Der Einfluss von Systemischen Strukturaufstellungen auf Koh?sion, Kooperation, Koordination und Kommunikation in Teams: Eine L?ngsschnittstudie

This article deals with the evaluation of structural team constellations (STC)??a special form of organisational constellation. 67 team members from 14 working teams carried out an STC and were surveyed at three time intervals, by means of a questionnaire, on their estimation of cohesion, cooperation, communication and coordination in the team as well as on their satisfaction with the relationship to the constellator. Stable chronologically increases were noticed in the variables of cohesion and cooperation. For the variables communication and coordination, however, improvements could only be established, between the first and second measurement. Participants who better evaluated the team variables over time were also more satisfied with their relationship to the constellator. Given the low time requirements involved, STCs can be rated as recommendable compared to other team training and team building processes.     

Emoticons und Personenwahrnehmung: Der Einfluss von Emoticons auf die Einschätzung unbekannter Kommunikationspartner in der Online-Kommunikation

Text-based computer-mediated communication is a daily experience in social as well as work-related communication. Enriching text messages with emoticons to convey emotions or non-verbal communication aspects can provide the recipients with important background information. However, it’s still not well understood how impression formation takes place in text-based computer-mediated communication. This study investigated how using emoticons influences the perception of communication partners in anonymous computer-mediated communication settings. In an online experiment (N?=?50) participants rated communication partners, who used emoticons in the experimental condition and did not use emoticons in the control condition, on the following dimensions: Openness, Friendliness, Warmth, Sense of Humor, and Respectability. Furthermore, they guessed the senders’ sex. Results show medium to strong effects on the dimensions “Warmth” and “Friendliness”: Senders using emoticons received higher ratings on these dimensions. Methodical limitations and implications for further research are discussed.     

Ein Experiment zum Einfluss der Situation auf physische und psychische Nähe

The influence of the social situation on the physical distance and, as measured by a questionnaire, emotional intimacy between participants was experimentally studied (N = 90) in a cooperative, a competitive, and a neutral social situation. Results indicate that the physical distance was greatest under neutral conditions. The cooperative condition produced the strongest feeling of intimacy. It is argued that the neutral condition is irrelevant to the participants’ behaviour and level of attention to other persons. Further, intimacy can only arise if an interaction is both positive and relevant. The correlation between physical and emotional distance turned out to be relatively small, in accordance with the range usually given for attitudebehaviour correlations.     

Niedrigkostensituationen, Hochkostensituationen und andere Situationstypen: ihre Auswirkungen auf die Möglichkeit von Rational-Choice-Erklärungen

As often discussed in rational-choice literature, it is important to distinguish between so called low cost and high cost situations, if one wants to apply rational-choice models in order to explain social phenomena. But not only these two rather extreme and rare types of situations should be considered, but also the majority of real situations which are positioned somewhere between high and low cost situations. It is shown that in low cost situations a rational-choice explanation is not possible, whereas in high cost situations it would be possible. But it is not necessary, because a more parsimonious model (where the relatively relatively pretentious premise of maximization of utility does not have to be included) would lead to the same result. Only in the remaining types of situations rational-choice models are recommendable. These situations are characterized by opportunity costs that are unequal to zero but which are not distributed in favor of only one option. Therefore, it is appropriate to analyze in a first step the kind of situation in which the behavior under investigation occurs, and only then, in a second step, to develop an explanation model. This does not necessarily have to be a rational-choice model.     

Teamarbeit und Gesundheit – Der Einfluss von Teammerkmalen auf Stressbewältigung und Gesundheit bei Un- und Angelernten

To date, research on teamwork and health is sparse. This accounts for teams with low-qualified workers in particular. In this paper a work psychological model for resource and stress management in teams and a study with teams of low-qualified workers are presented (N?=?265 in 33 teams). Results of multi-level analyses show, that team resources in the social work system and understaffing in teams as a team stressor have significant influence on collective coping and explain team differences. Further, team resources in the technical work system, i.e. the quality of teamwork design have significant influence on psychosomatic complaints. These influences go beyond the influences of socio-demographic variables and individual job stressors and job resources.     

