Back to basics: Re-examination of Demand-Control Theory of occupational stress

The Demand-Control model of occupational stress posits an interaction between job demands and job control predicting psychological strain, but previous research has found such an interaction only rarely or inconsistently. Such research, however, has often failed to measure either demands or strain faithfully to the model's constructs, or has simply failed to test for a statistical interaction. The present study corrected these shortcomings by going back to basics. Using a sample of 115 employees in a manufacturing company, it operationalized the variables more consistently with their original conceptualizations. However, when the hypothesized Demand-Control interaction was then tested, it still failed. Outcomes other than psychological strain (e.g. job dissatisfaction) were related negatively rather than positively to demands. This highlights the difference between psychological strain and dissatisfaction and casts doubt on models positing dissatisfaction as an intervening variable between stressors and strains.     

Psychological stress and muscle activity during data entry at visual display units

Abstract

The aim of this study was to evaluate whether psychological stress causes increased muscle activity, especially static muscle activity, in the trapezius muscles of the neck and shoulder. A pilot and a main study were carried out with 10 males and 20 females, respectively. The subjects performed a VDU data entry task under psychologically stressful and non-stressful conditions. Stress reactions were measured by different methods: heart rate and heart rate variability, hormonal excretion, and subjective ratings of mood and body symptoms. The stress condition caused an increase in heart rate. The low-frequency variability increased and the high-frequency variability decreased. Ratings of motivation and relaxation decreased, and subjects felt more activated. Pain and discomfort from the stomach increased. Adrenaline and noradrenaline in urine were unaffected. The majority of the subjects showed moderately increased static and median EMG levels during the stress condition. The interindividual variation in muscular reactions was large. Statistically significant increases were obtained for the myoelectric activity of the left (resting) trapezius muscle when pooling the two groups. It appears that the increase in muscle activity due to this type of mental stress is small, and factors other than ‘attention-related’ load may be more important. The results indicate that some individuals may be more prone to general muscle tension, making them more likely to develop symptoms and musculoskeletal pain.     

Region-specific versus country-specific poverty lines in analysis of poverty

An analysis of poverty based on a country-specific income poverty line suffers from disregarding regional differences in prices and needs within a country and may, therefore, produce results that give a misleading picture of the extent of poverty as well as the geographic and demographic composition of the poor. To account for differences in prices and needs, this paper introduces an alternative method for identifying the poor based on a set of region-specific poverty lines. Applying Norwegian household register data for 2001 we find that the national level of poverty is only slightly affected by the change in definition of poverty line. However, the geographic as well as the demographic poverty profiles are shown to depend heavily on whether the method for identifying the poor relies on region- or country-specific thresholds. As expected, the results demonstrate that an analysis of poverty based on a country-specific threshold produces downward biased poverty rates in urban areas and upward biased poverty rates in rural areas. Moreover, when region-specific poverty thresholds form the basis of the poverty analysis, we find that the poverty rates among young singles and non-western immigrants are significantly higher than what is suggested by previous empirical evidence based on a joint country-specific poverty line.     

Betriebswirtschaftslehre ohne Unternehmensethik? Vom Scheitern einer Ethik ohne Moral

Zusammenfassung  In Auseinandersetzung mit einer jüngst von Horst Albach ge?u?erten Auffassung von Betriebswirtschaftslehre ohne Unternehmensethik wird eine gegenteilige Auffassung entwickelt. Es wird gezeigt, dass der Glaube an die reinigenden Marktkr?fte eine ?konomistische Fiktion darstellt und mithin eine Ethik ohne Moral, d.h. ohne bewusst ethisch agierende Personen, unhaltbar ist. Stattdessen werden Anforderungen erkennbar, die als eine Richtschnur für die Entwicklung unternehmensethischer Perspektiven zu verstehen sind.

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Management without business ethics? On the failure of ethics without morality

Summary  Recently, Horst Albach developed an ethical approach which identifies management science being inherently ethical. This paper offers an alternative view. We examine how a pure market driven understanding of business ethics leads to questionable positions and logical contradictions. Therefore we propose a business ethics with morality which includes people, acting from ethically reflected grounds. Additionally, we define requirements to be fulfilled when developing business ethics within management science.

     

Die Öffentliche Zuschreibung von Verantwotung

Whether actors failed or succeeded in their political efforts, even who is in charge of finding solutions in the first place, depends on the public attribution of responsibility. The attribution of responsibility is one of the key elements of public discourse. However, social sciences by now failed to provide an instrument for systematic content analysis concerning attribution statements. The article presents an instrument which was developed for the systematic coding of claims on responsibility. Firstly, we give an overview on content analysis methods both, quantitative and qualitative. Secondly, we unfold our concept. We define a statement of responsibility attribution as consisting of three parts: the attribution sender (a), who directs a claim of responsibility at the attribution addressee (b) concerning a specified issue (c). This basic concept is further differentiated. In the final section we report our experiences during the coding phase.     

Lawyers’ Professional Careers: Increasing Women's Inclusion in the Partnership of Law Firms

Despite a huge increase in the number of women lawyers employed in professional service firms (PSFs) over the last four decades, the proportion of women at partnership level has changed at a much slower rate. This article investigates men's and women's understandings of women's careers and promotion to equity partner. The findings show that one reason why few women advance to equity partner level is that both men and women understand this role as requiring them to privilege work considerations over family. We recommend that PSF researchers and practitioners reflect more on the management of diversity and alternative work arrangements and organization.