Job Function,Sex, and Environment As Correlates of Work Perceptions and Attitudes1

The present study examined job function and sex differences in perceptions of the physical and social work environment and the relationship of the work environment to work perceptions and attitudes when function and sex are controlled. Research indicated that job function, but not sex, was related to environment perceptions for 426 employees in a state government agency. The social environment also emerged as a significant predictor of work involvement, trust, and satisfaction. Significant interactions between job function and environment indicated that the social environment was negatively related and the physical environment positively related to work perceptions for managerial employees. The reverse was found for employees in other job functions.     

Work experiences,job performance,and feelings of personal and family well-being

The present study examined the interaction between job performance and specific work experiences on three indicators of personal and family well-being (marital adjustment, work-family conflict, and quality of life) among 336 accountants. Perceptions of a nonsupportive and inequitable work environment, role conflict, and extensive time commitment to work were each related to one or more indicators of well-being. In addition, the relationship between job performance and well-being varied as a function of gender, time commitment to work, and the degree of role conflict experienced.     

Work-family conflict, work- and family-role salience, and women's well-being

The author considered both the direct effect and the moderator effect of role salience in the stress-strain relationship. In contrast to previous studies that have examined the effects of salience on well-being within specific social roles, the present study focused on the work-family interface. From a sample of 147 employed English women with children, the present results of the regression analyses showed that both effects are possible, depending on the outcome measures used. The author observed a direct effect of role salience in the prediction of job satisfaction; work salience was positively related to job satisfaction, over and above the main-effect terms of work-interfering-with-family (WIF) conflict and family-interfering-with-work (FIW) conflict. In contrast, the author found a moderator effect of role salience and conflict for symptoms of psychological distress. However, contrary to predictions, the author found that work salience exacerbated the negative impact of WIF conflict, rather than FIW conflict, on well-being. The author discussed these results in relation to the literature on work-family conflict, role salience, and the issue of stress-strain specificity.     

Callings and work engagement: moderated mediation model of work meaningfulness, occupational identity, and occupational self-efficacy

Scholarly interest in callings is growing, but researchers' understanding of how and when callings relate to career outcomes is incomplete. The present study investigated the possibility that the relationship of calling to work engagement is mediated by work meaningfulness, occupational identity, and occupational self-efficacy--and that this mediation depends on the degree of perceived person-job fit. I examined a highly educated sample of German employees (N = 529) in diverse occupations and found support for 2 of the 3 hypothesized mediators-work meaningfulness and occupational identity--after controlling for the relation of core self-evaluations to work engagement. Contrary to expectations, the mediated relations of callings to work engagement were not conditional upon the degree of person--job fit. The findings are considered in terms of the pathways through which callings may relate to work engagement and other career development outcomes.     

Computers,Radiation, and Ethics

The reduction of the levels of the electromagnetic fields surrounding and emanating from computer screens is discussed in relation to ethical issues of risk reduction, in particular where the factual basis for the actions taken is nonconclusive. The technicaland scientific background is reviewed briefly. Some empirical approaches for determining risks, for example, the method of contingent valuations, are reviewed, and their ethical implications are discussed. When both the risk level and the determination of the certainty of the risk level is unknown, it is not considered responsible to further the work on reduction of the levels of the electromagnetic fields. The present state of knowledge does not seem to warrant further action regarding these fields. It is suggested that the focus of endeavors be directed toward otherconcems, in particular to image quality and the work situation.     

Thisnesses,Propositions, and Truth

Presentists, who believe that only present objects exist, should accept a thisness ontology, since it can do considerable work in defence of presentism. In this article, I propose a version of presentism that involves thisnesses of past and present entities and I argue that this view solves important problems facing standard versions of presentism.     

Developmental psychopathology. Current research, issues, and directions

Developmental psychopathology refers to the study of clinical dysfunction in the context of maturational and developmental processes. Although the field encompasses the entire life span, the present focus is on childhood. Special characteristics make the study of childhood dysfunction somewhat unique, including the emergence, evolution, and attenuation of seemingly problematic behaviors over the course of development; the manner in which children are referred for clinical evaluation; and complexities in identifying the appropriate foci for clinical intervention. Notwithstanding these obstacles, recent work has advanced considerably in diagnosis, assessment, and treatment of childhood disorders. The present article highlights recent advances in these areas and promising extensions in current research. Many advances have relied heavily on the extension of paradigms developed in research with adults. Additional research is needed that draws on and integrates conceptual and empirical work from developmental psychology.     

Work engagement,performance, and active learning: The role of conscientiousness

The present study examines whether the relationship between work engagement and job performance is moderated by the extent to which individuals are inclined to work hard, careful, and goal-oriented. On the basis of the literature, it was hypothesized that conscientiousness strengthens the relationship between work engagement and supervisor ratings of task and contextual performance as well as active learning. The hypotheses were tested on a sample of 144 employees from several occupations. Results of moderated structural equation modeling supported the hypotheses. Work engagement was positively related to task performance, contextual performance, and active learning, particularly for employees high in conscientiousness.     

