Diversity Management and Fairness in Public Organizations

Diversity management was initially adopted in the pursuit of fairness and equality and the promotion of an inclusive workforce by public organizations. However, previous studies regarding diversity management have focused on job performance or job satisfaction. Thus, in this article, we attempt to examine whether diversity management advances organizational fairness in public organizations. By examining data from the 2013 Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey (FEVS), we find that diversity management is positively related to the perception of organizational fairness in the federal workplace. In addition, we also find that female and minority employees perceive diversity management in terms of fairness differently.     

Exploring effective crisis response strategies

This study examines effective crisis response strategies using Coombs’ SCCT as a theoretical framework. Results of an experiment show that base responses (instructing and adjusting information) could mitigate reputational decline for a company during a severe, preventable crisis. The sole use of bolstering (reminding) strategy or no response is ineffective because it negatively influences consumers’ trust in the company, attitudes toward the company, perceived corporate reputation, and supportive behavioral intentions.     

Formal Volunteering among Vulnerable Older Adults from an Environmental Perspective: Does Senior Housing Matter?

Based on the premise that environmental support is an important facilitator for engagement in formal volunteering among vulnerable subgroups of older adults, we focus on older low-income individuals who live alone. Drawing on the environmental docility hypothesis, we examine the role living in senior housing has on the likelihood of volunteering. Data came from the 2012 wave of the Health Retirement Study (N = 1415). Kernel weights derived from propensity scores were used to account for observed sociodemographic and health characteristics associated with both senior housing living and the outcome. Logistic regression models showed that living in senior housing positively affected engagement in formal volunteering after adjusting for personal and environmental factors. As a modifiable target of intervention for successful and healthy aging, our findings provide important background knowledge for the development and implementation of housing-specific volunteer programs for vulnerable elders.     

Exploring trust and distrust as conceptually and empirically distinct constructs: Association with symmetrical communication and public engagement across four pairings of trust and distrust

Existing relationship research has interpreted low trust as being equivalent to high distrust and high trust as the evidence of low distrust, which has failed to capture the full scope of the functions of trust and distrust in organization–public relationships. Recent research in this area suggests that trust and distrust might simultaneously exist during relational interactions and might play uniquely positive and negative functions in certain social contexts. The main purpose of this study was to offer a new insight in trust–distrust research by providing distinctions in conceptualization and operationalization between trust and distrust. This study also empirically tested the functions of four pairings of trust and distrust on two core public relations concepts (i.e., symmetrical communication and public engagement). The results from the surveys (N = 704; in 20 companies) of US consumers showed sound discriminant validity of trust and distrust. Further, the statistical results revealed that symmetrical communication and public engagement were most strongly associated with the high trust and high distrust pairing, supporting the utilities of distrust in public relations and the coexistence of trust and distrust in social interactions.     

The multifaceted nature of poverty and differential trajectories of health among children

The relationships between poverty and children’s health have been well documented, but the diverse and dynamic nature of poverty has not been thoroughly explored. Drawing on cumulative disadvantage and human capital theory, we examined to what extent the duration and depth of poverty, as well as the level of material hardship, affected changes in physical health among children over time. Data came from eight waves of the Korea Welfare Panel Study between 2006 and 2013. Using children who were under age 10 at baseline (N?=?1657, Observations?=?13,256), we conducted random coefficient regression in a multilevel growth curve framework to examine poverty group differences in intra-individual change in health status. Results showed that chronically poor children were most likely to have poor health. Children in households located far below the poverty line were most likely to be in poor health at baseline, while near-poor children’s health got significantly worse over time. Material hardship also had a significant impact on child health.     

Survivor: spectators and gladiators in the US environmental movement, 2000–2010

What motivates people to participate in which forms of environmental activism? To address this question, we revise empirical models examining environmental activism by disaggregating the outcome variable of movement participation and dichotomizing two key motivational factors. Using repeated cross-sectional data from the US General Social Survey of 2000 and 2010, this study conducts logistic regression of four forms of participation on perceived severity and sense of efficacy, while accounting for biographical availability and political engagement. Results from regression analysis show that vocabularies of motive have substantial impacts on an individual’s likelihood of: (1) signing a petition; (2) giving money; (3) joining a group; and (4) joining a protest or demonstration. Their effects are large enough to override the noticeable impacts of liberalism and education. This study also finds that the level of participation in the movement across all forms has decreased between 2000 and 2010. These findings direct our attention to the limited capacity of the public sphere to accommodate the environmental movement during the last decade, as well as to potential changes in environmental activism in the coming decades that may mobilize those previously less likely to participate.     

Improving physical and mental health in frontline mental health care providers: Yoga-based stress management versus cognitive behavioral stress management

The need for brief, low-cost, easily disseminable, and effective interventions to promote healthy lifestyles is high. This is especially true for mental health providers. The authors developed two studies to compare the impacts of Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management (CBSM) and Yoga-Based Stress Management (YBSM) interventions for health care professionals. Study 1 offered an 8-week YBSM intervention to 37 mental health care participants and collected health data pre- and post. Study 2 offered YBSM and CBSM classes to 40 randomly assigned mental health care providers and collected mental and physical health data at four time points. In Study 1, using t tests, the YBSM intervention affected a number of mental and physical well-being indices pre to post. In Study 2, using linear mixed modeling, YBSM and CBSM groups both improved significantly (p?p?F?=?4.34), physical activity (YBSM increased more, p?F?=?3.47), overall mental health (YBSM increased more, p?F?=?5.32), and secondary traumatic stress (YBSM decreased more, p?F?=?4.89). YBSM and CBSM appear to be useful for health care professionals’ mental and physical health. YBSM demonstrates some benefit above and beyond the extremely well studied and empirically supported CBSM, including increased physical activity, overall mental health, and decreased secondary traumatic stress benefits.     

On tests detecting difference in means and variances simultaneously under normality

In this paper, we propose several tests for detecting difference in means and variances simultaneously between two populations under normality. First of all, we propose a likelihood ratio test. Then we obtain an expression of the likelihood ratio statistic by a product of two functions of random quantities, which can be used to test the two individual partial hypotheses for differences in means and variances. With those individual partial tests, we propose a union-intersection test. Also we consider two optimal tests by combining the p-values of the two individual partial tests. For obtaining null distributions, we apply the permutation principle with the Monte Carlo approach. Then we compare efficiency among the proposed tests with well-known ones through a simulation study. Finally, we discuss some interesting features related to the simultaneous tests and resampling methods as concluding remarks.     

Stratification and the formation of expectations in highly differentiated educational systems

Highly differentiated educational systems constitute a common organizational form of schooling in which youth are sorted into secondary schools that stress either vocational or academic training and between which movement is rare. With standardized data from five countries, we illuminate two important stratification processes in these systems: (1) social origins strongly influence students’ placement into different types of schools with high SES students most likely to attend academically oriented schools that provide a direct pathway to the university. (2) The types of schools students attend largely determine their educational and occupational expectations and impart a strong dose of realism in these expectations. Thus, the institutional arrangements of highly differentiated educational systems perpetuate socioeconomic inequalities quite early in the life course, well before students complete their education and enter the labor force.