Anglia Ruskin University

I joined the PhD programme in January 2013. The focus of my study is on user-innovation.

I will be looking at the role that users play within the innovation process in the healthcare sector and how collaboration between the different stakeholders in the industry contributes to the development of healthcare as something that is available, accessible, affordable and appropriate.

Ultimately, the findings aim to provide a framework that organisations within the healthcare sector could adopt in order to explore new and effective ways to implement user-innovation strategies.

Contact Ricardo Carolas - ricardo.carolas@student.anglia.ac.uk

As of October 2012, I have been researching the impact of mega-events on small business clusters around core event zones (i.e. London's Olympic Park, Excel arena etc), with a specific emphasis on the case of the London 2012 Olympic/Paralympic Games.

My study has 3 main objectives:

1) to conceptualise what a positive Olympic legacy should look like for local small business clusters
2) to understand from both a policy and practice perspective which key contributing factors impact on their business environment, competitiveness and performance
3) to identify how the dynamic of such local small business environments change over time post-Games

Over the summer 2013 period (June-September), I will be conducting some initial primary research in London, whilst also writing a first publication - a book review of the seminal text in my research area 'Events and Urban Regeneration' by Dr Andrew Smith.

If you would like to find out more and keep up to date about my research, you can follow my research and teaching blog: 'Olympic Researcher', or follow me on Twitter (@michaelbduignan)

Contact Michael Duignan - michael.duignan@anglia.ac.uk

Eclecticism and methodological pluralism in economics, a critical review (working title)

I am a PhD student in the 'pluralism in economics' research group under the supervision of Dr. Ioana Negru. I started my course in March 2013 and the specific aim of my research is an investigation into eclecticism and its relationship with methodology, ontology and eventually research ethics.

The motivation behind this research is twofold: first, there is an on-going critical debate amongst orthodox and heterodox economists about the meaning and necessity of pluralism as a form of opposition to theoretical dogmatism. Amongst its defenders, eclecticism is described as the best way to fight against such dogmatism. Second, the systematic openness of forms of eclecticism, both praised by its defenders and demonised by its opponents, raises the provocative question whether eclecticism could be an essential condition for pluralist economists. This provocative nature also has the potential for deep intellectual discussions as found in other disciplines.

I hold a Master of Business degree (First Class Honours) in economics from the Auckland University of Technology, New Zealand. My background is in institutional and evolutionary economics and my thesis focuses on a theoretical synthesis in order to explain the advent and distribution of consumption preferences through complex communicational acts on socially constructed institutions.

Contact Imko Meyenburg: imko.meyenburg@anglia.ac.uk

I am researching the role of mindfulness for social innovation and sustainability in enterprises.

As the world today is characterised by predominantly hierarchical managerial practices, high levels of stress, uncontrolled growth and constantly increasing environmental problems it is important to step back and explore a practice that is gaining more and more recognition in the workplace today, which is mindfulness. Potentially it can be linked to the other two concepts and its influence on them will be analysed in this study.

Contact Irina Popova - irina.popova@student.anglia.ac.uk

My study will concentrate on carbon management accounting and especially the role of management accountants to respond to climate change and carbon footprints. Carbon management accounting as a part of sustainability management accounting has been designed to provide information and mechanisms on collecting, analyzing, managing, and communicating internally to assist managers to encounter short/long term decisions relating to carbon management.

Management accountants can play a prominent role in order to support organizations to respond to climate change more effectively (based on the skills and tools they have). Although several studies have investigated the benefits achieved from adapting sustainability management accounting, limited numbers of studies have concentrated on carbon management accounting and especially the role of management accountants.

Contact Alireza Rohani - alireza.rohani@anglia.ac.uk

My study attempts to contextualise history and understand the processes involved in the emergence of meaning and knowledge in organisational and workplace ethnographic studies.

Although researchers in the past have engaged in chronological narratives of individual organizations and meta-analysis of past ethnographic studies, very few researchers have raised the epistemological and ontological questions concerning the context and process of the past.

The current research locates itself in the discourse that historical analysis will provide informed perspective on organising and research practices and will help in theorizing the past.

Contact Smitha Sebastian - smitha.sebastian@student.anglia.ac.uk