Ipek Kocoglu, Gary Lynn, Yunho Jung, Peter G. Dominick, Zvi Aronson and Pamela Burke
The purpose of this paper is to expand our understanding on team listening by incorporating an action component. The authors empirically test the effect of this expanded concept…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to expand our understanding on team listening by incorporating an action component. The authors empirically test the effect of this expanded concept, namely team action listening on team success, and investigate how team commitment moderates the relationship between team trust and team action listening.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors explored listening in teams in the field and in the lab, both qualitatively and quantitatively, through studying 474 team members representing 100 teams. The authors tested the hypotheses by structural equation modeling augmented with in-depth team interviews.
Findings
The findings showed that: teams demonstrate that they listen by taking action, teams that exhibit action listening are more successful, there is a direct relationship between team trust and team action listening and team commitment negatively moderates this relation in larger teams.
Practical implications
Managers should encourage taking action in team discussions. Yet, they should be wary of the detrimental effects of team commitment to team action listening particularly in teams with high trust. Commitment increases the risk of groupthink and decreases the participation to team discussions and listening. In particular, managers may benefit from keeping the team smaller, as in large teams, commitment suppresses the relationship between trust and team action listening.
Originality/value
This study extends research on team listening by adding the action aspect that distinguishes successful teams. It is one of the first to investigate the interrelationships between team trust, commitment, team action listening and success in teams.
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Website design guidelines which have proven effective throughout the commercial sector could be adapted for library homepage design. Acceptance of industry standards for homepage…
Abstract
Purpose
Website design guidelines which have proven effective throughout the commercial sector could be adapted for library homepage design. Acceptance of industry standards for homepage usability, specifically Nielsen and Tahir's criteria, would give library users recognizable features and increase their confidence and comfort levels when using library websites. The paper aims to present a comparison of library homepages with these criteria to provide an assessment of how libraries fare in comparison with the commercial sector.
Design/methodology/approach
Little research has been undertaken to evaluate the appeal and efficacy of homepages of libraries associated with medium‐sized universities, which have different audiences than do larger universities. The dataset of 80 academic libraries associated with medium‐sized universities (8,000‐13,000 students) was compiled with data from the National Center for Education Statistics and Peterson's College Bound. Data on 14 variables derived from Nielsen and Tahir were examined on these 80 library homepages. Variables are grouped into four categories: search, navigation, design, and general features.
Findings
Based on Nielsen and Tahir's criteria, library homepages fared well in comparison to business homepages. Statistical analysis of the findings revealed that library homepage designs were significantly different from businesses for only four variables: the ability to search the website, the use of a search box or a link, the use of animation, and a change of link colors to indicate viewed links. A greater amount of business homepages used a search box as opposed to a search link. Fewer libraries facilitated navigation by creating links that changed color after use. Library homepages generally had fast download times, and avoided animations and automatic music.
Research limitations
A comprehensive review of all of Nielsen and Tahir's design characteristics for homepage usability cannot be fully considered in a study of this size.
Originality/value
Information‐seeking behaviors of college students and internet users within this age range suggest that design conventions established on the web and tested by usability experts may provide a framework for effective library homepage design.
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Ronald J. Burke and Teal McAteer
This chapter addresses a number of issues related to work hours and work addiction. The dependent variables associated with working long hours include health-related illnesses…
Abstract
This chapter addresses a number of issues related to work hours and work addiction. The dependent variables associated with working long hours include health-related illnesses, injuries, sleep patterns, fatigue, heart rate and hormone level changes, as well as several work/non-work life balance issues. Motives for working long hours such as joy in the work, avoiding job insecurity or negative sanctions from a superior, employer demands, are addressed in detail, and a multitude of moderators shown to have affected the work hours and well-being relationship, are reviewed. These include reasons for working long hours, work schedule autonomy, monetary gain, choice in working for long hours. The chapter suggests a need for more research to better understand workaholism and work addiction, as well as provides a number of implications and organizational and societal suggestions for addressing work-hour concerns.
Ramudu Bhanugopan, Ying Wang, Pamela Lockhart and Mark Farrell
The purpose of this paper is to examine the perception of skills shortages, namely, skills scarcity and skills deficiencies among managers, and its relationship with…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the perception of skills shortages, namely, skills scarcity and skills deficiencies among managers, and its relationship with organizational characteristics.
Design/methodology/approach
The study used a quantitative approach and data were collected from 243 managers working in China. Multivariate analysis of variance and box plots were employed for data analysis.
