Predicting early career research productivity: the case of management faculty

We used a longitudinal design to examine the predictors of early career research productivity for 152 management professors over the first six years of their career. Results revealed early career research productivity to be a function of dissertation advisor research productivity, pre‐appointment research productivity, and the research output of a faculty member's academic origin and academic placement. However, the effects of these predictors varied over time in terms of strength. The findings are discussed in terms of guiding the evaluation and hiring of new researchers in knowledge‐based industries. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

How work ideologies shape the psychological contracts of professional employees: doctors' responses to perceived breach

This study suggests that the psychological contract between a professional and his/her employing organization is shaped by both professional and administrative work ideologies and therefore involves both professional and administrative roles and perceived role obligations. It is also suggested that because of important differences between these two ideologies, a professional employee's response to perceptions that his/her organization is not fulfilling its role obligations will depend on whether the perceived breach involves professional or administrative obligations. Hypotheses based on this general proposition were strongly supported in a sample of medical professionals. Specifically, results suggest that perceived breaches of administrative role obligations are most strongly associated with dissatisfaction, thoughts of quitting, and turnover whereas perceived breaches of professional role obligations are most strongly associated with lower organizational commitment and job performance (productivity and client satisfaction). Implications for theory and research on the dimensionality of the psychological employment contract and on the employment of professionals are considered. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effect of Different Types of Rest-Break Interventions on Neck and Shoulder Muscle Activity,Perceived Discomfort and Productivity in Symptomatic VDU Operators: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Objective. This study evaluated the effect of different types of activities during rest-break interventions on neck and shoulder muscle activity, muscle discomfort and productivity among symptomatic video display unit (VDU) operators performing prolonged computer terminal work. Study design and setting. Randomized controlled trial was used. Thirty symptomatic VDU operators were randomly assigned to 2 active break groups (stretching and dynamic movement) and a reference group. The subjects performed the same typing task for 60 min and received 3-min breaks after each 20 min of work. Root mean square and median frequency were calculated for neck and shoulder muscle activity. Muscle discomfort was measured with Borg’s CR-10 scale. Productivity was measured by counting words. Results. There were no significant differences between the types of activities during breaks on neck and shoulder muscle activity, muscle discomfort or productivity. However, there was a significant difference in the level of muscle discomfort over time. Conclusions. Three types of activity during breaks showed a favourable effect on neck and shoulder muscle activity and productivity, and a positive effect on muscle discomfort in symptomatic VDU operators.     

Involuntary retirement,bridge employment,and satisfaction with life: A longitudinal investigation

The increased popularity of bridge employment has raised questions about its consequences for well‐being in late adult life. This research explored the consequences of bridge employment for the level of life satisfaction of older adults during the retirement transition period. Changes in life satisfaction were considered to be a function of the different intentions and motives for taking bridge jobs. Furthermore, the impact of bridge employment was empirically examined conditional on the voluntariness of the exit from the career job. Panel data on Dutch retirees (N = 1248) were investigated using conditional change models. The results demonstrate that older adults willing to prolong their work careers but unable to find bridge jobs reported lower levels of life satisfaction compared with full retirees not considering bridge employment. In addition, participation in bridge employment for financial motives was associated with decreases in life satisfaction compared with postretirement working based on intrinsic motives. Moreover, compared with voluntary retirement, involuntary retirement was detrimental to life satisfaction, but participation in a bridge job was found to mitigate this negative shock. These findings contribute to the understanding of the consequences of various postretirement employment trajectories for older individuals. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A Process investigation of realistic job previews: Mediating variables and channels of communication

A laboratory experiment was conducted to investigate the role of three possible mediating variables (job attitude, job knowledge, and job acceptance intention) to explain the effects of realistic job previews (RJPs) on entry-level outcomes. In addition, the effectiveness of an oral realistic job preview presented by an employment interviewer was compared to a written RJP. Sixty undergraduate student volunteers were randomly assigned to one of three conditions: (1) an oral RJP presented to job applicants by the employment interviewer during an employment interview; (2) a written RJP given to job applicants to read before an employment interview; and (3) a control condition in which job applicants received general job information from the interviewer during an employment interview. Results indicated that knowledge was an important mediator of RJP effects on several entry-level outcomes whereas attitude and job acceptance intention did not mediate RJP effects although both were strongly related to job acceptance decisions. In addition, the oral RJP was more effective than both the written RJP and general job information in creating positive preceptions of interviewer and organization honesty. Both the oral and the written RJP lowered subjects' job expectations and increased role clarity in comparison to the control group but did not affect job acceptance or commitment to job choice. The implications for future RJP research and application are discussed.     

