Search Results (5)

The purpose of this study is to describe the development and initial validation of a survey focused on problematic situations involving e-cigarette use by rural Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (NHPI) youths. A 5-phase approach to test development and validation was used. In Phase 1 (Item Generation), survey items were created from a series of focus groups with middle school youths on Hawai‘i Island (N = 69). In Phase 2 (Item Refinement and Selection), situational items were reduced to 40 e-cigarette offer situations that were selected for inclusion in the survey. In Phase 3 (Item Reduction), items were administered to 257 youths from 11 middle, intermediate, or multi-level public or public-charter schools on Hawai‘i Island. Exploratory factor analysis indicated the presence of three factors accounting for 50% of the variance: E-Cigarette Offers from Friends (24%), E-Cigarette Offers from Non-Friends (16%), and Coercive Pressure to Use E-Cigarettes (10%). Hypothesized relationships between offer situations and e-cigarette use were partially confirmed, supporting the construct validity of the survey. This survey helps to fill the scientific and practice gap in measuring ecodevelopmental risk and protection for e-cigarette use and has implications for e-cigarette use prevention with rural, NHPI, and/or Indigenous youth populations. Full article

Over the past few decades, Canadian courts have exerted strong influence over the meaning and operation of parliamentary privileges. Starting with a television producer’s Charter rights claim to access a provincial legislature’s public gallery and followed by an employment law claim made by the chauffeur to the Speaker of the House of Commons, the Supreme Court of Canada has articulated an approach under which judges closely scrutinise privileges invoked by legislatures when defending themselves against litigated claims. By applying the doctrine of necessity, Canadian courts make authoritative rulings on what counts as a valid legislative function and the processes and activities needed to fulfil those functions. Canadian courts also require the scope of parliamentary privileges to be pleaded in narrow terms that correspond to the details of a plaintiff’s claim, which has resulted in a hollowed-out conception of privilege over time. In scrutinising the necessity and scope of privilege, Canadian courts have chipped away at the separation of powers. Further, the Canadian approach unjustifiably prioritises the judicial vindication of private rights over the institutional needs of the legislature. Courts in other jurisdictions should reject the Canadian approach and avoid scrutinising the propriety of the exercise of privilege through a necessity test. Instead, courts should engage in a more limited jurisdictional test to confirm the availability of a relevant category of parliamentary privilege in law or historical practice. Judicialising parliamentary privileges weakens the autonomy and vitality of legislative institutions, with the Canadian approach serving as a cautionary tale. Ultimately, the legislature is accountable to the electorate for the exercise of its privileges. To promote fairness and reduce the risk of court interference, parliaments should strengthen the accountability and transparency associated with the exercise of their privileges, including by developing guidelines for their appropriate use. Full article

Charter schools are educational institutions in the United States funded through taxation but operated privately under a charter or contract with a public entity, providing alternative public education options to families. Charter schools are subject to fewer rules and regulations and have greater autonomy than traditional public schools over operations, curriculum, and instruction, although have greater stakes in school accountability. Full article

The fragility of the Portuguese economy, the weight of sectors that were especially vulnerable to the crisis caused by the pandemic, and the small size of enterprises meant that their economic and financial structure was not capable of supporting the effects of the economic crisis, jeopardizing the achievement of the SDG 8. This research explores the perception of chartered accountants about their role in supporting small and medium-sized enterprises during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in Portugal, based on a literature review and on a questionnaire. The results show that 70% of professionals consider that their clients evaluated their work positively during the first wave of the pandemic. However, most chartered accountants did not charge their clients for their extra-work and expenses and 30% even decreased their monthly fees. Portuguese chartered accountants, confronted with the economic–financial problem caused by the pandemic, focused on saving most of their clients from collapse and safeguarding many jobs. This research highlights the public utility and social responsibility of chartered accountants’ work, in the pandemic context in Portugal, as well as their central role for the efficient application of Government economic policies to maintain economic growth and decent work (SDG 8). Full article

Historically, in most countries, the accounting profession has always been male-dominated. Liberal professions such as lawyers, engineers, architects and doctors share the common trait of conservatism. The accounting profession, which is also a liberal profession, is no exception. Starting from this premise, this work aims to provide, using a historical and institutional perspective, a picture of the past and current “journey” in the accountancy profession of women-chartered accountants and auditors in Italy and Romania. Drawing from the theoretical framework of gendered construction of the accounting profession, the paper points out issues affecting the presence, the degree of representativeness and the role (concerning the presence among the higher level of professional activities and governance positions) of women within the National Chartered Association and their continued under-representation in Italy and Romania. Findings contribute to providing insights useful to develop a future agenda and fill in the research gaps in this field. Full article