Kulturelle Muster des Altersübergangs: Der Einfluss kultureller Normen und Werte auf die Erwerbsbeteiligung älterer Menschen in Europa

The article examines the impact of culturally influenced norms and cultural values towards the ideal arrangement due to the transition to retirement on the labor market participation of older people aged 55 to 64 in Europe. Subsequent to a basic definition of retirement cultures, an extended explanatory model for the transition to retirement is developed, which takes cultural norms and values or rather the country-specific-retirement culture explicitly into account. Secondly, the model is empirically validated. The underlying dataset is the third round of the European Social Survey (ESS) which was conducted in 2006. Overall it is found that the impact of societal norms and values on the participation decision of older individuals can be both, theoretically modeled and empirically verified. Within the explanatory model the importance of cultural norms and values for explaining the retirement decisions of older people is twofold. Firstly, like the nation-specific institutional framework of the transition to retirement as well as the material resources of the individuals, this specific transition-to-retirement-culture belongs to the conditional part of the model and limits the number of alternative courses of action. Secondly, as an internalized social norm, the transition-to-retirement-culture is an integral part of the definition of the situation and structures the preference order of the individuals. The theoretical influence can also be validated in the empirical model. Firstly, there is a highly significant (positive) correlation between the attitudes towards the ideal retirement transition on the one hand and the participation decision on the individual level. On the societal level, a significant correlation between the country-specific transition-to-retirement-culture and the employment rate of older people can be seen. In this context, a low labor market participation of older people goes along with a comparatively exit-oriented transition-to-retirement-culture and vice versa.     

Auswirkungen von Macht auf das ��berleben in Extremsituationen: Ein Vergleich der Titanic und Lusitania Schiffskatastrophen

Comparing the Titanic and Lusitania disaster the impact of financial and physical power as well as the emergence of social norms on survival during life-and-death situations is analyzed. Despite the fact that some maritime disasters have become famous, a quantitative understanding of survival in life-and-death situations is still lacking. In a quasi-natural experiment multivariate probit estimations are conducted based on publicly available data. The paper suggests that in life-and-death situations differences in time restrictions are crucial. When time is scarce individual self-interested fight-or-flight behavior will predominate and result in a stronger competition for survival. In contrast, altruism and adherence to social norms emerge when there is sufficient time to reflect on the event and circumstances: Social norms require time to evolve, and they loose against physical strength in a shorter window of opportunity.     

Der positive und negative Einfluss von Geschwistern auf den Gymnasialübergang

Within sociology of education living with siblings is almost exclusively considered as having a negative impact on educational success. Drawing on the German Microcensus 2008, the analysis reveals that although sibling constellation is strongly associated with transition to high school, this association is not solely negative. The probability to enter higher secondary school (Gymnasium) is sharply lowered by living in a household with an older sibling that neither attends the Gymnasium nor has a higher education entrance qualification. Vice versa living in a household with an older sibling that attends Gymnasium or has a higher education entrance qualification enhances the probability of transition to upper secondary school. Furthermore it is shown that the positive influence on entering Gymnasium that originates from an older sibling that attends Gymnasium is stronger in federal states (Bundesländer) in which the recommendation of elementary school for secondary school is not binding. What remains unanswered is the question of the mechanisms that underlie these demonstrated associations. However, some of the potential mechanisms can be proved empirically.     

Der Einfluss der Gruppengröße auf die Aktivität von Parteimitgliedern

In this paper, we aim to test Olson’s (The logic of collective action: Public goods and the theory of groups, Cambridge, Harvard University Press, 1965) assumptions of group size effects on free-riding tendencies in political parties. Multilevel analyses of the Deutsche Parteimitgliederstudie (German Party Membership Study) 2009 reveal that for members of the CDU, CSU, SPD, FDP and Bündnis 90/Die Grünen, the assumed negative relationship between the number of party members in the district association and their individual level of activity can only be shown for the eastern states of Germany. Moreover, we show that selective incentives are not suitable for reducing the negative impact of a increasing membership figure, while normative incentives are associated with an increasing free-riding tendency with increasing number of members in the western and eastern Bundesländer. Our results only partly support the assumptions on collective action problems and point to a need for further theoretical and empirical research on group size effects and on the role incentives’ play in explaining the activity in political parties.     

