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Hospitals operate in increasingly complex and dynamically uncertain environments. To understand how hospital organizationscan cope with such profound uncertainty, this article presents a multiple case study of five hospitals during the COVID-19crisis in a heavily hit region of the Netherlands. We find that hospitals make adaptations in five key categories, namely:reorganization, decision-making, human resources, material resources, and planning. These adaptations offer insights intothe core capabilities needed by hospitals to cope with dynamic uncertainty. Our findings highlight the need for hospitals tobecome more flexible without sacrificing efficiency. Organizations can accomplish this by building in more sensing and seizingcapabilities to be better prepared for and respond to environmental change. Furthermore, transforming capabilities alloworganizations to be more resilient and responsive in the face of ongoing uncertainty. We make recommendations on howhospitals can build these capabilities and address the core challenges they face in this pursuit.

The International Dyslexia Association estimates that on average, as many as 15% to 20% of the population may display symptoms of dyslexia, which include inaccurate or laborious reading, and weak spelling and writing. Unfortunately, many individuals with dyslexia have found themselves surrounded by school and community members who do not understand this pervasive and well-documented language-learning disability. Data on experiences of diverse practitioners attempting to gain expertise in dyslexia are one critical path for identifying potential mechanisms for mitigating these challenges. In this article, the authors report on a multiple-case study designed to better understand the experiences and contexts of graduate students enrolled in an online dyslexia assessment and intervention professional development program. Analysis revealed common contextual barriers to practice across unique settings and also common supports acquired as participants built their internal capacity through their online learning experiences.

Sticker use is an increasingly popular part of daily messaging activity. However, little is known regarding the types, functions, and outcomes of sticker use in authentic online communications. To investigate these phenomena, we analysed sticker use in five small mobile-messaging-facilitated discussion groups initiated by students for course projects in an Asian university. The students used four types of stickers, among which ‘animated picture without text’ was the most frequent. Sticker functions fell into two main categories: as a tone indicator with scope over a textual message, and as a stand-alone illocutionary act. Based on interviews with seven participants, we found disparities between the sender’s intention and the receiver’s interpretation for 34.7% of the stickers, but these disparities did not adversely affect the communication. Implications of the findings are discussed.

This multiple case study is part of a larger investigation of literacy practices in “Our Home,” an after-school program that provides learning support to children from refugee backgrounds. I asked, “What happens when translingual children from refugee backgrounds respond to multicultural, transnational, and translingual picturebooks?” Informed by critical literacy theories, I illuminate the experiences and perspectives of four children as they interacted with and engaged in dialogic reading of picturebooks; these critical literacy practices, along with observational data, are reported in profiles. Findings from this study reveal the ways in which children from refugee backgrounds found problematic aspects of assumptions in stories, reflected on different and contradictory perspectives, articulated the power relationships between characters, and offered alternative thoughts centered on social justice. This research expands the field’s knowledge of what doing critical literacy work with young translingual students in an after-school program looks, feels, and sounds like.

Prior research on peer literacy teaching tends to be conceptualized as peer tutoring and often focuses on the cognitive aspects of reading (e.g., skills, strategies). In this multiple case study, we draw on theories of identity and positioning to propose a conceptual shift from tutoring to mentoring to also describe the affective and relational dimensions of peer literacy teaching. In our analysis, we explore how two 11th graders positioned themselves as readers and mentors in a cross-age literacy mentorship class in a public high school in the northeastern United States. Data sources include mentor interviews, field notes, and artifacts. Our multiphase coding process identified three main themes: the importance of (a) texts and (b) relationships and reciprocity to mentors’ positioning, and (c) complexities of the mentor position. Findings suggest that school-based opportunities for youth to work collaboratively to understand their own and others’ reading processes may contribute insights into both the affective and the cognitive aspects of peer literacy teaching.

While music education researchers have examined cooperating teacher and student teacher interactions via classroom observations and interviews, there is little research on extended dialogues between the cooperating teacher and student teacher or various mentoring roles (coach, guide, model, and evaluator) assumed by cooperating teachers. During one 8-week student teaching placement period, I recorded extended dialogues between four student teacher-cooperating teacher pairs, along with individual interviews. Data were analyzed using the mentor roles in dialogues model. The mentoring role assumed during dialogues reflected the student teaching context, perceptions about appropriate roles, cooperating teacher and student teacher personalities, and their relationship. Mentoring dialogues were especially influenced by unique features of the music ensemble class.