Predicting turnover: A comparison of part-time and full-time employees

The predictability of turnover was compared for part-time versus full-time workers. This was accomplished using variables (1) that were hypothesized by Mobley (1977) to precede the turnover decision and (2) that have been shown in previous research to be significantly related to turnover. Measures of these variables were assessed via questionnaires following the second month of employment. Turnover was assessed directly from company records for a period of up to twelve months following employment. None of the hypothesized antecedent variables were significantly related to turnover within the part-time group. However, within the full-time group, all of the hypothesized precursors to turnover were found to be at least marginally related to actual turnover. Further, there was evidence to suggest differential predictability of turnover across full-time and part-time employment status groups, suggesting that the two groups may have a different ‘psychology of work’. These results are discussed in terms of the supportive evidence provided.     

Participative Versus Assigned Production Standard Setting in a Repetitive Industrial Task: A Strategy for Improving Worker Productivity

Abstract

The participative standard with feedback condition was superior to the assigned difficult (140% of normal) standard with feedback condition in terms of worker productivity. The percentage increase in worker productivity with the participative standard and feedback condition was 46%, whereas the increase in the assigned difficult standard with feedback was 23%, compared to the control group (no standard, no feedback). Worker productivity also Improved significantly as a result of assigning a normal (100%) production standard with feedback, compared to the control group, and the increase was 12%. The participative standard with feedback condition emerges as the optimum strategy for improving worker productivity in a repetitive industrial production task.     

Sense‐making of employment: on whether and why people read employment advertising

This paper suggests a process of sense‐making of “employment“ and identifies employment ads to be useful agents in this process. It is suggested that individuals read ads in surveillance of the employment market in addition to reading them to search for employment vacancies. Employment ads are suggested to be a forum for organizational self‐presentation that offers current information about the employment exchange as it is viewed by employers. Two exploratory studies are presented to support the thesis. Study 1 is an inductive survey of people's reading of employment ads, showing that people read ads even if they are not looking for a job because they view ads as a source of insight about the employment environment. Study 2 reviews the content of employment ads, showing them to convey prevailing elements of the idea of employment, namely that employment is an exchange of employee skills and responsibilities for organizational intrinsic and extrinsic rewards. Recognizing the individual need for sense‐making of employment, and identifying employment ads as a source of information about employment, opens up a new area for research and practice on recruiting, organizational self‐presentation, and sense‐making. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Personnel department expenditures and labor productivity

Empirical evidence relating personnel department budgets to desired organizational outcomes remains sketchy and inconclusive. An analysis was conducted of the relationship between previous year's personnel department expenditures and total annual output, for 11 large railroads over a six-year period. There was a significant partial correlation between these two variables. However, after controlling for total assets and workforce size, a regression analysis indicated that individual railroads were unable to adjust their personnel department expenditures over time to maximize productivity. Implications for research and practice are discussed.     

A test of a multidimensional model of job insecurity: the case of Israeli teachers

The research reported here adopted a multidimensional approach to studying job insecurity, using Israeli teachers as a case in point. Based on two determinants of job insecurity—unionization and kibbutz affiliation—four distinct employment types were identified: unionized city teachers, unionized kibbutz members, unionized kibbutz hirees, and non-unionized personal contract teachers. The a priori job insecurity status of the four employment types matched the subjective reports of these teachers, supporting the external validity of the job insecurity scale used. The study explored the effect of job insecurity on work attitudes. Results indicated that job insecurity had an adverse effect on organizational commitment, perceived performance, perceived organizational support, intention to quit and resistance to change, supporting predictions in related literature. The results of this study have implications on the management of job insecurity in changing environments.     

The European Working Conditions Survey( EWCS) :a growing instrument: a reflection on the methodology,the reasons for and the use of the survey