Love, work, and changes in extraversion and neuroticism over time

The present study examined individual differences in change in extraversion, neuroticism, and work and relationship satisfaction. Of particular interest were the correlations between changes. Data were from the Victorian Quality of Life Panel Study (B. Headey & A. Wearing, 1989, 1992), in which an overall 1,130 individuals participated (ages 16 to 70). Respondents were assessed every 2 years from 1981 to 1989. Four major findings emerged. (a) There were significant individual differences in changes in extraversion and neuroticism. (b) Change was not limited to young adulthood. (c) Development was systematic in that increased work and relationship satisfaction was associated with decreases in neuroticism and increases in extraversion over time; on average, the magnitude of the relation between changes in work and relationship satisfaction and traits was .40. (d) Cross-lagged models indicated traits had a greater influence on role satisfaction; however, marginal support emerged for work satisfaction leading to increased extraversion. Implications of correlated change are discussed.     

Authentic leadership,followership, and psychological capital as antecedents of work engagement

The present study investigated authentic leadership, psychological capital, and followership behaviour influences on work engagement of employees. Respondents were 901 South African employees within the healthcare industry organisation (n = 647) and mining industry (n = 254). The employees completed questionnaires on authentic leadership, psychological capital, and followership behaviour, and work engagement. Results following structural equation modelling and mediation analysis suggest work engagement to be explained by the psychological capital of the employee rather than by authentic leadership qualities. Improving employee psychological capital has the potential to enhance the levels of work engagement of employees.     

Oscillations and analogies. Thomas Young, MD, FRS, genius

Thomas Young is arguably one of the greatest geniuses who ever lived, but most people have never heard of him, though he was renowned in his own era. He did important work in a large variety of scientific disciplines, but that was his downfall. Given the specialization of the present era, physicists do not appreciate how important his work in linguistics was, linguists do not appreciate the importance of his work in psychology, and so on. Despite his obscurity today, Young nicely exemplifies the traits that one finds in a genius of the first order: tendency toward analogical thinking, high intelligence, an amazing capacity for hard work, extremely wide interests, distaste for traditional dogmas, and very high self-esteem.     

Coping, negative affectivity, and the work environment: additive and interactive predictors of mental health

The present study tested the hypothesis that direct coping would moderate relations between work stress and mental health outcome, whereas suppression (a form of emotion-focused coping) would show an overall effect on outcome. Data on coping, perceived work demand and support, and affective symptoms were obtained from trainee teachers (N = 157). The results supported the hypothesis. Gender differences also were observed; men reported more use of suppression than did women. In addition, negative affectivity (NA) was examined as a confounding variable and as an index of reactivity in stress-outcome relations. NA acted to inflate associations between work perceptions and affective symptoms, but it was also a significant moderator variable; high NA subjects showed greater reactivity to work demand than did low NA subjects.     

Religion,resources, and work-family balance

It is increasingly recognised that work and family roles are interconnected. This is one reason why researchers and practitioners are working to understand and facilitate balance between work and nonwork roles. Most existing literature defines inter-role balance by emphasising work and family roles alone; unfortunately, this narrow focus prevents us from recognising individuals’ engagements in many other roles that may also influence one's balance. The present study expands our thinking about work-family balance by presenting and testing a model that incorporates involvement in a third role, organised religion. Specifically, we examine religious involvement, among Hindus living in the United States (N?=?105), as a predictor of resource gain and loss, and its effect on perceptions of work-family balance. Working within a Conversation of Resources framework, it was then expected that this resource gain/loss would influence coping strategies and perceptions of bi-directional work-family conflict and facilitation (indicators of work-family balance).     

Heavy Metal,Religiosity, and Suicide Acceptability

There has been little work at the national level on the subject of musical subcultures and suicide acceptability. The present work explores the link between “heavy metal” rock fanship and suicide acceptability. Metal fanship is thought to elevate suicide acceptability through such means as exposure to a culture of personal and societal chaos marked by hopelessness, and through its associations with demographic risk factors such as gender, socioeconomic status, and education. Data are taken from the General Social Survey. A link between heavy metal fanship and suicide acceptability is found. However, this relationship becomes nonsignificant once level of religiosity is controlled. Metal fans are low in religiosity, which contributes, in turn, to greater suicide acceptability.     