Polarisation between the least and most active pupils is increasing both in Denmark and worldwide, and the least active pupils often have poorer mental health and low physical self-esteem. However, the least active pupils’ perspectives on physical activity in school are underrepresented in the research. This study explores how the least active pupils describe the purpose of physical activity at school and how active they consider themselves to be in relation to their classmates. To establish the above, we draw on Jenkins’ theory of social identity, which points to the dialectics between internal identification and external categorisation. Three schools were selected for a qualitative multiple-case study, focusing on the least active Year 3 pupils (aged 9–10). Thirty individual semi-structured interviews with these pupils were conducted, combined with 15 days of participant observations, at each school in 2018. Data were analysed using an abductive approach. The findings showed that the least active pupils’ descriptions of why they were active mainly referred to narrow understandings of physical health in line with broader societal explanations. Further, the pupils depicted a stigmatic categorisation of overweight and inactive pupils and described them as a group they did not belong to. Instead, they identified themselves with the active pupils, for example, in stating that they were almost as active as the ‘football boys’. To change pupils’ narrow identifications and stigmatic categorisations, school professionals should focus less on health as an argument for physical activity.

This multiple case study of four journalism and mass communication programs examines teaching presence as a mechanism for mitigating transactional distance in online learning environments. This study explores instructor-to-student communication strategies and techniques utilized by experienced online journalism and mass communication educators, and the contributions of instructional designers in collaborative course design and delivery settings. Six emergent themes are identified and discussed. Recommendations for journalism and mass communication educators, including administrators, are provided.

Objective: The study’s aim was to gain insights into factors influencing sustainable return to work following total knee arthroplasty (TKA). Design: A descriptive multiple-case design was used. A case was defined as a worker’s following TKA work disability situation. Settings: The cases came from public hospitals in urban and semi-urban areas in Quebec (Canada) and involved mostly non-work-related TKAs. Subjects: Workers had to be between 6 and 12 months post-TKA, have physical/manual jobs and currently employed. Their rehabilitation professionals and workplace representatives (employer and/or union) were also recruited, based on the work disability paradigm. Main measures: Semi-structured interviews, questionnaires on pain, physical work demands (workers only), and observation of the work activities of those workers back at work were used. Cases were compared and categorized for worker-perceived levels of difficulty in returning to or staying at work: little or no difficulty ( n = 8); some difficulty ( n = 5); not back at work due to excessive difficulty with their knee ( n = 4). Results: A total of 17 cases were constituted. In only one case, the worker benefitted from an interdisciplinary work rehabilitation approach. Results highlight the interplay among these factors: (1) the workers’ perceptions of their residual symptoms and ability to manage them, (2) the interaction between work adjustments and tools offered by the employers and the workers’ own strategies, and (3) perceptions of the workers’ physical capacities. Conclusion: Workers’ who face high levels of work demands/difficulties and who have limited access to work adjustments and tools should be referred for work rehabilitation.

University-enterprise (U-E) innovation chain fractures hinder the commercialisation of knowledge. However, few contributions in the academic field have uncovered how certain mechanisms repair U-E innovation fractures and commercialise their research results. In order to bridge the research gap in the repair mechanism of U-E innovation chain fractures, a multiple-case study of U-E innovation fractures was conducted by proposing a ‘behaviour-process-outcomes’ repair model. The results are as follows: motivation coordination mechanism is the driving force that converges the goals of different organisations; organisation coordination mechanism is the platform that provides the basic support for the weak links and makes up for the defects of a single organisation; capability development and coordination is the element of U-E cooperation through a combination of basic and applied research capability, technological innovation capability and product commercialisation capability; policy coordination mechanism is the vehicle of U-E innovation chain that strengthens U-E cooperation with various preferential policies. The conclusion shows the ‘coordinated innovation’ repair model for U-E innovation chain fractures provides important insights for practitioners and policymakers involved in developing an innovation chain in U-E cooperation.

The purpose of this instrumental multiple case study was to explore the roles that high school music educators and the experiences they provide play in influencing high school students’ decisions to pursue a career in music education. Four bounded systems, consisting of programs led by ensemble directors with documented records and reputations for helping matriculate music education students into undergraduate music education programs, were studied. Findings were organized into the following themes: (a) formative attraction to the profession, (b) differing approaches to encouragement, (c) forms of encouragement, and (d) life as a music teacher. Specific implications for practice for multiple stakeholders and implications for future research are provided based on these findings.

Using multiple case studies, I examined how three traditional principals reacted and responded over time to the opening of a charter school in their attendance boundaries. Findings suggest principals’ reactions to competition shifted based on their perceptions of their status and competitive advantage in the market. These perceptual changes were the result of interactions with parents/guardians, staff, teachers, and students. This study has implications for how principals’ perceptions over time may affect engagement in competitive markets.

