Does police size matter?:A review of the evidence regarding restructuring police organisations

Restructuring and merging public sector organisations is often seen as a way to enhance efficiency and efficacy. There is ongoing debate about the impact of police force sizes, structures and mergers as police organisations attempt to adapt to reductions in their budgets and changes in patterns of criminality. The article reviews the evidence regarding key aspects of police reform: finding mixed evidence regarding the links between size and performance, while noting risks that mergers may impair local policing. The article discusses the impact of mergers on protective services, governance and accountability, while also discussing potential risks and opportunities associated with the merger process itself. The review finds significant gaps in the available evidence, and significant opportunities to expand the evidence base on this topic. Given current gaps in the evidence regarding size, efficacy and efficiency, it is important to give due consideration to symbolic and rhetorical aspects of mergers

Doing masculinities in construction project management

Purpose - This study aims to examine how masculinities are (re) producedin project- based organizations. The authors first investigate the doingof masculinities in everyday work practices in construction projectmanagement. Second, the authors investigate whether there areopportunities to perceive, or do, gender differently in this specificcontext.Design/methodology/approach - Data are elicited from a case study ofconstruction project managers working on a infrastructure project. Theproject managers were interviewed through semi-structured informalinterviews regarding their experiences of project work. The analysis wasinspired by the competing discourses and practices of masculinity inorganizations outlined by Collinson and Hearn (1994).Findings - The results showed how multiple masculinities coexist andoverlap in the project organization and in the everyday practices ofproject management. Both male and female project managers must adjust tothese masculine discourses and act in accordance with a particularcontext. But the results also showed opportunities to challenge themasculine norms by doing gender differently.Practical implications - The results of this study highlightsopportunities for creating a more gender-equal work environment in theconstruction industry. The multiple ways of doing masculinity, by bothmen and women, highlights the possibilities to balance between doing itwell and differently. Such knowledge can be used in policy andstrategies for equal opportunities for men and women in organizations.Originality/value - This study provides insights into the (re)production of multiple masculinities in construction project management.This study contributes to the criticism of the normative conceptionsthat have characterized the literature on project management. Theauthors add to the tradition of organization studies by arguing that thegender analysis of project management is important to increaseunderstandings of how projects are managed and, in this case, howmasculine discourses affect everyday work.</p

Roma in the Educational System of Sweden: Achievements after Year 2000 and Challenges for the Future

This chapter focuses on the Romani minority in the educational system of Sweden and on achievements after year 2000, and on challenges for the future. A brief historical background frames the discussion, including the processes of getting access to the formal educational system, followed by an overview of the socioeconomic situation of Roma, and further the recognition of Roma as a national minority in 2000 and the Strategy of Roma Inclusion 2012–2032. The second part of the chapter discusses the educational situation from year 2000 until the present, also presenting findings from a study concerning higher education and the first course for Romani mediators working in schools developed at Södertörn University. The conclusion discusses some of the achievements reached during recent years as well as challenges and priorities for the future of the Roma minority in the field of education.</p