success. I argue that adopting an economic model for conceptualising the influence of social class and gender in the respondents’ stories and experiences of their career success is inadequate because it has historically neglected to take account of women’s position in the labour market. Drawing on an example from my data examining the influence of the respondents’ familial attitudes and dispositions towards education, the paper contends that Bourdieu’s concept of habitus is an invaluable tool for theorising senior female academics’ pathways to career success by bringing together a cultural, social and economic understanding of social class and gender.