Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: http://hdl.handle.net/1893/22348
Appears in Collections:Faculty of Social Sciences Journal Articles
Peer Review Status: Refereed
Title: Digging deep: how organisational culture affects care home residents' experiences
Author(s): Killett, Anne
Burns, Diane
Kelly, Fiona
Brooker, Dawn
Bowes, Alison
La Fontaine, Jenny
Latham, Isabelle
Wilson, Michael
O'Neill, Martin
Contact Email: m.d.wilson@stir.ac.uk
Keywords: residential care
nursing homes
culture
quality of care
dementia
Issue Date: Jan-2016
Date Deposited: 26-Oct-2015
Citation: Killett A, Burns D, Kelly F, Brooker D, Bowes A, La Fontaine J, Latham I, Wilson M & O'Neill M (2016) Digging deep: how organisational culture affects care home residents' experiences. Ageing and Society, 36 (1), pp. 160-188. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0144686X14001111
Abstract: Organisational culture of institutions providing care for older people is increasingly recognised as influential in the quality of care provided. There is little research, however, that specifically examines the processes of care home culture and how these may be associated with quality of care. In this paper we draw from an empirical study carried out in the United Kingdom (UK) investigating the relationship between care home culture and residents' experience of care. Eleven UK care homes were included in an in-depth comparative case study design using extensive observation and interviews. Our analysis indicates how organisational cultures of care homes impact on the quality of care residents receive. Seven inter-related cultural elements were of key importance to quality of care. Applying Schein's conceptualisation of organisational culture, we examine the dynamic relationship between these elements to show how organisational culture is locally produced and shifting. A particular organisational culture in a care home cannot be achieved simply by importing a set of organisational values or the ‘right’ leader or staff. Rather, it is necessary to find ways of resolving the everyday demands of practice in ways that are consistent with espoused values. It is through this everyday practice that assumptions continuously evolve, either consistent with or divergent from, espoused values. Implications for policy makers, providers and practitioners are discussed.
DOI Link: 10.1017/S0144686X14001111
Rights: Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2014 This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Licence URL(s): http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Files in This Item:
File Description SizeFormat 
Killett et al_Ageing and Society_2015.pdfFulltext - Published Version507.19 kBAdobe PDFView/Open



This item is protected by original copyright



A file in this item is licensed under a Creative Commons License Creative Commons

Items in the Repository are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated.

The metadata of the records in the Repository are available under the CC0 public domain dedication: No Rights Reserved https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/

If you believe that any material held in STORRE infringes copyright, please contact library@stir.ac.uk providing details and we will remove the Work from public display in STORRE and investigate your claim.