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The purpose of this paper is to examine gender differences regarding the experience of workplace health and quality management. In this context, we include some factors of work environment that have previously been shown to be related to health such as workplace learning, stress, flow and sense of coherence.

A questionnaire based on previous research was constructed. It was delivered to a population of Swedish upper secondary school teachers. Three hundred eleven responses were returned. They were analysed for gender differences with t-tests and chi-square tests.

The results show that women's experience of their health is worse than men's despite having a generally better experience of the quality management values, workplace learning and flow. Moreover, women experience more stress, and they are more often subjected to sexual harassment while men more frequently had been exposed to physical violence.

The study has implications for research in that it indicates that although women have better experiences of many of the factors that previous research has shown to be related to workplace health, their health is actually worse. A limitation is that the response rate was low.

The findings should be useful for managers attempting to improve the workplace health of their staff. The finding that women report less health than men even though experiencing quality management values more, means that women's health need a particular focus in secondary schools.

The connection between health and quality management has not been previously studied from a gender perspective.

In previous research, quality management practices have been found to be related to better health for employees. Dimensions of health-promoting quality leadership have been defined. The purpose of this study was to identify dimensions of workplace health in the wellness industry and relate them to the dimensions of health-promoting quality leadership.

An empirical study involving seven leading spa-hotels in Sweden has been carried out. The first part of the study consisted of quality cafés carried out at each of the hotels. The quality café is a novel method, which has the World Café-method as its basis, combined with quality management techniques. Based on the findings from the quality cafés, an employee survey was developed.

The findings from the study include a definition of five major health dimensions for the employees, namely, happiness, kinship, respect, physical health conditions and control. The dimensions were found to be statistically consistent and correlated with the self-reported health of the respondents.

The findings are related to health promotion theory and the dimensions of health-promoting quality leadership. A framework for health leadership in the wellness industry is proposed. The study was only carried out in one country.

The framework and the findings should be useful for managers, particularly in the wellness sector, when designing their operations and health promotion activities.

Workplace health in the wellness sector, which is growing worldwide, is very scarcely researched.

Previous research has identified associations between quality management and employee health. This study's purpose was to (1) examine those associations in a public healthcare organisation and (2) explore and describe the association between digitalisation and employee health.

An online questionnaire including indices to measure quality management values, employee health and digitalisation was answered by 118 managers in Swedish public healthcare. Correlation analysis was used to analyse the data. Based on the survey results, 12 qualitative, in-depth interviews were conducted with healthcare managers.

The findings show that employee health is associated with quality management and digitalisation. Categories were defined to describe the managers' views of the relationship between digitalisation and health.

Causality was not explicitly tested and cannot be assumed. However, the results strengthen the body of research showing that quality management is related to employee health, and associations between health and digitalisation were identified.

The findings and model should be helpful for healthcare managers in a digitalising environment who aim to preserve or enhance employee health whilst ensuring high service quality.

The results were used to create an integrated conceptual model depicting the association between quality, digitalisation and health. This association has not previously been studied.

An innovative technology called consciousness-based education (CBE) is being introduced in schools worldwide. The approach includes both an experiential and an intellectual component. However, research studies exploring learning in CBE are rare. The purpose of the paper is to explore how organizational learning takes place in schools, which adopt CBE in addition to their ordinary curriculum. Moreover, the ambition of the approach regarding quality is examined.

A multiple-case study has been carried out. Four schools using CBE have been studied: a private school in Fairfield, Iowa, USA; a governmentally funded free school in Skelmersdale, United Kingdom; an independent school in Melbourne, Australia, and a primary school in Lelystad, the Netherlands. In total, 26 in-depth interviews have been performed, mainly with teachers and students but also with principals and experts in the CBE pedagogy. In addition, three focus-group interviews with primary school pupils were conducted and observation during classes was included. The data were analyzed by the constant comparative technique from the grounded theory approach.

Categories characterizing organizational learning in the CBE schools have been identified. These findings are related to theories of the learning organization, resulting in a framework depicting different components of learning.

The study provides a framework illustrating organizational learning in schools that utilize CBE which affords an overview of the technology and can serve as a vantage point for further research. Since this is a qualitative case study, the effectiveness of the CBE approach and its impact on learning outcomes were not assessed, and the possibilities to generalize the findings are limited.

CBE has not previously been studied from an organizational learning perspective.

The purpose of this study is to explore dimensions of customer perceptions of factors important for a quality experience in the SPA industry and to assess service quality implications for these dimensions.

The empirical study involved seven Swedish SPA hotels. The first part was qualitative, consisting of seven focus-group interviews with hotel guests. In addition, service providers’ perceptions of customer quality were collected through seven quality cafés. The qualitative parts were analysed with the constant comparative technique from the grounded theory approach. Based on the findings from the interviews, a questionnaire was delivered to 400 randomly accessed women. The responses were analysed with exploratory factor analysis and cluster analysis.

The focus-group interviews showed that the customers’ perception of quality could be expressed in the following dimensions: physical effects, mental effects, pleasure and flexibility. The dimensions for customer quality seen from the staff’s perspective were treatments, climate and the SPA facility itself. The exploratory factor analysis defined the following underlying factors: enjoyment, treatments, practicality, fitness, cost and calm. The cluster analysis resulted in four groups of customer profiles: the more of everything group, the enjoyers, the savers and the fitness freaks.