Although the effects of focus of attention (FOA) on the performance of gross motor skills are now well understood, less is known about the role of FOA in naturalistic classroom settings where learners are engaged in the ongoing acquisition and refinement of complex motor skills. The purpose of this study, the first of its kind, was to explore how music teachers focus learners’ attention on physical actions (internal focus) and on the effects of those actions (external focus). We recorded three experienced band directors teaching beginner classes (sixth graders) and completed a content analysis of video recordings to describe (a) teachers’ use of internally focused (IF) and externally focused (EF) verbalizations and (b) patterns among IF and EF verbalizations. These teachers most often directed student attention to internal aspects of performance, and they also paired IF and EF statements to clearly convey how those actions affect external outcomes. Although our descriptive multiple case study design precludes generalization, these data suggest possibilities for future studies that could explore relationships between teachers’ FOA verbalizations and skill development in music classrooms.

Prison-based dog training programs (DTPs) aim to improve successful rehabilitation after detention. However, empirical evidence for their effectiveness is lacking. To evaluate the effectiveness of a DTP—Dutch Cell Dogs (DCD)—on externalizing behavior, stress, self-esteem, empathy, and treatment motivation, a pilot study with a Multiple Case Experimental Design in six adolescents residing in a juvenile justice center (JJC) was conducted. Results did not provide convincing evidence for DCD’s effectiveness. Further research is needed to determine whether and for whom DCD could be a useful addition to regular JJC programming.

In this multiple case study, I examine relationships among the essay genre, contextual influences, sociocultural resources, and choices made by four adult English learners enrolled in an English composition course at a community college. My primary objective is to provide an expanded view of the writing processes used by adult English learners. The research draws heavily on participants’ sociocultural realities before and after their arrival in the United States. The patterns in the data showed that the essay genre along with context significantly contributed to participants’ agentive capacity. The essay genre, in particular, determined the types of competencies they needed to demonstrate, while contextual influences shaped the available resources and their access to those resources.

To understand mental illness in cultural contexts, research should focus on locally informed concepts of illness and the lived experiences of such conditions. Understanding mental illness, its prevalence, and its influence on people’s lives in Namibia represents one such context where attention to the lived experience of mental illness remains understudied. The purpose of the current study was to build upon ethnographic findings about mental illness as madness ( eemwengu) among the Namibian Aawambo. To that end, a multiple case study design was used to explore the lived experience of being omunanamwengu (the mad one). Data were collected from four cases that were bound by the experience of mental illness. Within each case, the individual experiencing illness ( omunanamwengu), family members, and both omunanamwengu and family members were interviewed formally (via a semi-structured interview protocol) or informally due to participants’ preferences for not being recorded. Using Stake’s suggested approach to multiple-case study cross-case analysis, each individual case is described and cross-case themes (Development and Symptoms of Mental Illness; Marginalization and Omunanamwengu; Family Roles in the Lives of the Distressed and Eemwengu; Belief in Treatment) were identified. Findings are discussed in light of the role of beliefs in treatment as well as family involvement, the potential influence of discrimination on mental illness, and implications for practice and cross-cultural psychology.

Improving operational sustainability may help U.S. general aviation (GA) airports improve overall sustainable development without substantial financial inputs. An exploratory multiple-case study of five GA airports was conducted to explore the current understandings of airport operational sustainability among U.S. GA airports. Based on findings, a new definition of airport operational sustainability for U.S. GA airports was developed. A set of performance metrics for measuring operational sustainability in U.S. GA airports was identified. The new definition may help GA airports to develop sustainable management plans, and may help airports in other categories to expand their sustainability perspectives. The metrics identified in this study may be used to measure progress to the sustainable development, identify problems, and set performance goals or targets for airports. Refereed/Peer-reviewed

We use a multiple case study approach to investigate “entrepreneurial leaps,” transition phases between dynamic states in which entrepreneurial action focused on reconfiguring key elements of the business model allows a firm to tap into new pools of resources through accessing and exploiting new market. Based on an analysis of 24 cases from three European countries, we derive a general process model of entrepreneurial leaps and identify four different patterns of how these transitions typically unfolds. The combination of dynamic states and entrepreneurial leaps can be used as a general framework for explaining nonlinear growth processes in firms.

This article examines how three transmasculine persons are subjectified in the Danish treatment system. Based on a multiple case study with three transmasculine persons, we analyse how the treatment system encourages them to perform a more traditional masculinity in order to be culturally intelligible and in order to be assessed as being eligible for treatment. We explore the struggle of subjectivity embedded in these practices. By investigating the concrete subjectification mechanisms and the ways these are dealt with by transmasculine persons, we support existing literature identifying the queer community as a strategic resource in regard to teaching new patients how to “be wrong the right way.” They do so by sharing knowledge about how best to manage the system in order to get closer to living the lives they want. The study contributes theoretically by shedding light on the subjectification processes producing not only boundaries between normal and abnormal (such as binary and nonbinary), but also between legitimate abnormal (binary transgender) and illegitimate abnormal (nonbinary transgender).

