Randi Hammervold

TV Sports Programs—Who is Willing to Pay to Watch?

This article investigates the factors that influence the willingness of TV viewers to pay for watching sports programs. An empirical survey of Norwegian TV viewers revealed that individual winter sports, such as biathlon and cross-country skiing, headed the popularity list, with soccer coming third. However, it also showed that soccer fans were significantly more motivated to pay than were fans of other sports. These results provide some explanations to soccers revenue dominance in European sports rights markets.

To report or not report? Attitudes held by Norwegian nursing home staff on reporting inadequate care carried out by colleagues.

Aims: The aims of this study are, first, to describe attitudes held by nursing home staff on reporting acts of inadequate care committed by their colleagues, and second, to investigate whether nursing staff have different attitudes depending on age, education, and length of experience of working in the healthcare services. Methods: A questionnaire survey was conducted among nursing staff in 16 nursing homes in the central part of Norway. The response rate was 79% (n=616). Results: A positive attitude towards reporting acts of inadequate care committed by their colleagues was held by the participants in this study. Compared with younger staff, the older staff seemed to be more reluctant to report colleagues, to feel less brave, to be more afraid of what would happen to them if they reported, and to agree that it is best to deal with such matters internally. Regarding education, it seemed that a higher educational level was related with a more positive attitude towards a willingness to report and less fear of negative sanctions. Conclusions: Staff who observe acts of inadequate care committed by colleagues agree that it is their intention to report such incidents. Institutions need to develop and implement mechanisms for understanding and evaluating acts of inadequate care, and staff must be encouraged to speak out on behalf of residents rather than be punished for doing so.

The Self-Transcendence Scale: An Investigation of the Factor Structure Among Nursing Home Patients

Purpose: Self-transcendence, the ability to expand personal boundaries in multiple ways, has been found to provide well-being. The purpose of this study was to examine the dimensionality of the Norwegian version of the Self-Transcendence Scale, which comprises 15 items. Background: Reed’s empirical nursing theory of self-transcendence provided the theoretical framework; self-transcendence includes an interpersonal, intrapersonal, transpersonal, and temporal dimension. Design: Cross-sectional data were obtained from a sample of 202 cognitively intact elderly patients in 44 Norwegian nursing homes. Results: Exploratory factor analysis revealed two and four internally consistent dimensions of self-transcendence, explaining 35.3% (two factors) and 50.7% (four factors) of the variance, respectively. Confirmatory factor analysis indicated that the hypothesized two- and four-factor models fitted better than the one-factor model (cx2, root mean square error of approximation, standardized root mean square residual, normed fit index, nonnormed fit index, comparative fit index, goodness-of-fit index, and adjusted goodness-of-fit index). Conclusions: The findings indicate self-transcendence as a multifactorial construct; at present, we conclude that the two-factor model might be the most accurate and reasonable measure of self-transcendence. Implications: This research generates insights in the application of the widely used Self-Transcendence Scale by investigating its psychometric properties by applying a confirmatory factor analysis. It also generates new research-questions on the associations between self-transcendence and well-being.

TV Sports Viewers - Who Are They?

Abstract This article reports on empirical data from Norway which indicates that popular sports contests are also popular TV programmes. Individual sports, such as biathlon and cross-country skiing headed the popularity list, while football and ski-jumping came joint third. However, although football (only) came third, a higher proportion of football fans were willing to pay for watching it on TV than fans of other sports. This can explain why football has been the most successful sport pay-TV in Europe. Those interested in football were more interested in cultivating their favourite teams/athletes than fans of other sports. The analysis also indicates that the uncertainty of outcome is not as important for peoples’ interest in sport as the literature in sport economics has argued.

The dark side of Norwegian nursing homes: factors influencing inadequate care

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to investigate factors that influence the probability that staff will commit acts of inadequate care, abuse, and neglect. Design/methodology/approach– A cross- ...

Aspiration Index in Vocational Students Dimensionality, Reliability, and Construct Validity

The self-determination theory (SDT) distinguishes between intrinsic and extrinsic aspirations or life goals, which tend to fall into two separate constructs. The pursuit of intrinsic goals, relative to extrinsic ones, is associated with numerous cognitive, affective and behavioural outcomes that are considered to be positive for individuals as well as for society such as, for example, students’ school persistence. Developed by SDT researchers, the Aspiration Index has been widely explored. However, it has not previously been evaluated in Scandinavia. By means of confirmatory factor analysis and correlation analysis, the purpose of the current study was to examine the dimensionality, reliability, and construct validity of the Aspiration Index among health and social care students (N=415). The analysis revealed that a hypothesised second-order, two-factor model fits well with the observed data. The Aspiration Index also showed good reliability and construct validity in the present population of young people.