Workplace resources to improve both employee well-being and performance: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Organisations are becoming increasingly aware of the importance of employees in gaining and maintaining competitive advantage. The happy worker–productive worker thesis suggests that workers who experience high levels of well-being also perform well and vice versa; however, organisations need to know how to ensure such happy and productive workers. The present review and meta-analysis identifies workplace resources at the individual, the group, the leader, and the organisational levels that are related to both employee well-being and organisational performance. We examine which types of resources are most important in predicting both employee well-being and performance. We identified 84 quantitative studies published in print and online from 2003 to November 2015. Resources at either of the four levels were related to both employee well-being and performance. We found no significant differences in employee well-being and organisational performance between the four levels of workplace resources, suggesting that interventions may focus on any of these levels. Cross-sectional studies showed stronger relationships with well-being and performance than longitudinal studies. Studies using objective performance ratings provided weaker relationships between resources and performance than self-rated and leader/third-party-rated studies.     

Intra‐household Allocation of Time to Household Production Activities: Evidence from Swedish Household Data

Abstract. The purpose of this paper is to study the intra‐household allocation of time to different household production activities using Swedish cross‐sectional household data. The Tobit model is rejected in favor of the Cragg model, suggesting that an empirical model has to take into consideration that allocation of time within the household is determined by two separate processes. Moreover, the results indicate that valuable information concerning the intra‐household allocation of time may be missing when household production is defined as the sum of different household activities, but there is no indication that statistically significant effects are wiped out in an aggregated analysis.     

韩东和Alan的故事--菜鸟与加拿大留学信息港的诞生

2001年5月份,韩东从多伦多大学计算机系毕业后没多久,便找到了一份工作,在一家金融软件公司里做软件工程师,主要从事软件的维护与开发.经过3年的考验,他在这个公司立住了脚跟.就在IT业不景气,公司裁员,而老板却打算给他加工资的时候,他和另一位华人同事Alan却提出了辞职,似乎轻而易举地丢掉了这份年薪在6万元以上的工作.两人决定创办一家加拿大留学网站.     

On the influence of market structure in modelling the US copper industry

Many of the contemporary models used to describe the behavior of the mineral industries assume a competitive market i.e. one in which market price is equal to marginal production cost. One such recent model of the worldwide copper industry is the MIDAS-II model developed for the Bureau of Mines [3, 4]. This model is used to project production and prices up through the year 2000. The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate the importance of the assumed market structure in the construction of these forecasts. If the market structure of the US copper industry is assumed to be comprised of a few large firms (an oligopoly), then forecasts based upon exactly the same data base differ significantly from the competitive market assumption.     

Childhood abuse and neglect in severely dependent female addicts: homogeneity and reliability of a Swedish version of the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire

This study explores the psychometric characteristics of childhood experiences ('Barndomsupplevelser'), using a Swedish translation of the 53–item version of the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ). Fifty–five female addicts, treated in a compulsory–care setting, completed the questionnaire. Homogeneity and reliability were studied using principal component analyses (PCA) and Cronbach's alpha. The test was submitted to content analysis. Nearly all (94.5%) had experienced childhood abuse or neglect. The internal consistency is high. The 4–factor solution corresponded to the subscales of emotional and physical abuse (combined), of sexual abuse and of emotional neglect, while the items in the physical neglect subscale were distributed to several factors. In the 5–factor solution, this subscale was divided into two factors. Content analyses of these factors point to other meanings than physical neglect. The CTQ (Swedish translation) was found to have high consistency and homogeneity in four of the five subscales (emotional, physical and sexual abuse, and emotional neglect), while the subscale on physical neglect may need revision. The new 28–item brief version seems to be an improvement, with regard to these problems.     

Literature review of theory and research on the psychological impact of temporary employment: Towards a conceptual model

The increased use of temporary contracts has instigated debates on possible implications for employees’ attitudes, well‐being and behaviour. The complex issues related to this debate are reviewed from a theoretical, empirical and conceptual point of view. First, the definitions of temporary employment that are currently used in OECD countries are reviewed. Second, theoretical views concerning possible determinants are elaborated. The theoretical frameworks discussed include Work Stress Theory, Social Comparison Theory and Social Exchange Theory. The determinants proposed in these theories have served to form the basis of hypotheses on differences between temporary and permanent workers on various psychological outcomes. Third, research on associations between temporary employment and the variables job satisfaction, organizational commitment, well‐being and behaviour are reviewed. These variables are most frequently used in the realm of temporary work research. This review concludes that research results have been inconsistent and inconclusive, unlike the predictions that follow from the theoretical frameworks. This leads to a fourth section in which potential explanations for these inconsistent findings are advanced. In conclusion, a conceptual model is developed to inspire future research.     

Looking for ‘social work’ in school social work

School social workers can be seen as a professional group operating on the margin of an educational logic that dominates schools as institutions. This conditions what tasks they are assigned and what aspects of social work knowledge they will find relevant. On the other hand, the role as a sole professional and relative outsider in the organization provides a potential for school social workers to transcend established theories of social work practice. This article aims to investigate how social work theory is applied in school social work. Twelve semi-structured interviews with school social workers were analysed in terms of how they relate to four knowledge approaches derived from the literature: task-centred, systems theory, strengths and anti-oppressive. Contrary to claims within the sociology of professions that social work practice is formed largely by organizational context rather than a discipline-specific knowledge base, the interviewees seemed to lean on a robust professional foundation within social work theory. Interviewees strongly emphasised their role as working for the individual pupil and positioned themselves as somewhat in opposition to a somewhat oppressive school environment.     

Being part of an enacted togetherness: Narratives of elderly people with depression

In this article, we explored how five elderly persons with depression engaged in everyday activities with others, over time, and how this was related to their experience of meaning. Repeated interviews and participant observations generated data that was analysed using a narrative approach. Analysis identified togetherness as an acted relation, "enacted togetherness", emphasising how the act of doing everyday activities with someone created togetherness and belonging, and being part of an enacted togetherness seemed to be a way for the participants to negotiate and construct meaning. Opportunities for doing things together with someone were closely associated to the place where the participants lived. Furthermore, engagement in activities together with others created hope and expectations of future acting. Findings from this research can extend our understanding of how participating in everyday activities is experienced as a social process including change over time, presenting the perspective of elderly people themselves. In light of these findings, we highlight the need to consider how opportunities to become part of an enacted togetherness can be created. Also, we aspire to contribute to the debate on how to understand the complexity related to social aspects of ageing and add to the emerging understanding of everyday activities as transactional, incorporating people and the environment in a dynamic process that goes beyond the individual.     

Inventory leanness and the financial performance of firms

This paper examines the financial consequences that inventory leanness has on firm performance. We conduct an econometric analysis using 4324 publicly traded US manufacturing companies for the period 1980–2008. Using an instrumental variable fixed effects estimator we find a nonlinear relationship between inventory leanness and financial performance. However, we note that the maximum point of this inverted U-shaped relationship often lies at the extreme end of the investigated sample – suggesting a decreasing return from leanness rather than an optimal level. We show that the strength of this relationship is highly dependent on both the industry and inventory component (raw materials, work in process and finished goods) studied. The main novelty and direct implication of our findings is that most firms still have much potential to increase profitability by becoming leaner and they are unlikely to cross a threshold where profitability decreases with increased leanness. We display how much the average firm could gain by becoming leaner and show how this sensitivity changes by inventory component and industry. Finally, we highlight several new econometric aspects that we believe must be addressed when empirically investigating the inventory-performance link.