The European Working Conditions(the EWCS)Series Eurofound,the European Foundation for the improvement of working and living conditions is a European tripartite agency which contributes to the improvement of working and living conditions.A key instrument to do so is the EWCS.The EWCS aims to comparably measure working conditions across European countries and beyond.This allows for the analysis of relationships between different aspects of working conditions,the identification of groups at risk and issues of concern,as well as areas of progress and the monitoring of trends over time.These analyses contribute to European policy development,in particular on issues with regard to the quality of work and employment.Following earlier editions of the EWCS in1991,1995,2000,2005 and 2010,a sixth wave of the survey will be fielded in 2015.Eurofound develops the questionnaire and outlines the design of the survey as well as a strict quality assurance framework.The actual preparation and implementation of fieldwork is contracted out.The development of the questionnaire is user led.Tripartite users of the survey are key in setting priorities for change.The questionnaire of the 6th EWCS maintain many trend questions which allow mapping changes over time.Yet a number of new questions will be included in the 6th editions which cover recent changes in work,sustainability of work,boundaryless work,work life balance,organisational justice,engagement,sleeping problems,chronic diseases,blurring frontiers in employment status.Changes over time On average there are little changes:this is because work situations and working conditions are becoming more diverse and inequalities in working conditions are increasing.On average,workers work less and less workers work long hours.They also work less"atypical"working hours.Work is taking place in more collective environment(clients,devolution of coordination tasks down to employee level etc.).Yet employment relations are more individualised.Technology use is on the increase but level of reported cognitive demands has remained the same.Exposure to physical risks remains high.Exposure to psychosocial risks is probably on the increase as illustrated by work intensification.Employment status in evolution:frontiers between categories less strict:the employment contract plays a key role in framing working conditions.Over time,there has been slow progress in gender segregation.Women still bear much of the burden of care activities.Sustainable work on the increase:good working conditions are key for sustainability as well as the provision of meaningful work.Less people report a good/very good work life balance.Important differences are lost at the aggregate level.Unfavourable working conditions tend to cluster disproportionally in some groups.Policy conclusions The improvement of working conditions is not automatic and need to be supported.Lifecourse perspective is important to understand trade-offs between job quality features.Social and economic policies are linked together:good work and good working conditions are key in facilitating good performance and wellbeing.Actions to support the improvement of working conditions are not necessarily costly.Many actors contribute to the improvement of working conditions and their efforts need to be supported.     

The role of production and teamwork practices in construction safety: A cognitive model and an empirical case study

Problem

In construction, the challenge for researchers and practitioners is to develop work systems (production processes and teams) that can achieve high productivity and high safety at the same time. However, construction accident causation models ignore the role of work practices and teamwork. This study investigates the mechanisms by which production and teamwork practices affect the likelihood of accidents.

Method

The paper synthesizes a new model for construction safety based on the cognitive perspective (Fuller's Task-Demand-Capability Interface model, 2005) and then presents an exploratory case study. The case study investigates and compares the work practices of two residential framing crews: a 'High Reliability Crew' (HRC)—that is, a crew with exceptional productivity and safety over several years, and an average performing crew from the same company.

Results

The model explains how the production and teamwork practices generate the work situations that workers face (the task demands) and affect the workers ability to cope (capabilities). The case study indicates that the work practices of the HRC directly influence the task demands and match them with the applied capabilities. These practices were guided by the 'principle' of avoiding errors and rework and included work planning and preparation, work distribution, managing the production pressures, and quality and behavior monitoring.

Summary

The Task Demand-Capability model links construction research to a cognitive model of accident causation and provides a new way to conceptualize safety as an emergent property of the production practices and teamwork processes. The empirical evidence indicates that the crews' work practices and team processes strongly affect the task demands, the applied capabilities, and the match between demands and capabilities.

Impact on Industry

The proposed model and the exploratory case study will guide further discovery of work practices and teamwork processes that can increase both productivity and safety in construction operations. Such understanding will enable training of construction foremen and crews in these practices to systematically develop high reliability crews.     

Employment commitment as a moderator of the maternal employment status/child behavior relationship

Research findings suggest that maternal employment exerts no consistent detrimental effects on children. In this study, the moderating role of employment commitment and child sex on the relationship between maternal employment status and child behavior is investigated. Mothers and teachers provided behavioral ratings for 185 elementary school children (M age = 9.42 years). Employment commitment moderated the influence of employment status on mothers' and teachers' ratings of children's attention problems and immaturity: Children whose mothers' employment status and commitment were not congruent were less attentive and more immature than those whose mothers' employment status and commitment were congruent. The statistical and applied significance of these results is suggested, as is the possibility that mother-child interactions mediate the manner in which incongruencies between employment status and employment commitment influence children's inattention-immaturity.     

Perceived organizational support and embeddedness as key mechanisms connecting socialization tactics to commitment and turnover among new employees

Retention of new hires is a critical issue for organizations. We propose that relationships are important mechanisms through which socialization tactics influence commitment and turnover. The key theoretical mechanisms connecting socialization tactics to turnover in our model are the extent to which newcomers perceive their relationship with the organization as supportive, caring, and entailing positive social exchanges and the extent to which newcomers become embedded within the organization. We collected longitudinal data from over 500 employees over the first year of employment. Consistent with our hypotheses, socialization tactics influence perceived organizational support (POS) and job embeddedness, and POS and embeddedness both relate to organizational commitment and voluntary turnover. Results support POS and embeddedness as relational mechanisms that bind employees to the organization as a result of socialization tactics. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Age effects on the predictors of technical workers' commitment and willingness to turnover