Findings
The results revealed that organizational characteristics were found to have a significant positive impact on managers’ skill levels, and hard-to-fill vacancies caused by skills shortages were found in all types of organizations. Existing and deficient skills were also identified as affecting all organizations.
Practical implications
The results suggest that organizations would benefit from the adoption of a system supporting internal retention, training and development and external recruitment to close the skills gaps.
Originality/value
This is an empirical study that provides an insight into the skills shortages from a multi-organizational context. It highlights the effects of organizational characteristics in relation to skills shortages and provides a foundation to support the skills needed in the context of national and global organizations.
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Matthew O. Hunt, Pamela Braboy Jackson, Samuel H. Kye, Brian Powell and Lala Carr Steelman
The chapter revisits and updates an earlier analysis to assess the extent to which sociological social psychology’s treatment of race has changed since 2000, and evaluates the…
Abstract
Purpose
The chapter revisits and updates an earlier analysis to assess the extent to which sociological social psychology’s treatment of race has changed since 2000, and evaluates the degree to which issues of intersectionality and sexuality are engaged in social psychological scholarship.
Design/methodology/approach
The chapter provides a content analysis of articles published between 2000 and 2012 in Social Psychology Quarterly, a leading journal in sociological social psychology, and of chapters published in two influential handbooks in social psychology.
Findings
It documents a notable increase in the percentage of articles in Social Psychology Quarterly in which race/ethnicity is referred to, included in the analysis, or seriously engaged. Patterns vary by methodological approach used in these articles. Social psychological attention to intersectionality and sexuality, as measured by the percentage of articles that broach these topics, is minimal.
Research limitations/implications
This chapter restricts its analysis to the leading journal in sociological social psychology, but still demonstrates that there is potential for greater movement toward the incorporation of race/ethnicity, intersectionality, and sexuality in social psychological scholarship.
Originality/value
It calls attention to core topics in sociology that would benefit from greater scholarly engagement by social psychologists.
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In this article, we situate organizational cynicism at the nexus of the related constructs of burnout, stress, and antisocial behavior. We expand Dean, Brandes, and Dharwadkar's…
Abstract
In this article, we situate organizational cynicism at the nexus of the related constructs of burnout, stress, and antisocial behavior. We expand Dean, Brandes, and Dharwadkar's (1998) notion of behavioral cynicism to include cynical humor and cynical criticism. We also propose that cynical behavior has important, non-linear effects on employee work performance. Finally, we suggest that cynical behavior may act as a coping mechanism for employees and that such behavior moderates the stress–performance relationship.
Pamela Johnson, Bridget Houston and Wendy Kraglund-Gauthier
Freire (2000) suggested that all teaching is political; social justice teaching is arguably deeply rooted in encouraging a transformative practice that reduces social inequities…
Abstract
Freire (2000) suggested that all teaching is political; social justice teaching is arguably deeply rooted in encouraging a transformative practice that reduces social inequities. The intersectional identities and realities experienced by classroom participants shape their knowledge of and perspectives on studies based in social justice and, therefore, educators should strive to create lessons that are not in conflict with the knowledge and perspectives of their students (Epstein, 2009). The authors explored how the Coady International Institute teaching staff – who were primarily engaged in leadership training with development practitioners from around the world – included the realities experienced by persons living with disabilities in the global South in their curriculum and classroom discussions. Their research focused on the teaching staff’s existing knowledge of disabled persons’ movements and lived realities in the global South and how their course content addressed those realities. A critical component of this work included content development and direction from persons living with disabilities who have experience in global development studies and in pedagogical design in adult learning contexts. This content, cocreated and/or compiled by individuals with lived experience, will be shared both internally and externally to Coady graduates working in organizations around the world.
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Pamela Lirio, Terri R. Lituchy, Silvia Ines Monserrat, Miguel R. Olivas‐Lujan, Jo Ann Duffy, Suzy Fox, Ann Gregory, B.J. Punnett and Neusa Santos
The purpose of this paper is to examine career‐life issues of successful women in the Americas.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine career‐life issues of successful women in the Americas.
Design/methodology/approach
A total of 30 interviews were conducted with successful women in Canada, Argentina and Mexico. Themes were pulled from the interview transcripts for each country, analyzed and then compared across countries, looking at universalities and differences of experiences.
Findings
The women in all three countries conveyed more subjective measures of career success, such as contributing to society and learning in their work, with Canada and Mexico particularly emphasizing receiving recognition as a hallmark of career success.
Practical implications
This research provides insight into the experiences of successful women in the Americas, which can inform the career development of women in business.
Originality/value
This research contributes to the literature on women's careers, highlighting successful women's experiences across cultures and in an under‐researched area: Latin America.