Friary Community Hospital

Background: This study investigated the impact of a literature-based intervention – The Reader Organisation's "Get into Reading (GIR)" shared read-aloud model – on people with chronic pain in a clinical setting. Methods: A mixed methodology approach was used. Quantitative self-report measures tested the effect of GIR on participants' psychological symptoms and function before, during and after the reading group. Qualitative individual interviews and a focus group explored participants' experience of GIR. Results: Three key themes emerged from the data: the value of the literature read in terms of quality and diversity, and in terms of promoting absorbed concentration and "flow"; a sense of shared community; improvement in mood, function and quality of life. Conclusions: The study has demonstrated that GIR can have a positive impact on the lives of people suffering chronic pain, which may help to alleviate some features of the condition with minimum risk of side effects.

The paper reports a study carried out in South Wales to further evaluate one of the more specific propositions derivedfrom the generalframework of the structural contingency theory of organizations. This relates the extent of centralization of decision-making in an organization to organizational effectiveness under different conditions of market competition. Both behavioral and financial measures of effectiveness are examined. The results obtained differ substantially from those obtained in previous studies carried out in India and Mexico. While it is accepted that such differences could be due to variations in cultural and economic conditions it is suggested that they may indicate significant weaknesses in contingency theory as it is presently stated.