Contributions of the German “Expression Psychology” to nonverbal communication research

This is the third part of a series. Part I: Theories and Concepts appeared in Volume 3, Number 3 and Part II: The Face appeared in Volume 6, Number 4. In this part of the series a survey of the different techniques for the analysis of human movement behavior, as well as results of research and theorizing on gait, gestures, and body movement behavior is presented. It is demonstrated that Expression Psychology research of movement behavior is especially important for today's researcher because of the methods developed, while results are often anecdotal or dubious.Die Art und Weise nämlich, wie eine willkürliche Bewegung vollzogen wird, ist durch ihren Zweck nicht so genau bestimmt, dass es nicht mehrere Arten geben sollte, nach denen sie kann verrichtet werden. Dasjenige nun, was durch den Willen oder den Zweck dabei unbestimmt gelassen ist, kann durch den Empfindungszustand der Person sympathetisch bestimmt werden und also zu einen Ausdruck desselben dienenThe mode, the manner in which a voluntary movement is executed, is not a thing so exactly determined by the intention which is proposed by it that it cannot be executed in several different ways. That which the will or intention leaves undetermined can be sympathetically determined by the state of sensibility in which the person is found to be, and consequently can express this state.     

Graphical Communication of Uncertain Quantities to Nontechnical People

Nine pictorial displays for communicating quantitative information about the value of an uncertain quantity, x , were evaluated for their ability to communicate , p ( x > a ) and p ( b > x > a ) to well-educated semi-and nontechnical subjects. Different displays performed best in different applications. Cumulative distribution functions alone can severely mislead some subjects in estimating the mean. A "rusty" knowledge of statistics did not improve performance, and even people with a good basic knowledge of statistics did not perform as well as one would like. Until further experiments are performed, the authors recommend the use of a cumulative distribution function plotted directly above a probability density function with the same horizontal scale, and with the location of the mean clearly marked on both curves.     

Transnationalization of a Recruitment Regime: Skilled Migration to Japan

Japan, facing a demographic decline and challenges by companies and universities to internationalize, has opened its doors to skilled migration. Focussing initially on a two‐step student migration model, Japanese companies are now recruiting young graduates from overseas universities, mainly in Asia. We argue that, with the help of brokers, the domestic recruitment regime (a set of particular employment practices) has been transnationalized. Based on interviews with stakeholders and discussing international recruitment fairs as the site of engagement, we present first evidence that the activities of brokers have the potential to change attitudes towards employability among overseas universities and their students. We also find that this development compromises the original diversity objectives of Japanese employers and point to a lack of rules of engagement for brokers operating across national borders.     

Assessing a hypothesis test for the difference between two quantiles from independent populations

An empirical distribution function estimator for the difference of order statistics from two independent populations can be used for inference between quantiles from these populations. The inferential properties of the approach are evaluated in a simulation study where different sample sizes, theoretical distributions, and quantiles are studied. Small to moderate sample sizes, tail quantiles, and quantiles which do not coincide with the expectation of an order statistic are identified as problematic for appropriate Type I error control.     

Verordnetes Coaching — und Möglichkeiten und Grenzen zur Organisationsentwicklung

Prescribed coaching — and chances and limits of organization development On the basis of two case studies it is shown how and under which conditions ?prescribed coaching“ can become effective for the coachee as well as for the organization. With that the Kühl-thesis, coaching was nothing but a placebo for the organisation, is at least partly refuted.     

Less social health insurance, more private supplementary insurance? Empirical evidence from Germany

Based on individual level data from Germany, we analyze the effect of changes in the compulsory benefit package of the social health insurance on the demand for supplementary private insurance, employing a difference-in-differences approach. The focus is on the exclusion of dental prostheses from the benefit package in 1997 and its re-inclusion in 1999. Individuals born prior to 1979 serve as control group because only the young were affected by the reform. No significant effect on the demand for supplementary health insurance is found. Thus, the notion of clients making informed choices about their health insurances’ coverage is not supported.     

Between the village and the global city: the production and decay of translocal spaces of Thai migrant workers in Singapore

This paper explores the mobilities and structural moorings of Thai labour migrants in Singapore from a translocal perspective. We argue that combining the mobilities paradigm with the concept of translocality offers a fruitful avenue of investigation not only of the production of translocal spaces, but also of their temporality and mutability. Through a multi-sited research approach we shed light on the genesis as well as the decay of translocal connections. This paper shows that translocal structures are important moorings of migration, and raises the question of what happens to translocal spaces when migration flows dissolve.