Democratic Leadership

Democratic leadership suggests that leadership can include people rather than treating them simply as followers of a leader. Understanding what this means conceptually, and its implications for practice in schools and other educational settings, raises complex and challenging issues. The concept of democracy has a variety of meanings. The concept of leadership itself is much debated, with increasing attention being given to the idea that in practice it is a distributed and emergent phenomenon involving not only senior leaders but also numerous others who contribute to leadership through everyday interactions. A narrow, minimalist idea of democratic leadership sees it as a style of leadership that a principal or headteacher might adopt so that others, such as staff and students, feel consulted and included. This has limited potential for transforming education. A broader conception, with greater relevance to education, sees democratic leadership as having a much richer and more ambitious focus. A rich perspective of democratic leadership not only promotes power sharing and transforming dialogue that enhances understanding (rather than entrenching people’s existing views and self-interests) but also cultivates holistic learning as rounded, ethical “citizens” of the organization and relational well-being through a community that fosters both belonging and individuality. Democratic leadership that is rich in this way encourages a sense of agency across the school and addresses power differences so the practice of democratic leadership becomes a shared, collaborative process in which all as co-leaders contribute proactively to innovation and the life of the school. It also recognizes the importance of the structural context from which leadership as a complex, distributed phenomenon emerges. Democratic leadership grows from and is expressed through enabling structures, such as a culture that explicitly shows that inclusive participation is valued and institutional spaces and resources that provide opportunities for power sharing, transforming dialogue and the growth of holistic learning and relational well-being. Both (enabling) structures and (participative and empowering) agency are essential features of democratic leadership.

For emancipation: a Marxist critique of structure within critical realism

PurposeThe authors critique Modell's proposition that critical realism is useful in elucidating and creating possibilities for emancipation.Design/methodology/approachThe authors begin by outlining Modell's conception of enabling structures. If ‘activated’ by reflexive individuals, these are theorised to be a mechanism through which agents can begin to emancipate themselves. However, the authors argue that emancipation must be contextualised within the material realities of global capitalism, paying particular attention to the shape of inequality and the subjects of exploitation. In doing this, they draw on Marx to pose an alternative view of structure.FindingsIn offering a Marxist critique of critical realism, the authors show how capitalist superstructure and base work together to reinforce inequality. In doing this, they highlight the enduring importance of collective action as the engine of emancipation. It is for this reason that they advocate for an emancipatory politics, which is collectively informed outside of, and in conflict with, the logics of capitalism.Research limitations/implicationsThe authors argue that explicit discussions of capitalism and its structures must be at the centre of critical accounting research, especially when it pertains to emancipation.Originality/valueGiven the importance of the conceptual framing of critical accounting research, this article suggests that critical realism has much to offer. That said, the authors draw on Marx to raise a number of important questions about both the nature of structure and the identity of reflexive agents within critical realism. They do this to encourage further debate about the emancipatory possibilities of the critical accounting project and the ideas proposed by Modell (2020).

Academic Optimism, Enabling Structures, and Student Achievement

This study examined the relationships between enabling structures, academic optimism, and student achievement to determine whether academic optimism served as a mediator between the two. Student achievement was measured using both criterion-referenced and norm-referenced tests. Findings indicated a relationship between academic optimism, enabling structures, and student achievement. Also, academic optimism appeared to serve as a mediator between enabling structures and norm-referenced assessments but did not correlate with criterion-referenced tests. This study is one of only a few seeking to establish connections among enabling structures, academic optimism, and student achievement, measured at the school level, in elementary schools. The use of mediation also offers a unique perspective on the literature.

