The recent history of the IEA: an analysis of IEA Congress presentations since 1961

In this paper we review historical material relating to the growth and coverage of past IEA meetings and congresses. In particular, we report on presentations at IEA Congresses dating back to the first one in Stockholm in 1961. A content analysis of Congress proceedings was carried out and we present findings on changes since 1961 covering: numbers and nationalities of conference participants and the types of topics presented at Congresses. Our findings point to evidence of widening participation at the conferences, in particular delegates drawn from Asia, South East Asia and the Far East. In addition, some topics (e.g., physiology, methodological papers and studies of workload) appear to have waned in popularity over the period, whereas some topics (e.g., ODAM, Cognitive Ergonomics) have grown in popularity. We discuss these findings in the light of other evidence covering historical trends and developments within human factors and ergonomics.     

Performance-based management and quality of work: an empirical assessment

In France, in the private sector as in the public sector, performance-based management tends to become a norm. Performance-based management is supposed to improve service quality, productivity and efficiency, transparency of allotted means and achieved results, and to better focus the activity of employees and of the whole organization. This text reports a study conducted for the French Ministry of Budget by a team of researchers in ergonomics, sociology and management science, in order to assess the impact of performance-based management on employees, on teams and on work organization. About 100 interviews were conducted with employees of all categories and 6 working groups were set up in order to discuss and validate or amend our first analyses. Results concern several aspects: workload and work intensification, indicators and performance management and the transformation of jobs induced by performance management.     

Use of graphical modality in a collaborative design distant setting

In this paper, we present an original environment, the Distributed Collaborative Design Studio (DCDS) which allows multimodal real-time remote exchanges, and which aims at re-creating remotely the conditions of co-present meetings. This environment associates a videoconference tool (supporting verbal and non-verbal communication) and an original realtime shared digital hand-drawn sketches system (supporting graphical communication). The users can import documents and annotate them in real-time at distance. In this paper, we are interested in studying the use of the graphical modality (digital sketch and document annotations) as a tool for collective design and remote communication. This study takes place in the framework of a collaborative architectural design studio, which has taken place during 3 month, and gathering students from Belgium and France to work together in 3 small groups mainly at distance. The study focuses on the role of graphical modality in the synchronous remote meetings supported by the DCDS. We identify the types of digital annotations made on the imported document, thanks to the electronic pen, and their role in the cognitive processes of designing and in the collaboration and communication processes. We also identify the different practices of digital sketching, according to the group and its collaborative strategies. We discuss the utility of the graphical modality as an efficient support for collaborative synchronous activities and show that the DCDS environment supports different strategies of collaborative design (co-design and distributed design). We conclude on recommendations for improving the system and for designing sketch-based collaborative environments.     

Too Big to Learn: The Effects of Major Acquisition Failures on Subsequent Acquisition Divestment

We examine whether firms learn from their major acquisition failures. Drawing from a threat‐rigidity theoretical framework, we suggest that firms do not learn from their major acquisition failures. Furthermore, we hypothesize that host‐country experience reinforces the negative effects of major acquisition failures. Our research hypotheses are tested using an event history analysis of 741 acquisitions undertaken by French listed and non‐listed firms in the USA between January 1988 and December 2008. We use failure divestment (divestment resulting from acquisition failure) as a proxy for acquisition performance. Consistent with our theoretical framework, we find that major acquisition failures have a negative impact on future acquisition performance. Furthermore, we find that such negative effects are reinforced by firms’ host‐country experience.     

La démocratisation de l'enseignement supérieur au Canada: la face cachée de la massification

The increase in available student placements at colleges and universities, the implementation of provincial and federal postsecondary education policies, and the rise of the educational aspirations of families and individuals have all led to the massification of Canadian higher education. Based on Merle's typology of the forms of democratization, this article attempts to revisit the theory of equality of opportunities by critically analyzing the link between massification of higher education and social equity. The results of an analysis of longitudinal data from the (YIT) Youth in Transition Survey show that at the age of 24 in 2008, approximately 77% of young Canadians have pursued studies in a college or university. If access to postsecondary education is now higher, to what extent has it improved social equity? The article shows, in light of the Merle's typology, that mass university education is achieved in part under the seal of a segregative democratization, while college education tends to be egalitarian. L'augmentation de la capacité d'accueil des collèges et des universités, la mise en ?uvre de politiques provinciales et fédérales de développement de l'enseignement postsecondaire et la montée des aspirations scolaires des familles et des individus ont contribué à massifier l'enseignement supérieur canadien. En se basant sur la typologie des formes de démocratisation de Merle, le présent article tente de revisiter la théorie de l'égalité des chances en s'interrogeant sur le lien entre la massification de l'enseignement supérieur et l'équité sociale. Les résultats obtenus à partir de données longitudinales provenant de l'Enquête auprès de jeunes en transition (EJET) montrent qu’à l'âge de 24 ans en 2008, environ 77 % des jeunes Canadiens ont poursuivi des études dans un collège ou une université. Si l'accès aux études postsecondaires est aujourd'hui plus élevé, dans quelle mesure celui‐ci a‐t‐il amélioré l’équité sociale? L'article montre, à la lumière de la typologie de Merle, que la massification de l'enseignement universitaire se réalise en partie sous le sceau d'une démocratisation ségrégative, tandis que l'enseignement collégial a tendance à être égalisateur.     

A Simplified Approach to Risk Assessment Based on System Dynamics: An Industrial Case Study

Seveso plants are complex sociotechnical systems, which makes it appropriate to support any risk assessment with a model of the system. However, more often than not, this step is only partially addressed, simplified, or avoided in safety reports. At the same time, investigations have shown that the complexity of industrial systems is frequently a factor in accidents, due to interactions between their technical, human, and organizational dimensions. In order to handle both this complexity and changes in the system over time, this article proposes an original and simplified qualitative risk evaluation method based on the system dynamics theory developed by Forrester in the early 1960s. The methodology supports the development of a dynamic risk assessment framework dedicated to industrial activities. It consists of 10 complementary steps grouped into two main activities: system dynamics modeling of the sociotechnical system and risk analysis. This system dynamics risk analysis is applied to a case study of a chemical plant and provides a way to assess the technological and organizational components of safety.     

SOME QUALMS ABOUT THE TEST OF THE INSTITUTIONALIST HYPOTHESIS OF THE LONG-RUN BEHAVIOR OF VELOCITY

This paper expresses econometric qualms about Bordo and Jonung's [1981] analysis of long-run velocity. They did not recognize that, for U.S. and Canadian data, the log of velocity has a unit root. Hence, estimation of a log level regression may produce spurious regressions.
When Bordo and Jonung's velocity equation is reestimated in rate of change form, permanent income is significant, contrary to their earlier conclusion. Moreover, using this approach gives a stronger result for one of the institutional variables in the velocity function, in the sense that the remaining variables become more significant.