An examination of blue- versus white-collar workers’ conceptualizations of job satisfaction facets

This study examined the degree to which blue- versus white-collar workers differentially conceptualize various job facets, namely the work itself, co-workers, supervisors, and pay. To examine these potential differences, we conducted a series of analyses on job satisfaction ratings from two samples of university workers. Consistent with the study hypothesis, results revealed that blue- and white-collar workers held different conceptualizations regarding the nature of co-workers, pay, and the work itself, but not of supervisors. In general, more dimensions for each facet emerged for the white-collar workers, suggesting that these individuals possess more differentiated and multidimensional evaluations of these job facets than do blue-collar workers. Discussion focuses on the meaning and implications of the findings.     

Dual support in contract workers' triangular employment relationships

This study investigated the interplay between perceived investment in contract worker development by the client organization and contract workers' perceived organizational support from their temporary employment agency. A study among 2021 contract workers from three temporary employment agencies in Norway showed that the relationships between perceived investment in contract worker development and task and contextual performance were moderated by contract workers' perceived organizational support from the agency. The form of the moderations revealed no positive relationships between perceived investment in contract worker development and performance unless the perceived investment by the client organization was accompanied by higher levels of perceived support from the temporary employment agency. These findings suggest that client organizations, which hire from temporary employment agencies that provide support to their contract workers, will get the most out of their investments in these contract workers' development.     

Young workers’ job self-efficacy and affect: Pathways to health and performance

This longitudinal study of 195 young workers responds to calls for the study of healthy work at discrete life stages. Based on social cognitive and affective events theories and using structural equation modeling, results indicated that both perceived job self-efficacy and job-related affect fully mediate the relationship between interpersonal work conflict at time 1 and the outcomes of job performance and health at time 2. Furthermore, job-related affect mediates the relationship between intrinsic job characteristics at time 1 and job performance and health at time 2. Finally, young workers’ job performance at time 2 was directly predicted by perceptions of intrinsic work quality at time 1. Practical implications of these findings and suggestions for future research are also discussed.     

Empowerment to participate: a case study of participation by indian sex workers in HIV prevention

The popularity of ‘participation’ and ‘empowerment’ in international development discourse is not matched by sophisticated conceptualisation of these terms. Critics have argued that their vagueness allows ‘participation’ and ‘empowerment’ to be used indiscriminately to describe interventions which vary from tokenism to genuine devolving of power to the community. This paper suggests that conceptualising empowerment and participation simply in terms of a scale of ‘more or less’ participation or ‘more or less’ empowerment does not capture the qualitatively different forms of empowerment that are necessary for different activities. Instead, the paper conceptualises participation in terms of concrete domains of action in which people may be empowered to take part. An ethnographic case study of a participatory HIV prevention project run by sex workers in Kolkata illustrates the argument. Four domains of activity in which sex workers may participate are distinguished: (1) participating in accessing project services; (2) participating in providing project services; (3) participating in shaping project workers' activity; (4) participating in defining project goals. To be empowered to participate in each domain depends upon a different set of resources. Asking the question ‘empowerment to do what?’ of health promotion projects is proposed as a way of facilitating appropriate project design. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

毛泽东延安时期文艺普及思想的政治图解

延安时期毛泽东的文艺普及思想不仅是一种文艺主张,更是一种文化政治理念。它在毛泽东对中国左翼文艺运动史及延安文艺现状的审慎分析之后出场,以走进民众作为政治方向,而提升民众则是其政治目标。在实行这一思想后,毛泽东关注了来自文艺普及实践的政治反馈。如何改造和团结民众尤其是农民,这是延安时期毛泽东始终在考虑的问题。     

High involvement HR systems and innovative work behaviour: the mediating role of psychological empowerment,and the moderating roles of manager and co-worker support

