On the heritability of inspection time and its covariance with IQ: a twin study

Using the classical twin design, this study investigates the influence of genetic factors on the large phenotypic variance in inspection time (IT), and whether the well established IT–IQ association can be explained by a common genetic factor. Three hundred ninety pairs of twins (184 monozygotic, MZ; 206 dizygotic, DZ) with a mean age of 16 years participated, and 49 pairs returned approximately 3 months later for retesting. As in many IT studies, the pi figure stimulus was used and IT was estimated from the cumulative normal ogive. IT ranged from 39.4 to 774.1 ms (159±110.1 ms) with faster ITs (by an average of 26.9 ms) found in the retest session from which a reliability of .69 was estimated. Full-scale IQ (FIQ) was assessed by the Multidimensional Aptitude Battery (MAB) and ranged from 79 to 145 (111±13). The phenotypic association between IT and FIQ was confirmed (−.35) and bivariate results showed that a common genetic factor accounted for 36% of the variance in IT and 32% of the variance in FIQ. The maximum likelihood estimate of the genetic correlation was −.63. When performance and verbal IQ (PIQ & VIQ) were analysed with IT, a stronger phenotypic and genetic relationship was found between PIQ and IT than with VIQ. A large part of the IT variance (64%) was accounted for by a unique environmental factor. Further genetic factors were needed to explain the remaining variance in IQ with a small component of unique environmental variance present. The separability of a shared genetic factor influencing IT and IQ from the total genetic variance in IQ suggests that IT affects a specific subcomponent of intelligence rather than a generalised efficiency.     

A Cognitive Tool for Ethical Decision Making: A Case for ACED IT

The present study examined two forms of a cognitive tool (ACED IT map), which is designed to facilitate ethical decision making, along with expressive writing. Results demonstrated that participants completing the original ACED IT were more likely to identify (a) more steps to implementing a solution, (b) more barriers to solution implementation, and (c) more solutions to those barriers than participants who completed the modified ACED IT, those who engaged in expressive writing, and those in the control group. These findings suggest that cognitive tools such as ACED IT may be of considerable value for individuals who are presented with ethical dilemmas.     

中国IT业从业人员非技能胜任素质测评系统的研发报告

具备专业知识的专业人员,在不同岗位上工作,有人成功,有人未获成功？非技能胜任素质应当是不可忽视的因素。本项研究以心理学研究和人才测评相结合的方法,对IT业从业人员的非技能胜任素质做了深入的研究,构建了IT业四类关键岗位——管理类、销售类、技术支持类、研发类的非技能胜任素质模型,并探索各胜任素质特征与工作绩效的关系,为IT业内各类岗位人才选拔、评价和培养提供了科学的依据以及人职匹配的操作模型。     

Psychoanalysis is becoming an impossible profession within the public welfare system in Sweden

Abstract

The preconditions for psychoanalytic practice within the Swedish public welfare system are analyzed in this article. Psychoanalysis remains a one-to-one treatment and relies on the analyst's capacity to use his or her own subjective response. The development of the psychoanalytic process is dependent on unconscious reality, making it impossible to work with a model that has a strict relation between diagnosis, treatment method, and result. Objectivity and the desire to predict treatment outcomes characterize the immanent logic in the complex system of laws and recommendations that affects most practices within the field of medicine. As a consequence of this development, psychoanalysis and psychodynamic therapy are marginalized, since our treatment methods are not adapted to the present industrialization and economization of the medical health sector, with the result that the preconditions for psychoanalytic training have changed dramatically. The exclusion of psychoanalysis from the national health insurance scheme is a demanding challenge at a time when the Swedish welfare model is undergoing fundamental changes.     

Collaborative IT offshoring relationships and professional role identities: Reflections from a field study

While IT offshoring has generated heated debates both in scholarly circles and in the popular press, its impact on professional role identities and career experiences of situated individuals in both onshore and offshore locations has received much less attention. In this paper, we present a qualitative case study featuring a large global German technology firm and examine the multiple ways in which working within a collaborative offshoring arrangement has influenced the reconfiguration of German and Indian respondents' professional role identities. In light of these changes, the findings also highlight how emerging offshoring practices led to an ongoing reassessment of our respondents' career aspirations and strategies. In particular, our study draws attention to the often complex means deployed by individuals working in an offshoring environment to further their career prospects. From a practitioner perspective, we suggest several steps managers can take to help employees overcome the anxiety and insecurities, which inevitably seem to accompany the offshoring phenomenon.     

Career behavior in the knowledge economy: Experiences and perceptions of career mobility among management and IT consultants in the UK and the USA

The traditional lifelong organizational career model no longer remains relevant for many workers, particularly those active in the knowledge economy. Instead these workers are claimed to pursue boundaryless and protean careers. This paper explores management and IT consultants’ experiences and perceptions of career mobility in the UK and the USA. The findings from this multi-level study reveal that the permeation of organizational boundaries among these workers is characterized by a somewhat segmented spectrum of boundary-crossing behavior. The exploration of this form of career mobility demonstrates that inter-organizational mobility should not be dislocated from other types of career mobility when analyzing career behavior among these workers. In addition, the findings also highlight the role that inter-organizational relations and/or national institutional context play in shaping career patterns in these contemporary forms of work.     

信息技术对组织结构设计的影响

在回顾早期组织结构研究的基础上,阐述近年来信息技术的发展对企业组织结构设计及研究的影响,简要介绍一些组织结构新模式,揭示信息技术影响下,企业必须建立新型的组织结构来适应新环境.     

Money, Work–Life Balance and Autonomy: Why do IT Professionals Choose Self-Employment?

This article deals with the reasons why IT professionals chose self-employment, as well as advantages and drawbacks of this form of employment. A growing number of workers in industrialized countries are now self-employed, most notably in the IT sector. In order to understand this trend better, we carried out a quantitative survey in collaboration with a professional association of independent IT workers in Quebec (Canada). We examined the different reasons why self-employment is attractive for IT professionals, the advantages they experience and the disadvantages they point out. While some authors postulate that self-employment is attractive because it facilitates work–life balance, our results show a strong predominance of the financial advantages and a weak impact of factors related to work–life balance. We also find high levels of job satisfaction, but the effects on work–life balance remain indirect.     

Persons with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities and Information Technologies. Some Ethical Observations—A Comment on Chalgoumi et al.

This comment on Chalgoumi et al.’s article “Information Privacy for Technology Users with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities: Why Does It Matter?” focuses on the concept of autonomy in order to expand the scope of the ethical discussion. First we explore the conceptual and practical relations between privacy and autonomy. Following this, we address the issue of underfunding of information technology for persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities in terms of distributive justice and provide some potential policy solutions.