An analytical description of employment according to race,sex, prestige,and Holland type of work

The composition of employment was examined using 1970 census data for employed civilians, Holland's occupational typology, and a prestige scale. The present report extends earlier examinations of the labor force using these dimensions by studying the sex and race composition of types of work at several levels of prestige, and by examining the extent of government employment among men and women in different jobs. Results indicate areas where women and blacks are under- and over-represented. In addition, because of the association between type of work and prestige level, aspirations or interest in a type of work may have implications for the level of work that is available. Counseling and research implications of the results are discussed.     

Vancouver, Toronto, Montreal, Austin: Enhanced oddball memory through differentiation, not isolation

What makes a person, event, or object memorable? Enhanced memory for oddball items is long established, but the basis for these effects is not well understood. The present work clarifies the roles of isolation and differentiation in establishing new memories. According to the isolation account, items that are highly dissimilar to other items are better remembered. In contrast, recent category learning studies suggest that oddball items are better remembered because they must be differentiated from similar items. The present work pits the differentiation and isolation accounts against each other. The results suggest that differentiation, not isolation, leads to more accurate memory for deviant items. In contrast, gains for isolated items are attributable to reduced confusion with other items, as opposed to preferential storage.     

Ethics,Subjectivity, and Sociomaterial Assemblages: Two Important Directions and Methodological Tensions

Research that explores ethics can help educational communities engage twenty-first century crises and work toward ecologically and socially just forms of life. Integral to this research is an engagement with social theory, which helps educators imagine our shared worlds differently. In this paper I present two theoretical-methodological directions for educational research that centres ethics: Ethics and (human) subjectivity; and Ethics-in-assemblage. While both approaches might be seen as commensurable, they can also be seen as quite divergent. Using Michel Foucault’s later work on subjectivity and ethics, as well as recent work in Anthropology, I present a methodological direction for research into ethical subjectivity, how students come to see themselves as self-reflective ethical actors. Relevant here is the tension between ethics and politics, individual and collective modes of being, as both are crucial to both struggles for justice on a damaged planet. The second direction involves a sociomaterialist approach that employs Deleuze and Guattari’s concept of ‘assemblage’ as well as Karen Barad’s notion ‘entangled responsibility’ to show that ethics can also be seen to co-emerge with/in phenomena that exceed human relations. In short, exploring ethics through educational research means simultaneously examining ethics as subjectivity and ethics as co-emergent larger assemblages/phenomena.     

The effects of gender,long-term need for recovery and trait inhibition-rumination on morning and evening saliva cortisol secretion

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the long-term effects of need for recovery from work and trait rumination on saliva cortisol secretion. The sample consisted of 76 white-collar workers, 52 men and 24 women who had previously provided baseline data four years earlier and volunteered to participate in the present study. In the present study, saliva cortisol secretion was measured over seven consecutive days, on awakening, and at 10 p.m. No relationships were found between the independent variables and morning saliva cortisol levels. High trait rumination at baseline, however, was significantly related to higher evening cortisol levels for both women and men. Baseline need for recovery from work was strongly related to evening cortisol secretion for women, but in the opposite direction than expected. The present results add to the small but equivocal body of literature that has examined the long-term effects of work strain on cortisol secretion.     

Career salience,work values,and vocational indecision

The purpose of this study was to relate vocational indecision to (a) the level of career salience or priority and (b) the importance attached to specific work values. One hundred fifty-three students participated in the study. It was found that low career salience was associated with a relatively high incidence of vocational indecision. In addition, students who were vocationally undecided tended to place less importance on intrinsic work values than did students who were committed to an occupation. The results suggest that there may be two sources of vocational indecision: high career-salience students who value intrinsic rewards and low career-salience students who do not value intrinsic rewards. Given the relatively small percentage of variance in vocational indecision accounted for in the present study, the need for future research was emphasized.     

Umwelt,food, and the limits of control

This paper draws on the work of the early 20th century ethologist Jakob von Uexküll to formulate a notion of food as a process of bodies becoming other bodies. I begin by situating my argument in relation to two strands of critical food research – feminist-inspired work on food and embodiment, and posthumanist approaches that focus on non-humans as mediators of food assemblages. I then discuss Uexküll's work, focusing on three key concepts: umwelt, “the island of the senses” that envelops each being; subjectivity as an intra- and intercorporeal phenomenon; and the variation among umwelten available to humans. These ideas, I contend, illustrate the inherently political nature of ‘food,’ which in turn calls for a realignment of food ethics and critical food scholarship. To illustrate this contention, I draw on my research with the Oklahoma Food Cooperative, considering this socio-ecological experiment as an effort to create a food system in better accord with the affective imperatives (or umwelten) of its constituent components. Throughout the paper, I develop the argument that food systems will always present limits to control by even those actors who seem to enjoy hegemonic positions. Uexküll's work helps us understand these limits in a way that allows critical analysis of dominant food systems and the alternatives proliferating in response to them, but does not prematurely foreclose the actual and virtual possibilities contained in the present heterogeneity of foodways.