In this book, Roy Bhaskar sets out to revindicate ontology, critiquing the reduction of being in favor of knowledge, which he calls the "epistemic fallacy".

This work is a clear, jargon-free introduction to the practice and theory of critical realism in the social sciences. The book emphasises the importance of concept formation, and suggests techniques for this in the social sciences. Methodological principles are presented as part of a practical model for an explanatory social science. In order to relate theory and empirical observations, the authors stress developing and applying abstract theories of social structures and mechanisms. The book reveals that the question is not what (...) type of method is best, but rather what different methods can do, and how can they be combined. (shrink)

In this article it is argued that there are barriers to effective and non-discriminatory practice when mentoring overseas nurses within the National Health Service (NHS) and the care home sector. These include a lack of awareness about how cultural differences affect mentoring and learning for overseas nurses during their period of supervised practice prior to registration with the UK Nursing and Midwifery Council. These barriers may demonstrate a lack of effective teaching of ethical practice in the context of cultural diversity (...) in health care. This argument is supported by empirical data from a national study. Interviews were undertaken with 93 overseas nurses and 24 national and 13 local managers and mentors from six research sites involving UK health care employers in the NHS and independent sectors in different regions of the UK. The data collected showed that overseas nurses are discriminated against in their learning by poor mentoring practices; equally, from these data, it appears that mentors are ill-equipped by existing mentor preparation programmes to mentor overseas-trained nurses from culturally diverse backgrounds. Recommendations are made for improving mentoring programmes to address mentors’ ability to facilitate learning in a culturally diverse workplace and thereby improve overseas nurses’ experiences of their supervised practice. (shrink)

Humanity and the very notion of the human subject are under threat from postmodernist thinking which has declared not only the 'Death of God' but also the 'Death of Man'. This book is a revindication of the concept of humanity, rejecting contemporary social theory that seeks to diminish human properties and powers. Archer argues that being human depends on an interaction with the real world in which practice takes primacy over language in the emergence of human self-consciousness, thought, emotionality and (...) personal identity - all of which are prior to, and more basic than, our acquisition of a social identity. This original and provocative new book from leading social theorist Margaret S. Archer builds on the themes explored in her previous books Culture and Agency (CUP 1988) and Realist Social Theory (CUP 1995). It will be required reading for academics and students of social theory, cultural theory, political theory, philosophy and theology. (shrink)

The globalisation of the nursing workforce: barriers confronting overseas qualified nurses in AustraliaRecent decades have coincided with the rapid globalisation of the nursing profession. Within Australia there has been rising dependence on overseas qualified nurses (OQNs) to compensate for chronic nurse shortages related to the continued exodus of Australian nurses overseas and to emerging opportunities in other professions. Between 1983/4 and 1994/5, 30 544 OQNs entered Australia on either a permanent or temporary basis, counter‐balancing the departure overseas of 23 613 (...) locally trained and 6519 migrant nurses (producing a net gain of just 412 nurses in all). The period 1995/6–1999/2000 saw an additional 11 757 permanent or long‐term OQN arrivals, with nursing currently ranked third target profession in Australia’s skill migration program, in the context of continuing attrition among local nurses. This pattern of reliance on OQNs is a phenomenon simultaneously occurring in the UK, the US, Canada and the Middle East — the globalisation of nursing reflecting not merely Western demand but the growing agency and participation of women in skilled migration, their desire for improved quality of life, enhanced professional opportunity and remuneration, family reunion and adventure. (shrink)

Realism is increasingly impacting on management and business studies. Pulling together a wide range of material, all explicitly or implicitly rooted in philosophical realism, this volume addresses issues such as the nature of the firm.