The article examines the experience of parenting a child with a diagnosis of autism with a focus on scripts and intentions in relation to the parents’ own childhood experiences of being parented. Five parents participated in a multiple case study design involving in-depth interviews, Adult Attachment Interviews and a parenting intentions scaling task. The findings revealed that all of the parents had experienced significant adverse events in their own childhoods, including trauma and losses. They also expressed intentions to offer parenting that was ‘corrective’ in terms of providing a better emotional environment for their children. Their corrective attempts and also intentions to repeat positive aspects of being parented were moderated by unconscious aspects of their early childhood experiences and also by the autistic features of their children. The interplay between early embodied experiences, theories of autism, parenting experiences and intentions is discussed along with clinical implications.

Little is known about child-to-parent intergenerational learning for environmental sustainability. This qualitative multiple case study research investigated how young Maltese children (aged three to seven years) influence their parents’ pro-environmental actions. Participants included 12 children and 10 parents. Data were collected via observations in one household and two state schools, conversational interviews with children, children’s drawings and their interpretations of them, children’s photograph interpretations, semi-structured interviews with parents and document analysis. Findings revealed that most parents were influenced by their children’s requests to engage in pro-environmental actions, which in turn they had learned about as part of the Eco-Schools programme. Additionally, some parents regarded their children as having agency in discussing environmental issues and strived to empower them in acquiring environmental stewardship skills, but others did not. These findings provide insight into young children’s direct and indirect abilities to influence adults’ actions towards environmental sustainability., peer-reviewed

Although there is much research detailing the pedagogical constraints of high-stakes testing (HST), there is less that examines teachers’ practices within and beyond its control. This multiple case study analyzes ethnographic data to explore two teachers’ practices in an urban context where HST was relevant. Drawing on Foucault’s conceptualization of a plague-stricken town, we explore the mobilization of disciplinary power associated with HST. We then examine teachers’ agency as they taught beyond the administrative gaze. We found that teachers sometimes complied with administrative mandates while also articulating tensions of providing access and actively resisting/critiquing the test.

This article explores mutual relationships between embeddedness and second-generation ethnic entrepreneurs. We apply an exploratory and inductive qualitative research design to investigate how a dual embeddedness of second-generation immigrants in the ethnic community and in mainstream society influence their entrepreneurial activities and vice versa. Based on multiple cases studies of Vietnamese second-generation ethnic entrepreneurs, we identify four causal relations between embeddedness and entrepreneurial activities: (a) resource mobilisation; (b) formation of entrepreneurial motivation; (c) feedback effect on embeddedness and (d) re-formation of dual identity. This research contributes to the research on ethnic entrepreneurship by showing novel causalities between socio-psychological factors and entrepreneurial activities of second-generation entrepreneurs.

As social studies receives less instructional time in elementary classrooms, elementary pre-service teachers (PSTs) observe little social studies instruction in their field placements. Social studies integration is one way to counteract the devaluation of social studies in elementary schools. This multiple case study examines the extent to which nine elementary PSTs were able to integrate social studies into lessons during an alternative field placement, an integratedSTEM camp. The findings show variance across and within participants in their ability to integrate social studies in a quality way. Implications for elementary social studies methods course instructors are discussed.

The purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to examine how the interorganizational relationship between school administrators and law enforcement personnel with diverse cultures, missions, and objectives collaborates to create, implement, and sustain emergency management readiness. The theoretical concept that guided this study involved interorganizational theories as they relate to two or more organizations working together toward a common goal. This study used purposeful sampling of 12 participants from three school districts from the states of Alabama, New Mexico, and Illinois. Interviews, documents, and artifacts, such as school safety plans, school safety drills, safety audits, and Safe School rubrics, were analyzed as part of the data collection process. Results indicated that the creation of emergency management plans is primarily the work of district administrators. The implementation process included district administrators and building principals with minimal input of law enforcement personnel. However, the process of sustaining school emergency plans is a joint effort between school and law enforcement personnel. Analysis of data affirmed the importance of having an effective interorganizational relationship between school and law enforcement personnel in the context of school safety to create an effective emergency management plan in the school.

End-stage renal disease (ESRD) is a prevalent disease that results from kidney failure in the last stage of chronic kidney disease. This disease has many chronic and debilitating symptoms, including muscle wasting. Unfortunately, current methods to diagnose muscle wasting, in this patient population, are rather imprecise and/or expensive. To develop a better method, this study examined the use of sonography across four separate patients with ESRD in a typical clinical setting. Multiple muscle measurements were taken in the patients’ upper arm via sonography, which were compared to laboratory test results and skinfold measurements. This multiple case comparison demonstrates the feasibility of using sonography to measure subcutaneous tissue and muscle mass in this patient population. It also has the potential to correlate with or support other clinical measures of disease severity. Further study is recommended to examine these correlations and to identify clinical implications for sonographic measurement of overall muscle wasting.

