- Title
- A critical review of two commonly used terms in academic humanitarian logistics publications
- Creator
- Oloruntoba, R. O.
- Relation
- 18th Annual Logistics Research Network Conference (LRN). Proceedings of the Logistics Research Network Conference (Birmingham, UK 4-6 September, 2013)
- Relation
- https://ciltuk.org.uk/Home.aspx
- Publisher
- Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport in the UK (CILT(UK))
- Resource Type
- conference paper
- Date
- 2013
- Description
- Purpose: This paper examines the validity of commonly used terms and terminology in academic humanitarian aid logistics publications. Humanitarian logistics is a rapidly developing area of research that is complex and dynamic with a diversity of researchers and perspectives from operations management, SCM, logistics, transport, sociology, disaster and emergency management and beyond. The logistics of responding to humanitarian challenges is often dissimilar from each other and varies from case to case where a range of processes and activities are undertaken by and for the account of different donors, actors, governments, agencies, organisations and beneficiaries. Such multifaceted and cross-functional dynamics has resulted in a variety of management, operational, organisational and strategic approaches to humanitarian logistics research without producing a comprehensive, consensual and structured humanitarian logistics discipline with its own accepted terms and terminology. Much of the current terms and terminology used in the academic literature on humanitarian aid logistics has developed piecemeal with individual academic researchers and / or practitioners in humanitarian organisations and institutions in the field 'coining' their own terms, and often with both groups not understanding each other's use of terms, and outsiders not understanding both. Ambiguity in the use of terms and terminology in the literature seems to be a threat to clarity and understanding. Additionally, there are many areas that remain unexplored in the logistics of humanitarian response as a result available terms and terminology are limited in conceptualizing, outlining and describing the broad range of features of operational and strategic humanitarian logistics. Research approach: This paper examines the validity of commonly used terms and terminology in humanitarian aid logistics research through a critical literature review of a representative sample of academic publications, questions the basis and assumptions of such terms and terminologies, and seeks to demonstrate that with integrated logistics and supply chain flows as well as a rapidly maturing field of research there is less of a case for ad-hoc, piecemeal, isolated and restricted approaches to the use of humanitarian logistics terms and terminology. Findings and Originality: The paper finds incongruities and ambiguities in the use of humanitarian aid logistics terms and terminologies by various authors in a range of academic journals. Research impact: The paper reconciles some of the most commonly used but ambiguous terms and terminology with a view to enabling researchers in humanitarian aid logistics to at least "speak and understand a common language" and enable the field to grow from a conceptually and terminological clear and unambiguous foundation. Practical impact: The paper will enable academic researchers and practitioners in humanitarian organisations and institutions in the field to better understand each other therefore promoting cross-over learning between academic research and the humanitarian aid logistics work that practitioners undertake.
- Subject
- humanitarian logistics; disaster logistics; emergency logistics; humanitarian aid
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/1959.13/1316736
- Identifier
- uon:23253
- Language
- eng
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