Building commitment and preventing costly turnover of technical employees are key challenges facing organizations today. We examine whether the elements of the employment relationship that predict commitment and willingness to change companies vary significantly with age. Using a sample of over 3000 technical professionals from six large companies, we find that in comparison to those under 30, satisfaction with job security is more strongly related to the commitment of more senior workers (ages 31–45 and those over age 45) and to their desire to remain with their companies. In contrast, satisfaction with work–life balance is more strongly related to commitment of those under age 30 than those over 30. Also, for the under‐30s, satisfaction with opportunities to develop technical skills and pay linked to individual performance has a stronger negative relationship with willingness to change companies than for those over 45. While statistically significant, the size of the age effects is small, suggesting popular and managerial attention devoted to differences among age groups may be overblown. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Evaluation of sound exposure and risk of hearing impairment in orchestral musicians

This study aimed to assess exposure to sound and the risk of noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) in orchestral musicians. Sound pressure level was measured in 1 opera and 3 symphony orchestras; questionnaires were filled in. On the basis of that data, the risk of NIHL was assessed according to Standard No. ISO 1999:1990. Classical orchestral musicians are usually exposed to sound at equivalent continuous A-weighted sound pressure levels of 81?90 dB (10th?90th percentiles), for 20?45 h (10th?90th percentiles) per week. Occupational exposure to such sound levels over 40 years of employment might cause hearing loss (expressed as a mean hearing threshold level at 2, 3, 4 kHz exceeding 35 dB) of up to 26%. Playing the horn, trumpet, tuba and percussion carries the highest risk (over 20%).     

Some effects of teenagers' part-time employment: The quantity and quality of work make the difference

We investigated the associations of the quantity and quality of part-time employment with the school performance (amount of class cutting, homework, and average grades) and personal functioning (self-esteem and time use) of high-school students. Two hypotheses were tested: (a) working long hours would be associated with detrimental effects, but (b) the quality of employment would moderate these effects, such that employment quantity would be associated with detrimental effects only for low quality jobs. Data from 563 high school students (n = 233 in part-time employment) provided support for the hypotheses. Conceptual, practical and policy ramifications of these findings are considered.     

The effects of long-term unemployment on attitudes to employment

This paper is concerned with whether long-term unemployment (6-24 months) affects people's attitudes to employment once they have found a new job. One hundred and forty men aged 25-40 were asked whether they felt various aspects of employment (e.g. job security, pay) are more important to them as a result of being unemployed. The effects of mental well-being when unemployed on attitudes to employment are explored. Unemployment is reported to have made most aspects of employment more important to people. Those whose mental health was worst when unemployed report that job security is most important to them.     

A research model--forecasting incident rates from optimized safety program intervention strategies

INTRODUCTION/PROBLEM: Property damage incidents, workplace injuries, and safety programs designed to prevent them, are expensive aspects of doing business in contemporary industry. The National Safety Council (2002) estimated that workplace injuries cost $146.6 billion per year. Because companies are resource limited, optimizing intervention strategies to decrease incidents with less costly programs can contribute to improved productivity. METHOD: Systematic data collection methods were employed and the forecasting ability of a time-lag relationship between interventions and incident rates was studied using various statistical methods (an intervention is not expected to have an immediate nor infinitely lasting effect on the incident rate). RESULTS/SUMMARY: As a follow up to the initial work, researchers developed two models designed to forecast incident rates. One is based on past incident rate performance and the other on the configuration and level of effort applied to the safety and health program. Researchers compared actual incident performance to the prediction capability of each model over 18 months in the forestry operations at an electricity distribution company and found the models to allow accurate prediction of incident rates. IMPACT ON INDUSTRY: These models potentially have powerful implications as a business-planning tool for human resource allocation and for designing an optimized safety and health intervention program to minimize incidents. Depending on the mathematical relationship, one can determine what interventions, where and how much to apply them, and when to increase or reduce human resource input as determined by the forecasted performance.     

Employment relations in Norway: some dimensions and correlates

This article draws upon psychological, sociological, and economic theories of employment relations to examine five dimensions of employment conditions (information, compensation, time frame, investment, and change) in Norway. Each of these dimensions is conceptualized as a continuum anchored by relational exchange on one side and transactional exchange on the other. Using data from nationally representative surveys of Norwegian work organizations and their employees, we first develop measures of the five dimensions of employment relations and test several hypotheses about their antecedents. We find that full‐time employees in supervisory positions and in higher prestige occupations generally have employment conditions that have more relational aspects. In addition, we find that degree of relationalism tends to be greater in organizations that have firm internal labour markets and encourage personal development. We then examine some individual‐level consequences of relationalism, and find that persons with relational employment conditions are generally more committed to their organizations, somewhat less likely to leave them, and more satisfied with their jobs. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.