Principles of Total Quality Management and Their Application to Employee Assistance Programs:

Total quality management (TQM) has been thrust into the psyche of corporate America. TQM is not a new phenomena. Introduced in the early fifties to Japanese managers by an American management expert, it served to make Japan an international economic leader. U.S. companies have generally had little international competition. They now recognize he formidable challenge that quality based companies represent and are striving to replicate these successes. To do so will be to remain competitive. To discount the impact of TQM initiatives could spell economic disaster. Employee assistance program (EAP) management is modeled after American management principles. EAPs are also now having to compete for market share in ways for which they were never prepared. The TQM initiatives currently being implemented in many companies may be applied equally well to EAPs. This article presents an overview of the TQM principles formulated by W. Edwards Derning. The article also attempts to critically analyze some of the areas that have been problematic in EAP management. Further, it examines how TQM initiatives could serve to ameliorate some of these problems and lend additional impetus to the competitiveness of employee assistance programs with other behavioral health care service delivery and cost management programs.     

中美地方高校人才培养目标与方案比较研究

人才培养目标的设计和人才培养方案的制定是提高人才培养质量的重要保证。文章通过对中美地方高校人才培养目标与方案的对比与分析,指出了我国地方性高校在人才培养目标设计和人才培养方案制定中存在的问题,并提出了相应的对策建议。     

试论罗斯福"新政"与黑人民权问题

罗斯福政府并没有给予黑人真正的"新政",也没有为促进黑人民权的发展采取重大举措。但是罗斯福政府在大萧条时期所采取的救济措施,以及联邦政府扩大对黑人知名人士的任命,使黑人看到了民主党统治下的联邦政府可以成为黑人争取民权的工具。罗斯福"新政"也因此改变了多数黑人在政治上的政党选择,对日后美国的政治生活和黑人争取民权的斗争产生了深远的影响。     

三维参数化曲线插值方法研究

中外合作办学是我国改革开放后在教育领域里出现的新生事物,是继我国公立学校和社会力量办学教育机构之后,出现的由中外双方共同参与管理的新的办学机构。经历了近10年的发展历程,中外合作办学正逐渐成为我国教育对外交流与合作的一种新形式,成为加快培养社会主义现代化建设事业急需的各类人才的新途径。本文用系统工程的观点,探讨中外合作办学的组织构造与管理方式以及办学的具体问题。     

Aspects of Statistical Computing: What Packages for the 1980's Ought to Do

A wish list of desirable statistical computing capabilities is presented. This may help one question which of these capabilities can be satisfied by existing packages, which might be met through reasonable extensions to these packages, which might require substantial new development, and which ought to be supplied by the computing environment rather than the packages. These questions are explored, taking into account the nature of the statistical work and the choices presented by technology. Attention is given to the barriers to be overcome if future statistical packages are to take full advantage of new technology.     

An international classification system for child welfare programs

A major challenge in child welfare is whether a program (or service) developed and successfully implemented in one jurisdiction, especially another country, will attain the same outcomes for children and families in another jurisdiction? This paper presents the “DCE Classification System” (Defining, Classifying, and Evaluating), a classification system that facilitates cross-jurisdiction comparisons of child and family services. The paper reviews the cross-national research literature in child and family services as well as literature on classification schemes and typologies. As an example of the issues that arise when importing a promising program, we briefly highlight the exporting and importing of family group conferencing. After tracing the history and development of the DCE Classification System, the paper describes the proposed classification scheme, and provides a brief example of how researchers and practitioners can use the classification system for cross-national comparisons of client outcomes and program costs. Finally, we discuss the strengths and weaknesses of this approach, as well as possible benefits for child and family practices.     

Reducing child poverty by promoting child well-being: Identifying best practices in a time of great need

Child poverty in the United States persists despite a range of social services designed to reduce poverty rates and improve the economic self-sufficiency of families. The economic downturns resulting in job losses and the housing crisis have converged to create a new group of families who were managing to remain out of poverty prior to the recession but are now slipping into poverty, putting additional strain on services. In light of these pressing issues, this article synthesizes the literature examining child poverty to take a long-range view of the relationship between economic strain, system involvement, and impacts on children and the systems attempting to serve these children. The effectiveness of various policy and program efforts aimed at reducing child poverty rates and/or ameliorating the negative effects of living in poverty is reviewed. The article concludes by suggesting a major shift in focus from reducing child poverty as a singular goal to a comprehensive approach to promoting child and family well-being.     

关系营销范式下营销努力对客户行为的影响研究

关系营销范式日益得到理论界和实业界的认可,但却很少有研究着眼于不同关系营销努力能否对衡量关系营销绩效的不同客户行为产生一致的影响作用.本文重点研究了客户关系感知与关系营销手段--回报计划对客户重复购买行为与客户份额增加所产生的不同影响.结果显示,不同的关系营销努力对客户重复购买行为与客户份额增加所产生的影响是不一致的,情感承诺与回报计划有助于促进客户的重复购买,而客户满意感与价格公平感更容易影响客户份额的增加.     

Supporting collegiate foster youth and alumni: A mixed-method planning approach for higher education

Despite the proliferation, of on-campus academic support programs for foster youth and alumni (e.g., those formerly in foster care), few conceptual frameworks for developing these programs exist. This study employed Group Concept Mapping (GCM) methodology to delineate a conceptual framework, from the perspective of foster youth and alumni (N = 51), for the development of on-campus support initiatives. GCM is an integrated mixed-method research method that uses non-metric multidimensional scaling and hierarchical cluster analyses, to analyze qualitative data (e.g., statement form) collected during brainstorming sessions. This research was guided by two separate queries: (1) How do foster youth/alumni conceptualize support programs to support foster youth/alumni through to degree completion; and, (2) Is there a difference in priority areas of this conceptualization between current college students, and those who have dropped out of college within the last 18 months? Analyses revealed that participants conceptualized on-campus support programs via an eight-cluster solution, including Campus Awareness, Advocacy, Data Tracking, Pre-College Supports, Fostering Family Connections, Academic Financing, Campus Life, and Peer/Mentor Supports clusters. Additionally, analyses revealed significant priority ratings between areas of this conceptualization. In terms of Importance to academic success, current students rated statements in the Academic Financing and Peer/Mentor Supports clusters significantly lower than did non-students. For Feasibility, current students viewed statements in the Data Tracking, Campus Life, and Peer/Mentor Supports clusters as significantly more feasible than non-students. Pragmatic implications derived from these findings include fostering inclusive campus environments for foster youth/alumni and advocacy undertakings by institutions, on behalf of this population.     

Predicting program success for adult offenders with serious mental illness in a court ordered diversion program

ABSTRACT

Individuals with mental illnesses are disproportionately involved with the criminal justice system and are now being diverted from jails to community-based supervision. This study examines secondary data from a state hospital, mental health diversion program. Logistic regression was used to examine risk factors that best predicted successful program completion. Results indicate that non-whites are more likely to complete. Participants in supervised housing, ever been re-hospitalized, diagnosed with a depressive or psychotic disorder or who had their probation revoked were less likely to complete. Findings indicate practitioners should provide a holistic and individually oriented treatment approach for success.