Assessing adults' difficulty in coping with funerals

The death of a loved one requires many adults to make decisions about a variety of details regarding funeral arrangements. Based upon data collected from 348 adults (M age = 34.21) who had attended the funeral of a loved one within the last year, a scale consisting of 50 items regarding the difficulties each had experienced with regard to events prior to, during, and after the funeral, was developed. Cronbach's Alpha coefficient for this measure of difficulty was .96. Principal components analysis of these data indicated that difficulty in coping with funerals could be understood in light of six factors explaining 56% of the common variance among relationships between items: 1) protocol/mechanics of the funeral; 2) general personal and interpersonal difficulties related to the death/funeral; 3) trust in the funeral industry; 4) concerns regarding the cemetery; 5) issues pertaining to grief; and 6) post-funeral personal responsibilities. With regard to both overall difficulty and the above six factors, older adults experienced fewer difficulties, as did those who more actively participated in funeral rituals. In contrast, those who reported more personal and bereavement-related distress experienced more difficulties. Findings of the current study have value both in identifying persons for whom funerals may undermine bereavement adjustment and in identifying appropriate intervention and aftercare services for such individuals.     

Comparing protests and demonstrators in times of austerity: regular and occasional protesters in universalistic and particularistic mobilisations

The recent economic crisis shaped a new wave of protest in Europe mobilising thousands of people. Austerity measures brought not only the ‘usual suspects’ onto the streets, they also awoke less frequent demonstrators. What brought all these people to the streets? Are their motivations the same for participation in all demonstrations? We compare participants in two types of mobilisations against austerity: those called particularistic (which are reactions to particular anti-austerity issues), and those universalistic (which address much broader issues such as questioning the political system). We also compare two typologies of participants taking into account their participation history: regular and occasional protesters. Employing a two-by-two design defined by type of demonstration (Particularistic vs. Universalistic) and the individual’s participation history (Occasionals vs. Regulars), we found that the differences between demonstrations were smaller than those within types of protesters. Nevertheless, even in this period of hardship, motivation to participate in particularistic or universalistic protests differ depending on the perceptions of political system, ideological positioning and organisational embeddedness. Interaction analyses showed that different levels of identity, trust in institutions and satisfaction with democracy are crucial in driving people to participate in different types of demonstrations as occasionals or regulars.     

Work Disability Among Native-born and Foreign-born Americans: On Origins,Health, and Social Safety Nets

Public debates about both immigration policy and social safety net programs are increasingly contentious. However, little research has explored differences in health within America’s diverse population of foreign-born workers, and the effect of these workers on public benefit programs is not well understood. We investigate differences in work disability by nativity and origins and describe the mix of health problems associated with receiving Social Security Disability Insurance benefits. Our analysis draws on two large national data sources—the American Community Survey and comprehensive administrative records from the Social Security Administration—to determine the prevalence and incidence of work disability between 2001 and 2010. In sharp contrast to prior research, we find that foreign-born adults are substantially less likely than native-born Americans to report work disability, to be insured for work disability benefits, and to apply for those benefits. Overall and across origins, the foreign-born also have a lower incidence of disability benefit award. Persons from Africa, Northern Europe, Canada, and parts of Asia have the lowest work disability benefit prevalence rates among the foreign-born; persons from Southern Europe, Western Europe, the former Soviet Union, and the Caribbean have the highest rates.     

Gender differences in body esteem among older adults

Ninety-five adults aged 60-91 completed measures of Body-as-Object Esteem (BOE) (i.e., appearance) and Body-as-Process Esteem (BPE) (i.e., function) to explore gender differences in body esteem among older adults. As hypothesized, a significant age by gender interaction revealed that men become more disparaging of the appearance and function of their bodies in their last decades of life, while women do not. Level of physical disability was negatively correlated with BOE, particularly for disabled women. Furthermore, as is seen across the lifespan, self-esteem is a significant predictor of BOE. Disabled participants who were older than 74 years had disproportionately low BPE scores and similarly poor global self-esteem. Whether working with older adults or studying body esteem in this population, it is vital that both dimensions of body esteem are assessed along with the impact of disability status, gender, self-esteem, and age.     

The impact of corporate outsourcing on company value

Companies worldwide are expanding their use of outsourcing for services and products. This article appraises what is known about the impact of outsourcing on company value, and the emergent picture is not an unblemished one. Company managers frequently complain about the downsides, some companies have retrieved what they had sourced out, failures can be seen here and there, and the long-term potential consequences of outsourcing too much are yet to be seen. Still, the weight of the research evidence indicates that, when well designed and well managed, outsourcing reduces operating cost, enhances competitive strategy, and enlarges shareholder value.     

NGOs and Aid Fragmentation: The Belgian Case

Aid fragmentation is considered a burden for recipient countries. NGOs as important channellers of official development assistance can contribute significantly to this fragmentation. This article is a first attempt to conceptualize and measure NGO aid fragmentation while identifying the complex set of (contradictory) incentive structures. The Belgian case, with its multi-ethnic, multi-linguistic setting, and multi-layered government structures is a crucial case for showing the possible variety of factors which may influence fragmentation. The research finds that fighting aid fragmentation may prove a lot more difficult than suggested because, in the Belgian case, with its multiple incentive structures, fragmentation actually pays off for NGOs.     

Skill utilization and well-being: a cross-level story of day-to-day fluctuations and personal intrinsic values

The opportunity to use one's skills at work is an important prerequisite for employee well-being. Drawing on self-determination and person-environment fit theory, this diary study aims to add to our understanding of this important phenomenon in two ways. Firstly, we examine the associations of within-subject daily variations in skill utilization with well-being. Secondly, we model work value orientation as a between-subject factor that moderates this within-subject relationship. Specifically, we advocate that daily skill utilization is more beneficial (in terms of more daily work engagement and less daily emotional exhaustion) for employees holding predominantly intrinsic (i.e. self-development, community contribution) as opposed to extrinsic (i.e. financial success, status) values. Results of multilevel modelling using diary data from 99 service workers over five working days, supported the assumption that daily skill utilization was positively related to daily work engagement, particularly among employees holding a predominantly intrinsic work value orientation. Contrary to our expectations, daily skill utilization was unrelated to daily exhaustion, both for employees holding high and low intrinsic values. The discussion highlights the importance of, and employees’ receptiveness to, variations in beneficial working conditions.     

Nonprofit Governance Quality: Concept and Measurement

ABSTRACT

A nonprofit “governance quality index” was developed to enable verification and falsification of contemporary theoretical insights on social service organizations. Indicators were generated based on an extensive qualitative exploration. For the quantitative validation, a data set was composed of 526 respondents from 52 organizations. Five subdimensions of governance quality are introduced and are recommended to be used as separate scales, rather than combined into a single score on governance quality. Furthermore, the recommendation is made to rely on multiple raters per organization to assess governance quality or related concepts, given the substantial within-organization variance found.