The traditional sonographic characteristic used to distinguish polyorchidism (PO) has been its homogeneous echotexture, which is similar or identical to the normal testicle. PO is most commonly found in the left hemi-scrotum but can also be identified in the right hemi-scrotum, inguinal canal, or abdominal cavity. The mediastinum of a testicle represents where the tunica vaginalis and tunica albuginea that encases a testicle folded back in on itself. The identification of a mediastinum in a scrotal lesion implies that testicular tissue is present. This series review presents three cases where PO was identified in the left hemi-scrotum. In addition to the classic homogeneous echotexture that is typically identified in an accessory testicle, a mediastinum was also appreciated in two of the cases, which helped to solidify the diagnosis of polyorchidism.

Given the need to increase Black males’ participation in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), this study employed a multiple case studies approach to investigate the perceptions...

The purpose of this study was to examine the roles of paraeducators in educational teams who supported young children with complex communication needs (CCNs). Participants included members of three teams which included general and special education teachers, paraeducators, speech and language pathologists (SLPs), and parents. An instrumental, multiple case study, qualitative research design was used to better understand paraeducators’ distinct roles and their varying levels of participation as members of their educational teams. Emergent cross-case themes included, first, the varying degrees to which teams worked collaboratively with the paraeducator and, second, the different roles the paraeducators fulfilled based on team members’ expectations. Findings indicated that the degree to which the three teams included the paraeducator as an integral team member varied from minimal to fully integrated. The fully integrated team worked collaboratively to best support the child. The paraeducator’s role and experience on each team was based on the educational team member’s expectations and the support the paraeducator received from the team.

This paper is part of a larger qualitative multiple case study that sought to explore the integration of indigenous knowledge in public libraries in South Africa. The paper draws from semi-structured interviews with selected heads of provincial library services in South Africa to determine the extent to which public libraries provide targeted resources to enhance access to IK. Results reveal that that there are no targeted resources to facilitate access to IK. Concerted efforts to facilitate access by increasing the number of libraries were noted. Notwithstanding these efforts, there seems to be a paucity of IK, which has implication for inclusive services. It is recommended that libraries look beyond enabling access to the Internet but also explore how they can further optimise ICT usage as a way of facilitating access to IK through capturing, organising and disseminating knowledge of indigenous communities.

Drawing on the findings from a multiple case study, we build a process model of toxic leadership and empirically illustrate the toxic leadership process and its outcomes. In doing so, we make two important contributions to current literature. First, we provide a theoretical model of the toxic leadership process that details the intent and outcomes of toxic leadership relative to other dark leadership styles: destructive, abusive, and ineffective. In doing so, we show that, although the intent of toxic leaders is relatively less harmful, the behaviors these leaders engage may be harmful for the organization. More specifically, we show that the primary intent of toxic leaders is to conceal lack of relevant competence and maintain a position of control, at the exclusion of other organizationally relevant objectives. To achieve their intent, toxic leaders engage in upward and downward directed influence attempts that create ambiguity and confusion, thus increasing the toxicity of the context and interfering with others’ ability to perform their work. Second, our findings suggest that followers are more agentic than previously suggested. We show that followers not only choose to unfollow their leaders but also actively work to neutralize the influence of toxic leaders through workarounds and learning. Followers have largely been neglected by the extant leadership literature, and thus, the agency they often display in leadership processes has been insufficiently examined.

Background Lean practices have been widely used by health care organizations to meet efficiency, performance and quality improvement needs. The lean health care literature shows that the effective implementation of lean requires a holistic system-wide approach. However, there is still limited evidence on what drives effective system-wide lean implementation in health care. The existing literature suggests that a deeper understanding of how lean interventions interact with the organizational context is necessary to identify the critical variables to successfully sustain system-wide lean strategies. Purpose and methodology: A multiple case study of three Italian hospitals is conducted with the aim to explore the organizational conditions that are relevant for an effective system-wide lean implementation. A conceptual framework, built on socio-technical system schemas, is used to guide data collection and analysis. Findings: The analysis points out the importance to support lean implementation with an integrated and coordinated strategy involving the social, technical, and external components of the overall hospital system.

Hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) is an elective, curative treatment option for patients with sickle cell disease (SCD). Transplant requires extensive self-management behaviors to be successful. The purpose of this study was to describe potential barriers and facilitators to self-management in a group of pediatric patients with SCD prior to HCT and their medical outcomes post-HCT. A multiple case study approach was used to describe 4 pairs of transplant recipients grouped by age, donor type, and donor source. Each pair included a case with minimal and increased post-HCT complications. Complications included readmissions, graft-versus-host disease, systemic infections, and survival in the first year post-HCT. Variables were retrospectively collected and content analyzed to identify barriers and facilitators within and across pairs using existing self-management frameworks. While higher risk transplants experienced more complications, 3 of the 4 cases with increased complications had a larger number of modifiable barriers identified compared with those experiencing minimal complications. At least one modifiable barrier and multiple facilitators were identified in all cases. A standardized psychosocial assessment process with an established plan to mitigate barriers and promote facilitators to self-management is essential to optimize outcomes in patients with SCD undergoing elective HCT.

The aim of this article is to explore a range of largely embodied vocalisations and sounds produced by learners of string instruments and how they relate to the potential self-regulatory use provided by such vocalisations. This type of “singing” while learning to play an instrument may have similarities to the use of private speech in other types of learning tasks. This report describes a multiple case study based on the naturalistic observation of learners playing string instruments in different situations. We observed private rehearsals by six adult guitarists from different music cultures (classical, flamenco and jazz) who had different approaches to learning (traditional and constructivist). In addition, we observed the one-to-one lessons of a constructivist cello teacher with a 7-year-old beginner and a 12-year-old student. All sessions were recorded. We applied the System for Analysing the Practice of Instrumental Lessons to the video lessons and/or practices and participant discourse for constant comparative analysis across all categories and participants. From the theoretical framework of private speech, we identified a set of qualities in private singing, such as whistling, humming, and guttural sounds, with different levels of audibility. Self-guidance and self-regulation appeared to be the functions underlying both psychomotor learning and reflective-emotional learning from an embodiment approach. Guitar learners from popular urban cultures seemed to use less explicit singing expression than classical guitar learners, the explicitness of which may be related to the instructional use of the notational system. In the one-to-one cello lessons, we observed a process of increasing internalisation from the younger to the older student. Both results are consistent with the literature on private speech, indicating that this process is a natural process of internalisation at higher literacy levels. Singing is not as frequent in music lessons as might be expected, and it is even less frequently used as a reflective tool or understood as an embodied process. The examples provided in this article shed light on the multiplicity of applications and on the potential benefits of private singing in instructional contexts as a powerful learning tool.

The current study employs focal concerns theory to address the role that race/ethnicity plays on various court dispositions of homicide offenders in Newark, NJ, a location where the majority of residents are African American and Latino. Two research questions are examined: (1) Does ethnicity play an important role in the decision to dismiss a case against a homicide offender, convict via a plea deal, convict via trial, acquit via trial, and sentence length? and (2) Which legal and extralegal factors play a role in these decision points during the processing of homicide offenders? The findings suggest that when there is little ethnic variation of defendants, victims, and the citizenry, other extralegal variables take precedence in informing the focal concerns of court actors. The results also suggest that different legal and extralegal variables affect the odds of distinct court outcomes. Implications for theory and future research are discussed.

The purpose of this qualitative multiple case study is to describe and compare how researchers in the education, nursing, psychology, and sociology disciplines operationalize and conceptualize the quality of mixed methods research (MMR). An international sample of 44 MMR researchers representing these four disciplines were interviewed. The study findings point to (a) two perspectives from which the quality of MMR is understood, one contingent and flexible and the other universal and fixed; (b) a relationship between these two perspectives and the participants’ discipline; and (c) a similar occurrence, both in terms of nature and frequency, of the MMR quality criteria most mentioned by the participants across disciplines. Implications of the findings for the field of MMR are discussed.

The purpose of this study was to explore educational and social environments of multiple American community ukulele groups. The foundations, objectives, and leadership of four community ukulele groups offer expansions to our understandings of the ways in which people are teaching and learning with the ukulele as well as what are hopefully valuable considerations for music educators. This study helps to support the notion that there is no singular experience nor ubiquitous practice for community ukulele groups, though some important values (e.g., fun) might be common. In this study, the group leaders established learning environments that were largely participatory, and while the leadership itself may not have always been democratic, the leaders’ choices were reflective of the group members’ interests and goals. Considerations include prioritizing fun, questioning presentational performance, and considering leadership styles and the role of leadership in a responsive educational environment.

In this paper, we open the black box of effectuation as a process by identifying effectuation process characteristics and patterns and thereby unveiling the heterogeneity of effectuation processes. Based on a multiple case research approach, sequential qualitative analysis is used to contrast similarities and differences in effectuation processes among six high-technology ventures. By theorizing the relationship between effectuation principles and process characteristics, we increase the conceptual clarity of effectuation theory and provide insights into how effectuation may be operationalized for scholars in future research.

