Economic development and ecological equilibrium—A target conflict in modern industrial enterprises

The increased utilization of natural resources burdens the economic systems of the whole world. In order to stop, or at any rate to mitigate, the consequences of this development anti-pollution measures are necessary. Planned and realized standards are to a growing extent important for the formulation of strategies which influence the product concepts and production procedures as well as locational decisions of companies. The conflict between economic development and ecological balance can only be solved if the social groups reach a consensus on the priorities of the tasks to be accomplished.     

Gedanken zum Charisma-Diskurs in der Führungsforschung Braucht die Unternehmensführung Kompetenz in Zwischenmenschlichkeit oder Charisma?

Considerations on Charisma in Leadership research An African caravan leader as described in an ethnological report corresponds in no ways to Western ideals of a leader with eloquence and brightness. What is now the structure of leading and being led? Philosophical, sociological and psychological ideas are discussed in trying to answer to the question. Max Weber’s notion of power (today leadership) contains, among others, the concept of charisma, which he describes explicitly as being “outside of economy”. Therefore, the application of the enigmatic term of charisma is questionable. It is recommended to refer to group dynamics as a whole rather than applying selected concepts of psychoanalysis, such as narcissism, in order to understand and describe interaction in leadership of companies and institutions.     

Editorial

Ohne Zusammenfassung

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Editorial

     

Editorial

Ohne Zusammenfassung

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Editorial

     

Comparing the New Zealand and Swedish National Surveys of Gambling and Problem Gambling

National surveys of gambling and problem gambling have recently been completed in New Zealand and Sweden. These studies are unique in that data collection was undertaken by official government statistical agencies, involved large, nationally representative samples, and attained high response rates. Comparison of the findings is facilitated by the use of similar procedures and instrumentation and is of interest in that both countries have similar per capita gambling expenditure and welfare states that have recently undergone major economic and social restructuring. Data on gambling participation, problem gambling prevalence and risk factors for problem gambling are presented and discussed. While there are a number of similarities and differences, the Swedish findings are more similar to those of an earlier national survey conducted in New Zealand during 1991. This suggests that risk factors are changing over time in relation to evolving patterns of gambling participation and attitudes towards gambling, a finding that has implications for future patterns of gambling and problem gambling in these and other countries.     

The sense-of-coherence and the capability of performing daily occupations in persons with chronic pain

OBJECTIVES: It may be helpful for occupational therapists who promote enabling occupations among persons with chronic pain, to understand the relationship between the persons feelings of meaningfulness, comprehensibility and manageability in life and their capability to perform daily occupations. AIM: The aim of this study was to describe and investigate how these concepts of person and occupational performance of 27 daily occupations in terms of "effort", "inconvenience", "avoidance", "give up", "frequency" and "satisfaction" were related to each other. DESIGN: A prospective correlative study was conducted. METHOD: A consecutive series of eighty-four patients with chronic pain completed a structured interview and responded to the self-assessment instruments Sense-of-Coherence Scale (SOC-13) and Capability of Performing Daily Occupations (CPDO). RESULTS: Weak but significant correlation (p < 0.05) were found between the SOC-13 sub-scale "manageability" and the specific occupations "physical exercise / training" (r = - 0.24), "climb stairs" (r = - 0.27) "social activity" (r= - 0.25) and "wash the laundry" (r = - 0.30), as well as between the SOC-13 sub-scale "meaningfulness" and the CPDO occupations "grocery shopping" (r = -0.22), "performing meals" (r = - 0.24), and "wash the laundry" (r = - 0.31) and the CPDO question "frequency of performing occupations" r = -0.22). The participants' mean value (mean = 58) of SOC-13 was below the other populations represented in a literature review. The mean values for CPDO (3.4-4.3) (optimal score is zero) showed that the participants perceived themselves having activity limitations concerning performance of daily occupations, and the performance area of work productive activities were experienced as more disabling. The degree to which the participants perceived themselves having a strong sense of coherence or being disabled by pain varied greatly both for the results of SOC-13 ( range 32-90 points) and CPDO (range 1.1-7.8 points). CONCLUSION: The expected significant relationship between a person's sense of coherence and the performance of daily occupations was partly verified with weak significant correlations. In clinical practice the assessment instruments are suggested to be of value in rehabilitation clinics for occupational therapists who work with people with chronic pain.