Employees’ innovative work behaviour can help firms’ competitiveness. Existing research focuses on several factors, including HR policies, psychological empowerment as well as manager and co-worker support, to explain innovative work behaviour. However, much of this literature analyses just one of these, neglecting how they interact and limiting our understanding of the causes of innovative work behaviour. Synthesizing this work, we develop a novel and holistic framework that examines 1) how high-involvement HR systems are linked via the mediating role of psychological empowerment to innovative work behaviour and 2) how both manager and co-worker support moderate this relationship. Analysing software companies in Pakistan, we use hierarchical linear modelling to assess this framework. We draw on a unique dataset that captures HR policies at the organizational level as well as management and co-worker support, and supervisors’ assessments of individuals’ innovative work behaviour at the individual level. We analyse specific groups of HR practices. Psychological empowerment mediates the relationship between high-involvement HR systems and employees’ innovative work behaviour. Manager and co-worker support moderate the relationship between psychological empowerment and innovative work behaviour. Motivation-enhancing HR practices have a direct effect on innovative work behaviour, whereas ability- and opportunity-enhancing ones are mediated by psychological empowerment.     

Internet Use of Migrant Workers in the Pearl River Delta

The paper is a report on the study of Internet use and migrant workers in the Pearl River Delta (PRD). First, the paper illustrates that educational attainment is a significant factor in determining the type of Internet use that appeals to migrant workers. Second, it points out that both work-oriented and entertainment-oriented uses of the Internet have a positive influence on migrant workers’ jobs and social lives in the PRD. Access to work-related information improves their employment opportunities, while the various means of entertainment provide relaxation. The online chat and the virtual community provide migrant workers with emotional support and a strong sense of their local identity. The Internet café and online games allow migrant workers to relieve the pressures of work and passively challenge the power hierarchy in the modern factory regime. The paper concludes that the Internet use has become the integral part of the city lives of migrant workers in the PRD.

Learning from Our Mistakes: Error Management Training for Mature Learners

This research explored the effects of training goal (learning goal vs. performance goal) and training type (error management vs. error avoidance) on word processing skill acquisition with older workers. Sixty-seven participants were randomly assigned to one of four experimental conditions and attended two interactive tutorial training sessions. Results indicated that error management training lead to significantly higher performance test scores, learning quiz scores, and requests for assistance compared to error avoidant training. Additionally, learning goals generated significantly higher performance test scores and intrinsic motivation levels relative to performance goals. Other applications of error management training are discussed.     

Temporary Employees as Good Citizens: Factors Influencing Their OCB Performance

Companies utilizing contingent workers face a dilemma between the need to employ a flexible (i.e., low fixed-cost) work force and the need to employ a work force providing performance above and beyond the call of duty. One potential solution to this dilemma is to determine ways to promote the commitment and high performance of temporary employees. To that end, we conducted a study examining factors influencing organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) performance in temporary employees. Our results support or partially support hypotheses proposing that 1) job attitudes held by the temporary employee about the client organization were related to OCB performance in the client organization, 2) job attitudes held by the temporary employee about the staffing agency were related to OCB performance in the client organization, and 3) the employee's motivation for taking an assignment is related to OCB performance. Implications for enhancing OCB performance in temporary employees are discussed.     

CONTINGENCY CONTRACTING WITH DELINQUENTS: EFFECTS OF A BRIEF TRAINING MANUAL ON STAFF CONTRACT NEGOTIATION AND WRITING SKILLS

A brief training manual was developed for the purpose of teaching child-care workers to contingency contract with delinquent youths living in residential care facilities. The manual was designed to require minimal supplementary training by a professional. In Experiment 1 a multiple baseline design was used to assess the effect of the manual on 4 child-care workers' contract negotiation and writing behaviors. Experiment 2 consisted of four A-B systematic replications. Behaviors were assessed within the context of analogue training simulations and generalization tests with delinquent youths. Results from the analogue simulations indicated that the manual was successful in increasing both types of behaviors to a level of proficiency that equaled or surpassed that of behaviorally trained graduate students, and results from the generalization tests indicated that the child-care workers were able to apply their newly acquired contracting skills with delinquent youths. Procedural reliability varied across child-care workers, but was usually high.