This article investigates the rationales and activities of nine nonprofit intermediary organizations operating in Israeli public schools, under similar missions of promoting school entrepreneurship. I apply a multiple case study qualitative methodology with in-depth interviews and complementary content analysis to investigate how those intermediaries operate and thrive. I depict how the concept of school entrepreneurship is formed and facilitated and reveal how state policy and intermediaries’ activities interact and shape schools’ realm, as shown in three specific paradoxes emerging from my analysis.

The purpose of this autoethnographic multiple case study was to compare experiences of two first-generation college students pursuing doctoral degrees in music education. Motivations for pursuing an advanced degree were to enact change in the field of music education and fulfill personal ambitions. Participants encountered two challenges, insufficient cognitive maps and inadequate familial support, which contributed to financial difficulties and health issues. Support networks inside and outside of their music education doctoral programs facilitated degree attainment. Participants lacked the cultural capital needed to navigate higher education because of their first-generation status. Instead, participants employed several forms of community cultural wealth: social, navigational, resistant, and familial capital. Through examining each other’s experiences, we offer suggestions for preparing and supporting a more diverse group of future music teacher educators.

Drawing on findings from a multiple case study on the changing hospital industry in Germany, this article sheds fresh light on the implications new public management-driven regulatory frameworks may have regarding the ‘publicness’ of public service settings. It is shown that, in the area under study, key ingredients of the settings’ traditional mission persist, as do expectations towards soci(et)al effectiveness of actual service delivery. However, this is paralleled by the rise of market accountability within and around these settings which undergirds the ‘privateness’ of public-service providing undertakings. Hydrid accountability relations coincide with a new organisational settlement which leads to a fuzzy configuration regarding the role of publicness. This is why a consistent reinvention of the latter is unlikely to occur under a regulatory framework featuring non-statutory and competitive public service provision.

This mixed-method multiple case study investigated nine elementary schools. Six “odds-beating schools,” which serve relatively high numbers of economically disadvantaged children, achieved higher than predicted performance on state assessments when compared with three typically performing schools. The overarching research question guiding this study was: What forces, factors, and actors account for odds-beating schools’ better outcomes? The trust–communication connection provided one answer. Relational trust in odds-beating schools is an intraorganizational phenomenon, and it is accompanied by interorganizational trust (reciprocal trust). These two kinds of trust are accompanied by intraschool and district office–school communication mechanisms. Trust and communications are mutually constitutive as innovations are implemented. This connection is also an implementation outcome. When today's innovation implementation initiatives reinforce this trust–communication connection, it becomes an organizational resource for future innovation implementation.

The words ‘children’ (Danish: ’børn’) and ‘young people’ (Danish: ’unge’) are so often combined that they almost have the character of idiomatic expressions. But what differences in the use of the words can be found? This article seeks to study the prevalent, dominant discourses about children and young people. In particular, it endeavours to answer the following question: What is thematized, and how are the thematizations created and maintained? The study is theoretically inspired by Foucault’s discourse analysis. The methodological approach is that of a multiple case study. Thus, it provides examples of how children are typically referred to in positive terms such as innocent, imaginative, cheerful, spontaneous, creative and competent (a surplus discourse), while young people are typically referred to in negative terms such as irresponsible, rootless, violent, dysfunctional, hedonistic and unaccountable (a deficit discourse).

Tobacco and alcohol companies have long faced criticism regarding the unhealthy nature of their products and decisions to sponsor community sport events (CSEs). Recent public health concerns have led to additional CSE sponsor products facing similar criticism, including soft drinks, confectionary, and fast food. With CSE sponsorship increasingly utilized as a corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiative, research into the perceptions, effects, and management of CSR-based sponsorships within CSEs is opportune. This multiple case study reviews the food and beverage sponsorships of four New Zealand–based CSEs and positions resulting discourse within the sport management domain. Findings suggest that criticism of CSR-based CSE sponsorship is on the rise and predominantly stems from public health concerns. Such ongoing criticism of sponsorship decisions could be detrimental to the financial viability of CSEs.

