Organizational Compatibility and Workplace Drug Testing: Modeling the Adoption of Innovative Social Control Practices

Few researchers have examined organizational variation in the adoption of workplace drug testing, but innovation theory suggests that adoption is more likely when it is compatible with an organization's values, previously introduced ideas, and needs. Using data from the 1997 National Employee Survey, this research models the effects of organizational compatibility, industry, and establishment size on the adoption of drug testing. The data reveal that compatibility, as measured by an organization's rules orientation, presence of an employee assistance program, and mechanization, is associated with the adoption of drug testing. As predicted, the adoption of drug testing varies across industries and by establishment size.     

诺基亚全球竞争谋略

种种迹象表明，如今移动通信市场已经陷入白热化竞争状态，有数据显示，2006年，全球手机销量已经达到10亿部，其中诺基亚所占有的市场份额高达35％。不难想象，如果不是在进行全球化经营，这样一家来自北欧的公司很难取得如此业绩。事实上，如今全球化运作已经成为诺基亚的一个主要策略：目前公司38％的市场在欧洲，33％的市场在亚太地区（包括中国），16％在美洲，13％在非洲和中东地区。     

A changed America? The effects of September 11th on depressive symptoms and alcohol consumption

In the weeks following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, social commentators argued that America had profoundly "changed." In light of these arguments and the literature on disasters, we examine the immediate and longer-term mental health consequences of September 11th using a national sample of full-time American workers. We model the effects of temporal proximity to the attacks on depressive symptoms and alcohol consumption, while controlling for demographic characteristics. Our data revealed a significant increase in the number of depressive symptoms reported during the 4 weeks after the attacks. In the subsequent weeks, levels of depressive symptoms returned to pre-September 11th levels. Contrary to expectations, there was some indication of decreased alcohol consumption after September 11th, although these effects were modest. These analyses provide little support for popular assertions that September 11th resulted in lasting and measurable impacts on Americans' well-being.     

Corporate social responsibility in the board room – when do directors pay attention?

When do board directors pay attention to corporate social responsibility (CSR) issues? Board directors have traditionally focused on maximizing shareholder profit and viewed corporate governance narrowly as a way to meet this goal. They have paid little or no attention to CSR issues because they see CSR as a contrast to profit maximization. We argue in this article that companies can no longer ignore CSR. We propose that three conditions must be met in order for boards to pay attention toCSR. First, the board must have a mindset that considers CSR as contributing value to the firm. Second, the board must have relevant competences that enable members to understand CSR issues. Third, compensation of top-level management should reflect CSR performance. The first two conditions are directly linked to human resource development because, in order to embrace the specific challenges that CSR possesses, board members must develop an understanding of the CSR field and related challenges and opportunities for the company.     

Virtues,Values and Victims: Toward a Theory of Social Problems

Abstract

The area of social problems has suffered from inadequate definitions, largely because there is no serious application of theory to the problem. An examination of epistemological issues reveals three distinct approaches: the virtues approach, based on objectivity, the values approach, based on subjectivity, and the victims approach, based on a dialectical relationship of object and subject. The implications of these epistemologies for social problems are assessed, and the necessity of an ethical position is demonstrated. Finally three social problem issues are defined: issues of human survival, of human community, of human dignity.     

Bringing Social Standards into Project Evaluation Under Dynamic Uncertainty

Society often sets social standards that define thresholds of damage to society or the environment above which compensation must be paid to the state or other parties. In this article, we analyze the interdependence between the use of social standards and investment evaluation under dynamic uncertainty where a negative externality above a threshold established by society requires an assessment and payment of damages. Under uncertainty, the party considering implementing a project or new technology must not only assess when the project is economically efficient to implement but when to abandon a project that could potentially exceed the social standard. Using real-option theory and simple models, we demonstrate how such a social standard can be integrated into cost-benefit analysis through the use of a development option and a liability option coupled with a damage function. Uncertainty, in fact, implies that both parties interpret the social standard as a target for safety rather than an inflexible barrier that cannot be overcome. The larger is the uncertainty, in fact, the greater will be the tolerance for damages in excess of the social standard from both parties.     

18‐Month‐Olds Predict Specific Action Mistakes Through Attribution of False Belief,Not Ignorance,and Intervene Accordingly

This study employed a new “anticipatory intervening” paradigm to tease apart false belief and ignorance‐based interpretations of 18‐month‐olds’ helpful informing. We investigated in three experiments whether 18‐month‐old infants inform an adult selectively about one of the two locations depending on the adult’s belief about which of the two locations held her toy. In experiments 1 and 2, the adult falsely believed that one of the locations held her toy. In experiment 3, the adult was ignorant about which of the two locations held her toy. In all cases, however, the toy had been removed from the locations and the locations contained instead materials which the adult wanted to avoid. In experiments 1 and 2, infants spontaneously and selectively informed the adult about the aversive material in the location the adult falsely believed to hold her toy. In contrast, in experiment 3, infants informed the ignorant adult about both locations equally. Results reveal that infants expected the adult to commit a specific action mistake when she held a false belief, but not when she was ignorant. Further, infants were motivated to intervene proactively. Findings reveal a predictive action‐based usage of “theory‐of‐mind” skills at 18 months of age.     

Barriers to the implementation of medication-assisted treatment for substance use disorders: the importance of funding policies and medical infrastructure

Despite growing interest in the use of evidence-based treatment practices, adoption of pharmacotherapies for treating substance use disorders (SUDs) remains modest. Using data from telephone interviews with 250 administrators of publicly funded SUD treatment programs, this study estimated a model of adoption of medication assisted treatment (MAT) for SUDs and examined the relative importance of regulatory, cultural, medical resource, patient-level, and funding barriers to MAT implementation. MAT-adopting programs had significantly greater medical resources, as measured by the employment of physicians and nurses, than non-adopting programs. Administrators of non-adopting programs were asked to rate the importance of 18 barriers to MAT implementation. The most strongly endorsed barriers were regulatory prohibitions due to the program's lack of medical staff, funding barriers to implementing MAT, and lack of access to medical personnel with expertise in delivering MAT. Barriers related to insufficient information about MAT and unsupportive staff attitudes were not widely endorsed. These findings suggest that efforts to promote the implementation of MAT that are inattentive to funding barriers and weaknesses in medical infrastructure may achieve sub-optimal results.     

Organizational persistence in the use of war gaming and scenario planning

Even though war gaming and scenario planning are widely used in business contexts, there is little evidence that either practice is associated with superior performance. Why, then, spend the costs? In this paper we address this puzzle and suggest why the extant empirical findings have so far proven limited. We consider the development of these practices and find that they have a substantially entangled and overlapping history, particularly at the RAND Corporation in the 1950s. Despite shared historical roots, the treatment of war gaming and scenario planning in the scholarly literature branched out into different streams. This separation is unfortunate because it obscures a better understanding of the premises under which these practices are effective. We propose an analysis of the overlaps and contrasts of war gaming and scenario planning that sets out clear boundary conditions for their use and efficacy. We find that each practice is tailored to provide strategic guidance in a context where the organization is facing different forms of uncertainty. This suggests they may be effective, and thus improve organizational performance, where the relevant uncertainties are operative. Such benefits would be apparent over longer time scales, and only if the relevant boundary conditions are met. However, to the best of our knowledge, no longitudinal empirical test of either war gaming or scenario planning is available. We therefore conclude that more research is needed to ascertain the true relationship between these popular practices and their performance outcomes.