A limitation is that the study has only been carried out in one country. The main implication for research is a better understanding of quality dimensions and perceptions of service quality in the SPA industry.

The study provides a comprehensive insight into the dimensions of quality for SPA visitors. Moreover, four distinct groups of customers have been identified. This knowledge should be useful for SPA managers.

Only limited amounts of research have previously been carried out in the SPA industry. The paper provides a framework depicting perceptions of quality dimensions in SPA hotels.

The paper concerns the three main accreditation standards for business schools: EQUIS, AACSB and AMBA. The purpose of this paper is to analyse these standards for accreditation from a quality management standpoint.

The study is a conceptual review and analysis of the three standards mentioned above from the perspective of quality management. The constant comparative method from the grounded theory approach has been used to generate categories from the two major quality award models, which are then compared with the criteria of the accreditation models.

The findings show the conceptual quality implications of the three main accreditations. The accreditation models are in line with the tenets of quality management but have a greater focus on production and to a somewhat lesser extent on the people.

One limitation is that the study is only conceptual. Furthermore, the study is limited to the models of quality management and accreditation that have been analysed. Although these are the most common, there are others that could have been included. The research implication mainly lies in an increased conceptual understanding for the quality implications of business school accreditation.

The results of the study will be useful for managers of business schools undergoing or contemplating entering into an accreditation process.

The number of business schools undergoing accreditation is increasing rapidly. Thus, increased knowledge of the conceptual implications of such processes should be valuable.

The purpose of this mixed-methods study was to explore how medical secretaries experience digital transformation in a Swedish healthcare organisation, with a focus on workplace climate and health.

Data were collected using a sequential exploratory mixed-methods design based on grounded theory, with qualitative data collection (a Quality Café and individual interviews) followed by quantitative data collection (a questionnaire).

Four categories with seven underlying factors were identified, emphasising the crucial need for effective organisation of digital transformation. This is vital due to the increased knowledge and skills in utilising technology. The evolving roles and responsibilities of medical secretaries in dynamic healthcare settings should be clearly defined and acknowledged, highlighting the importance of professionality. Ensuring proper training for medical secretaries and other occupations in emerging techniques is crucial, emphasising equal value and knowledge across each role. Associations were found between some factors and the health of medical secretaries.

This study adds to the knowledge on digital transformation in healthcare by examining an important occupation. Most data were collected online, which may be a limitation of this study.

Several aspects of the medical secretaries’ experiences were identified. Knowledge of these is valuable for healthcare managers to make digital transformation more effective while avoiding excessive strain on medical secretaries.

Medical secretaries are expected to contribute to the digitalisation of healthcare. However, minimal research has been conducted on the role of medical secretaries in workplace digitalisation, focusing on workplace roles and its dynamics.

This article reports a case study carried out in four Swedish schools trying to use TQM to improve their operations. Qualitative methods in the form of observation, in‐depth interviews, focus‐group interviews and feed‐back seminars have been used in the study. Specific quality dimensions for the different stakeholders of the schools have been defined. Based on these dimensions, the results of the quality project have been assessed and found to be positive. Reported effects include: a broader and more relevant view of the organisation and its stakeholders which has led to greater job satisfaction, better communication on all levels but especially with parents, increased participation, enhanced co‐operation between different departments as well as on the personal level, improved leadership by the management, more effective and comprehensive evaluations and an increased ability to really implement actions. Lessons on important points when using TQM in this context are also reported.

The purpose of the study reported in this article has been to explore and describe the influence of some national cultures on the way quality management is practised. Case studies have been carried out in the UK, Germany, France and Italy. Some differences in focus have been found. These are related to cultural theory. Hofstede’s dimensions of power distance and uncertainty avoidance are relevant for understanding the variation. The managerial implications of the differences are also discussed, notably with reference to multinational companies. Some different aspects to consider when quality initiatives are taken in the countries in question are proposed.

The purpose of this paper is to examine relationships between quality management health dimensions, employee health, flow and work integrated learning in primary schools. Previous research has indicated relationships between quality management and health. In this study, the role that work integrated learning plays in the connection between quality and health is investigated.

The study object has been a number of schools. A quantitative survey has been carried out. A random sample of 20 primary schools, of which 13 (65 per cent) agreed to participate, was selected. Questionnaires to their 301 employees were delivered and 229 (76 per cent) were returned. The reliability of the items were analysed with Cronbach’s alpha test. The statistical relationships between the items were studied with Pearson’s correlation test.

The results show that the items are reliable. Moreover, statistical correlations between work integrated learning on the one hand and employee health, quality management health dimensions and flow on the other hand are found.

One limitation is that the research has only been carried out in schools and the possibilities of generalising the findings to other sectors are uncertain. Research implications are the relationships that have been identified between work integrated learning and the other factors.

The knowledge that has resulted from the study should be useful for organisations in their attempts to improve the health status of the employees.

The relationship between work integrated learning and employee health has not been studied in any other major study.