This multiple case study investigated perspectives of childhood brain tumor survivors on reintegration into school over a 2-year period. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 5 children at 3 times to obtain an extensive view of their overall school experience. Thematic analysis of data resulted in 4 themes: “school life and participation,” “peer relations and friendships,” “performance and difficulties,” and “support and follow-up.” Childhood brain tumor survivors consider school attendance as part of a normal disease-free life. Social contact and friendships represent their main motivating factors for returning to school. Attitudes and feelings regarding performance, difficulties, and support vary among survivors and change over time. In conclusion, continuity in learning and social contact established before the return facilitate the reintegration process. A comprehensive assessment of their academic and psychosocial functioning should be organized on reentry. Systematic follow-up by parents, school staff, and health professionals throughout the child’s school career is required., SCOPUS: ar.j, info:eu-repo/semantics/published

Articulating notes on the clarinet requires the control of many factors, one of which is the behavior of the tongue. It is hypothesized that one of the mechanisms to produce notes in the altissimo (highest) register involves the lowering of the tongue dorsum. The study sought to answer the question of whether different tonguing techniques interfered with the required lowering of the tongue dorsum in this register, making adequate note production difficult. Four professional clarinet players performed diatonic scales across the chalumeau, clarion, and altissimo registers using two techniques—single and double tonguing. Movements of the tongue dorsum and tongue blade were recorded with 3D Electromagnetic Articulography. The movement data revealed that, for all players, a low position of the tongue dorsum was indeed associated with a higher success rate of producing adequate notes in the altissimo register. Single tonguing was the most effective technique due to ability of the tongue dorsum to lower during the highest register. For three of the four players, failed note production in the altissimo register when performing double tonguing related to a high tongue dorsum position; one participant, however, was successful in performing double tonguing in the altissimo register, despite a high tongue dorsum position. This latter finding suggests player-specific strategies to successfully realize double tonguing in the altissimo register.

This study explores the relationship between evaluation policies and evaluation practice. Through document analysis, interviews, and a multiple case study, the research examined the explicit and implicit policies overarching the evaluation work commissioned by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) and explored how these policies are implemented in the field. This examination of evaluation policies at RWJF has pointed out some significant strengths, including emphasis on the importance of evaluation; collegiality in defining, formulating, and monitoring evaluations; using a variety of evaluation products to communicate results; and use of evaluation advisory committees to strengthen evaluation approaches. However, these policies have evolved somewhat haphazardly over time. Consequently, some written policies are absent or inadequate and some policies are followed with less consistency than others. The findings point to the importance of a comprehensive and integrated set of evaluation policies grounded in intended outcomes and the need for additional studies on this topic.

Volleyball Canada and Volleyball Quebec developed long-term athlete development models in order to guide volleyball coaches concerned with athlete development. These models propose guidelines about the development of skills. However, it has yet to be determined whether coaches apply long-term athlete development guidelines in their coaching practice. Therefore, the objectives of this study were to describe the amount of time devoted to the various skills trained by four volleyball coaches of different levels and to compare these training skills with the long-term athlete development guidelines. The results of this multiple case study (n = 4) indicated that based on long-term athlete development guidelines, (a) college and university coaches over-trained technical skills; (b) high school coaches and university coaches undertrained individual tactical skills; and (c) high school coaches over-trained team tactical skills. Corrective measures that might help coaches apply the long-term athlete development guidelines are changes in the access to training facilities, competition schedules, and coach education programs.

Framed in theories of social semiotics, this descriptive multiple case study examined the images used by six middle-school teachers during one school year as they each taught two different subject areas: earth science, language arts, mathematics, and/or social studies. Using Kress and Van Leeuwen’s visual grammar to analyze these images, this study identified discipline-specific patterns in how 1,132 images realized assumptions in regards to the ideational and interpersonal metafunctions of communication. A content analysis suggested discipline-specific differences in the presumed social distance between the content of the images and the students, as well as discipline-specific differences in assumptions about the subjectivity of knowledge. Instructional implications are suggested, such as encouraging students to critique the assumptions in images and selecting a wider array of image types in each discipline.

This study explores the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) for three experienced mathematics secondary teachers from a Toronto public school. By using a multiple case study, teachers' attitudes, skills, and approaches toward the use of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) in classrooms are described. By being aware of the three main facets of TPACK (technological, pedagogical, and mathematical aspects), the relative importance of each component and their intersections were scrutinized. Although from the same school, the teachers had very different conducts of showing their integration of ICT in mathematical pedagogy and therefore, their TPACK was different. Teachers demonstrated various strategies and different paces of adopting ICT: One teacher was a later adapter of ICT with strong emphasis in pedagogy, a second teacher was an early adapter of ICT with focus on finding an adequate technical support for mathematical content, and the third teacher was a very early adopter of ICT with extraordinary capabilities to reflect on the mathematics curriculum and continuingly adapt to his classrooms' needs. It was noticed that the teachers integrated technology to (a) help them describe the concepts to students; (b) motivate students to learn mathematics; (c) give students opportunities to experiment with mathematical concepts and skills; (d) assess, evaluate, and provide feedback to student's work, and (e) help them communicate mathematical solutions. Overall, the framework shows consistency in tracing their assorted routines of integrating technology in various classroom contexts. In the end, some considerations and insights on the potential of the TPACK framework are provided.