Auswirkungen von Downsizing-Maßnahmen auf das organisationale Commitment der verbleibenden Mitarbeiter: Ein Vorher-Nachher-Vergleich

This study examines the consequences of downsizing efforts on organizational commitment, job satisfaction and work motivation of the remaining workforce (?survivors“) in a middle-sized telecommunication company. Employees were surveyed five months prior to the downsizing process (n=150) and eleven months thereafter (n=160). The assessment of organizational commitment was based on a questionnaire that was developed by Allen and Meyer (1990) within the scope of their three-components-model which includes affective, continuous and normative commitment. Although layoffs — as one part of the whole downsizing process — were not implemented in the investigated company, but only in a sister enterprise, which is part of the same holding, the affective commitment of employees towards their corporation dropped. On the other hand, the normative and the balanced commitment remained constant. Moreover, every second survivor showed reduced job satisfaction and work motivation. It should be noted that although the results of reorganisation and restructuring did not directly affect the employees of the investigated company, the emotional linkage between employees and employer was affected in a negative way. Additional findings from qualitative interviews suggest that restructuring was perceived to cause a crack in the prevailing corporate culture and the psychological contract. In addition, a deterioration of work conditions through work overload resulted.     

Sozialstrukturelle Interessenlagen und Parteipräferenz in Deutschland

Based on Allbus data, stability and change of the impact of social structurally defined interests on party preference in Germany is investigated. We use both traditional cleavage indicators like union membership or frequency of church attendance and further social structural characteristics like class identification, occupation or unemployment experience. We apply a two-level model with varying intercepts for the 16 Allbus surveys from 1980 to 2008. Beyond the expected results we observe some deviations from the stable relationship between social structural variables and party preference. (1) The younger generation of active Catholics prefers the Christian Democrats less than the older cohorts and the East German working class leaned towards this party immediately after unification. (2) Union members got alienated from the Social Democrats since 2004 due to reforms of unemployment benefits for people being out of work for a longer period of time with the consequence that Die Linke could profit from this trend in West and East Germany. (3) This left socialist party and its forerunner, the PDS, has always been the preferred party of people with unemployment experience. (4) The Greens and the Liberal Party are enduringly supported by specific social groups, the Greens by the social and cultural service class and the FDP by the self-employed, at least since this latter party ended the social liberal coalition with the SPD in 1982.     

Söhne bevorzugt? Geschlechtsspezifische Unterschiede beim Gymnasialbesuch türkischstämmiger Schülerinnen und Schülern

It is often assumed that in Germany the situation in Turkish families can be characterized by traditionalism, a patrilineal organization of family relationships and a rigid gender role orientation including a traditional gender division between gainful employment and housework. Against this background one would expect Turkish parents to have a particular strong interest in a high educational attainment of their sons and consequently they should invest more in their education. This article examines whether there is evidence for such preferences and relevant behaviours. An analysis of official school statistics of the federal state North-Rhine Westphalia shows that Turkish boys are more likely to make a transition to a Gymnasium than Turkish girls. However, a systematic preference of Turkish parents of a transition to secondary education for their sons cannot be confirmed by way of micro data. Moreover results from our macro data indicate that already in grade seven the gender ratio is reversed. All in all our analyses indicate that there is no significant and sustainable disadvantage for Turkish girls in comparison to Turkish boys.     

Die Vereinbarkeitsfrage für Männer: Welche Auswirkungen haben Elternzeiten und Teilzeitarbeit auf die Stundenlöhne von Vätern?Work-family reconciliation for men: Do parental leave and part-time work affect fathers’ hourly wages?

As previous research shows, many German fathers would like to spend more time with their children, but long working hours often restrict their opportunities to do so. Parental leave and part-time work could help fathers to reconcile work and family. Yet, labor market theories predict that using such family-friendly policies may lead to wage penalties. Hence, many fathers decide against using such policies because they fear that parental leave or part-time work will lead to financial penalties and career disadvantages. This article evaluates this concern by empirically examining the effect of parental leave and part-time work on fathers’ hourly wages. Using data from the German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP) 1991–2013 and Families in Germany (FiD) 2010–2013, results from fixed-effects regression analyses show that part-time work is associated with wage penalties, but parental leave is not – irrespective of whether fathers only took the two months fathers’ quota or longer parental leaves. The results hence indicate that the German parental leave legislation enables fathers to spend more time with their children while protecting them from wage penalties at work.     

Statusgefälle und Intragruppenprozesse in Schülerarbeitsgruppen

The study investigates group status and group processes between students working in small groups in the classroom. 40 lessons of ten teachers were observed and videotaped. It can be shown that there is a different status and leadership behaviour between the members of the groups but very interesting, there is no ?free rider“ effect. Status differences are not a constant phenomenon on over different lessons and they are not important for good results at the end of group work but sensitive for the leadership practiced in group work. Between the group processes and the results there are specific relationships. Implications for managing group work are discussed.