Professional blinders? The novel as an eye-opener in organizational analysis

ABSTRACT

Scholarly textbooks often follow a logic where suitable empirical cases are selected to illustrate the theoretical and analytical points that we as scholars want to make. But what would happen if we would do the opposite: build a textbook on a novel written by a novelist for such purpose and let the theories explain the actions and emotions of fictional characters? In this article, we share and reflect upon our experiences of co-authoring a textbook in organization theory together with a professional novelist. We argue that the novel can function as an eye-opener in organizational analysis, forcing us to look beyond more static and rationalistic perspectives on organizations as well as the stereotypes of such. We build and relate our experiences to the growing literature about using fiction in scholarly work and discuss the potential of such genre-bending work when we bring in flesh and blood into the analyses.     

Life Experiences and Vulnerabilities of Homeless Women: A Comparison of Women Unaccompanied Versus Accompanied by Minor Children, and Correlates with Children's Emotional Distress

The histories and service needs of 2 groups of homeless women, those unaccompanied by minor children (n = 46) and those accompanied by minor children (n = 22), were compared, on the basis of their responses to a biennial survey of homeless people in a midsize city in the southeast United States. Mothers of children aged 2–10 also completed a measure of stress symptoms for their children (n = 20). Irrespective of family status group, problems such as substance abuse, history of mental illness, health problems, chronicity of homelessness, and crime victimization tended to cluster together. The findings also suggest that declining and/or inadequate levels of public benefits, Temporary Assistance to Needy Families, and Medicaid-funded health care in particular, have adversely affected the 2 groups, particularly families with children. The young children in this sample experienced elevated levels of stress, and significant associations were found between children's stress levels and certain risk factors of their mothers. Implications for service delivery are discussed.     

剑溪堂刻本《书经》考述

剑溪堂刻本《书经》为近年在徽州地区发现的一种《尚书》新版本。根据其书口、版式、字体、用纸、内封面以及避讳等情况综合判断,该书刊行于明神宗万历年间,与北图藏元明间宗文书堂刻本《书集传音释六卷》同出一个版本系统。它的出现对于认识《书经》乃至整个《尚书》的流变史有其重要意义。在蔡沈集传《书经》普遍流行六册、七册线装本的情况下,三册毛装本无疑还具有较强的版本认识价值。     

Statistical Distributions of Daily Breathing Rates for Narrow Age Groups of Infants and Children

Children may be more susceptible to toxicity from some environmental chemicals than adults. This susceptibility may occur during narrow age periods (windows), which can last from days to years depending on the toxicant. Breathing rates specific to narrow age periods are useful to assess inhalation dose during suspected windows of susceptibility. Because existing breathing rates used in risk assessment are typically for broad age ranges or are based on data not representative of the population, we derived daily breathing rates for narrow age ranges of children designed to be more representative of the current U.S. children's population. These rates were derived using the metabolic conversion method of Layton (1993) and energy intake data adjusted to represent the U.S. population from a relatively recent dietary survey (CSFII 1994–1996, 1998). We calculated conversion factors more specific to children than those previously used. Both nonnormalized (L/day) and normalized (L/kg-day) breathing rates were derived and found comparable to rates derived using energy estimates that are accurate for the individuals sampled but not representative of the population. Estimates of breathing rate variability within a population can be used with stochastic techniques to characterize the range of risk in the population from inhalation exposures. For each age and age-gender group, we present the mean, standard error of the mean, percentiles (50th, 90th, and 95th), geometric mean, standard deviation, 95th percentile, and best-fit parametric models of the breathing rate distributions. The standard errors characterize uncertainty in the parameter estimate, while the percentiles describe the combined interindividual and intra-individual variability of the sampled population. These breathing rates can be used for risk assessment of subchronic and chronic inhalation exposures of narrow age groups of children.     

从《朝天录》看朝鲜使节与域外文人的文化交流

李朝时期,朝鲜使臣频繁出使明朝,由于其另一身份为精通汉学的文人,因此与同样深受中国影响的域外文人进行了文学交流:李安讷同孔闻謤的诗歌酬唱,体现了中朝两国的文化认同;金尚宪与吴大斌的惺惺相惜,体现了文人间的友好情谊;李醉光与安南使者冯克宽、琉球使者蔡坚的文学往来,体现了朝鲜文学在安南等国的影响.朝鲜使臣在出使明朝的过程中,以文学为裁体,同域外文人进行了广泛的文化交流.     

中国古代城市文学研究的文学史意义

研究中国古代城市文学的文学史意义在于，从空间视角重新认识和研究古代文学，充分发掘和利用长期以来被忽略的城市文学资源。有助于建构起时空并置、更加完整和系统的中国古代文学史。此外，研究中国古代城市文学还可以为当代文学史研究提供一个广阔的历史视野与意蕴深厚的历史文本。     

“文学史上的失踪者”：穆木天——中国现代文学中的左翼文学论（三）

穆木天思想和创作在中国现代文学中是一个十分复杂的现象，其核心体现了与“边缘文化”相联系的左翼文学的精神特征，与30年代左翼文学的灵魂——鲁迅有着一致的精神趋向。以鲁迅为代表的左翼文学体现了中国现代文学的“先锋性”，在这个问题上，穆木天的文艺思想既有重要的价值，又存在着局限性，这种局限是与他的“日本体验”内在相关的。     

高校辅导员职业的专业划分问题研究

高校辅导员是否是一种职业，该不该划分专业，划分专业的标准是什么，具体由哪些专业构成，这些问题是高校辅导员专业化问题讨论中必须回答的问题。这些问题，有的理论界已有所探讨，但存在较大分歧，有的还未引起足够的重视。本文就此谈谈我们初浅的认识。     

Consumption Patterns of Chinese Children

In the ten-year period from 1990 to 1999, children's consumption has increased dramatically in proportion to family income. In 85% of urban families, children's average consumption is equal to one third or more of the family's income. Resources are being directed to children's food and dietary supplements, toys, travel, computers and other electronic equipment, and educational resources. Children perceive that they have a significant influence on the family's financial decision-making. Problems related to children's consumption include indulgence in unnecessary or harmful purchases, and conspicuous consumption that cannot be sustained by the family's income. While some child-focused spending is viewed as enriching development, other expenditures may harm the family's economic well-being and foster an overly materialistic outlook among children.     

Les transformations de l'intégration par l'emploi: Regards croisés : France métropolitaine - île de La Réunion

Against a background of mass unemployment and the increasing precariousness of employment, the current changes in the labour market demand that we examine the previously central role of paid employment in social integration. If the individual now deprived of employment or having a temporary contract is by dint of this fact less included in society or is less secure by not having a permanent salary, is it to say that he embodies the face of the de-affiliated, of those who miss out on social benefits? Taking the example of the Reunion Island which has the highest level of unemployment and population covered by the minimum income (RMI: Revenu Minimum d'Insertion) in the country, this article endeavours to explain and understand how, in the context of a protective society and increasingly flexible employment market, new methods of social integration without and resulting from paid employment are being formed.