Gerechtigkeit und Arbeitskontext – Zur Bedeutung situativer Merkmale für die Gerechtigkeitswahrnehmung von Führungskr?ften

Leaders who are perceived to act with fairness can evoke desired employee behaviour in unique ways. Until now, little attention has been paid to the influence of situational factors on judging leader??s fairness in the work context. Based on the event paradigm, this study explores the formation of employee??s perception of leader??s justice in the context of work distribution through a variety of situational factors. Using a factorial survey we show that not only well-known factors such as respectful and reasonable behaviour affect the perception of leader??s fairness but also situational factors such as speech situation, trust between leader and follower, and the quality of the task.     

Who Believes in the Storybook Image of the Scientist?

Do lay people and scientists themselves recognize that scientists are human and therefore prone to human fallibilities such as error, bias, and even dishonesty? In a series of three experimental studies and one correlational study (total N = 3,278) we found that the “storybook image of the scientist” is pervasive: American lay people and scientists from over 60 countries attributed considerably more objectivity, rationality, open-mindedness, intelligence, integrity, and communality to scientists than to other highly-educated people. Moreover, scientists perceived even larger differences than lay people did. Some groups of scientists also differentiated between different categories of scientists: established scientists attributed higher levels of the scientific traits to established scientists than to early-career scientists and Ph.D. students, and higher levels to Ph.D. students than to early-career scientists. Female scientists attributed considerably higher levels of the scientific traits to female scientists than to male scientists. A strong belief in the storybook image and the (human) tendency to attribute higher levels of desirable traits to people in one’s own group than to people in other groups may decrease scientists’ willingness to adopt recently proposed practices to reduce error, bias and dishonesty in science.     

Running on age in a 15-km road run: minor influence of age on performance

The importance of exercise in the elderly is widely recognized, but data on performances and drop-out in short running contests are lacking. This hinders stimulation and coaching of elderly persons in active aging. The aim of the study was to determine age-related changes in running performance in the most popular Dutch road run, and how this is influenced by gender, training, and increased participation rate over the last decade. This is a retrospective analysis of 194,560 participants of a 15-km run from 1995 to 2007. Multiple regression analysis of running time by age, gender, and training was performed. Trends in participation were examined by chi-square tests and ANOVA. Trends in running time and speed were examined by t tests. With aging, running time increased with 0.20% per year (P < 0.001). Running time was on average 13% (P < 0.001) shorter in men than in women and was 15.7% (P < 0.001) shorter in participants who trained on a regular basis. Decline in performance with age was 5.9% larger for men than women (P < 0.01) and 4.5% larger for trained than untrained participants (P < 0.01). Over the last decade, participation numbers increased most for elderly (≥60 years) and female participants, mean running performance declined with 9.9% (P < 0.001). Drop-out number was low at all ages (0.13–0.29%). It appears that aging has only minor negative influences on running performance, which can even be attenuated by training. Our data suggest that exercise by means of running is a safe and rewarding option for improvement of healthy and active aging.     

Quebec Sociology: A Discipline and its Object

Quebec sociology and Quebec society are categorically distinct from other sociologies and countries. Both are “communities,” both have French-speaking majorities, and both exist in Anglo-Saxon environments. As well, Quebec sociology has always been and continues to be obsessed by the national question. Interpretations proposed by sociologists—predominantly French-speaking—of and about the Quebec Question have never been independent of the struggles in which they have taken place. In fact, sociological readings of nationalism in Quebec appear to be a direct consequence of their social position and relationship with political power. Through the prism of sociology, the French-speaking collectivity in Canada has been, successively and simultaneously, characterized through categories of race, ethnic group, society, and nation. 2 This article presents five ways in which sociologists have represented Quebec society. First, the Pioneers: Léon Gérin and Marius Barbeau, or the Quebec “Difference” as a handicap. Second, the characterization of Quebec through race, territory, and soul. Third provides the external perspectives of Miner and Hughes. Fourth will examine the Laval (Quebec) School. Finally, this article will examine Quebec Society as either an ethnic or civic nation. Each theme has been set chronologically in specific periods of Quebec sociology: the Pioneers (Part 1 and 2, before 1940); the institutionalization of academic sociology (Part 3 and 4, 1940-1969); and the “nationalization” and professionalization of sociology (Part 5, 1970 to the present).     

Der positive und negative Einfluss von Geschwistern auf den Gymnasialübergang

Within sociology of education living with siblings is almost exclusively considered as having a negative impact on educational success. Drawing on the German Microcensus 2008, the analysis reveals that although sibling constellation is strongly associated with transition to high school, this association is not solely negative. The probability to enter higher secondary school (Gymnasium) is sharply lowered by living in a household with an older sibling that neither attends the Gymnasium nor has a higher education entrance qualification. Vice versa living in a household with an older sibling that attends Gymnasium or has a higher education entrance qualification enhances the probability of transition to upper secondary school. Furthermore it is shown that the positive influence on entering Gymnasium that originates from an older sibling that attends Gymnasium is stronger in federal states (Bundesländer) in which the recommendation of elementary school for secondary school is not binding. What remains unanswered is the question of the mechanisms that underlie these demonstrated associations. However, some of the potential mechanisms can be proved empirically.     

‘It takes two to tango …’ revisited: a qualitative study on integration and participation of people living with spinal cord injury in Switzerland

We aimed to examine how integration and participation are understood by persons with spinal cord injury. A qualitative study was carried out where we analysed 14 interviews with persons with spinal cord injury living in Switzerland. Integration was more often understood in terms of social acceptance and inclusion, while individual activities were more often highlighted in definitions of participation. Environmental factors were seen as the most important determinants. Applied strategies comprised pre-arrangements, open communication, asking for help and optimism. Common ground appears to be autonomous functioning and freedom of choice while major determinants are seen in the environment.     

Determinants of Rural Physicians' Life and Job Satisfaction

Objective: To identify and quantify factors that contribute to rural physicians' satisfaction with their jobs and life as a whole.Design: Cross-sectional, mailed survey. Study population: Family physicians practicing in rural communities eligible for British Columbia's Northern and Isolation Allowance. Main measures: Demographics, Domain satisfaction, Maslach Burnout Inventory, Beck Depression Inventory, and Life Satisfaction.Results: Stepwise multiple regressions reveal the greatest predicators of rural physician overall life satisfaction are satisfaction with jobs, personal relationships, health, finances, and absence of depression. These predictors account for 70% of the variation in rural physician overall life satisfaction. The greatest predictors of rural physician satisfaction with jobs and satisfaction with current place of residence/practice, on-call shifts, personal accomplishments, and absence of emotional exhaustion. The predictors account for 44% of the variation in rural physician job satisfaction.     

Recentering our tendencies: Immigrant youth development and the importance of context in social work research

According to Weiner’s model, help giving has various determinants such as social and individual causes, affective reactions, and responsibility. The aim of this study was (1) to examine the influence of bullying acts, the victim’s behavior at work, and revictimization on equity judgments and the perceived responsibility of perpetrators and victims; and (2) to test the determinants of help decisions. Twelve vignettes of bullying at work submitted to 133 participants varied according to the severity of bullying, the victim’s pro- or antisocial behaviors, and the victim’s antecedents. The results showed that the situation was judged less equitable, the victim less responsible, and the perpetrator more responsible, and the intention of help was increased, (1) when the perpetrator’s acts were serious, and (2) when the bullied person had shown prosocial behavior versus antisocial behavior. The help increased more (1) when the perpetrator’s acts were harmful and (2) when the victim had shown prosocial behaviors.