Same but different: Polish and Norwegian parents’ work–family adaptations in Norway

This article explores how families with young children arrive at and live with different work–family adaptations within a welfare state that strongly supports the dual earner/dual carer model – that of Norway. It draws on a qualitative study among Norwegian-born and Polish-born parents, representing, respectively, ‘insider’ and ‘outsider’ views on this model. The analysis aims at capturing the dynamic interplay between structures and policies, and everyday practices. We found that both Norwegian and Polish parents embraced the cultural ideal of the dual earner/dual carer model, but that their perceived scope of action differed. Within the Norwegian group, there were differences related to class, however. Among middle-class Norwegian parents, the model was internalized as a moral obligation and part of identity, making it difficult to voice and cope with work–family conflict. Working-class parents in this group varied more in their identification with this model. Across class, Polish parents, in contrast, used welfare state entitlements eclectically to shape new and more gender equal family practices in Norway and to adjust to changing circumstances. The article illustrates how enabling structures may represent both opportunities for and limitation to individual agency, undermining the assumption of a simple ‘fit’ between work–family policies, work–family adaptations and gender equality in the family.

Workplace Incivility and Bullying in the Library: Perception or Reality?

Recent media reports have increased awareness of workplace incivility and bullying. However, the literature regarding workplace incivility and bullying in academic libraries is under reported and under researched. This study examines the current state of librarians’ perceptions on workplace incivility and bullying and evaluates the effects of bullying from organizational and individual perspectives. Bullying was measured based on the librarian’s responses to the Negative Acts Questionnaire, including both experienced bullying and witnessed bullying. The authors introduce a conceptual framework to understand the motivating structures, precipitating circumstances, and enabling structures that lead to bullying in the library. A statistical analysis using a regression model revealed several factors that influenced bullying, including a librarian’s ethnicity, the number of years worked in the library, the type of institution, and a librarian’s academic status. The findings can be useful for discussions of improving workplace climate, increasing retention and recruitment for academic librarians, and helping early career librarians throughout the promotion and tenure processes.

Anti-social financial practices in Nigeria

Purpose – The purpose of the paper is to examine the problem of anti-social financial practices which seems to be a taken-for-granted reality in many parts of the world and particularly in developing countries. The paper locates the role of actors within the theory of transformational model of social activity proposed by Bhaskar (1989) and advocates radical reform to minimise attendant problems created by these antisocial financial practices. Design/methodology/approach – The paper proposed Bhaskar’s (1989) theory of transformational model of social activity which suggests that the society provides the necessary conditions for intentional human activity and that intentional human action is a necessary condition for it. This is because it is difficult to separate people’s perception from the wider social context in which the phenomena arise and the way and manner in which the practices are constructed. To help understand why antisocial financial practices have become so deeply embedded in the Nigerian sociopolitical and economic systems, the views of significant others (professionals, tax officials, non-governmental organisations, media and regulators) were solicited about the structures that influence the activities of the social actor involved in these antisocial financial practices in Nigeria. Findings – Using results from 24 interviews, the paper argues that social structures, such as globalisation, history, politics and social networks, have influenced and [re]shaped the attitudes and behaviours of actors towards committing antisocial financial practices. Practical implications – The paper, therefore, advocates a radical reform that could minimise the attendant problems created by these antisocial financial practices of actors and the enabling structures. Social implications – Where antisocial financial practices are embedded in the society, they become part of the daily routines and in that process are normalised. Originality/value – The paper is a general review of the literature and evidence on contemporary issues.

Addressing the “Commitment Problem”

Self-discovery learning, theoretically, can apply to the extreme ends of human endeavor—the acquisition and maintenance of in-depth expertise over long periods of time. Long-term persistence and focus have always been difficult challenges, even with the enabling structures of educational and career tracks. The inherent unstructuredness and informal aspects of self-discovery learning may make it harder for people to maintain long-term focused interests and investments in their learning. However, the creation of social collaborative work spaces for communities (and networks) of practice and the wide accessibility of various data sets online may be the nascent elements of more elite enabling spaces that may address the “commitment problem” for long-term persistent attention. This chapter proposes a draft survey based on the research to learn more about long-term informal discovery learning online.