bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Using Behavioral Science Strategies for Defining the State-of-the-Art
Authors: Glaser Edward M.
Published: March 2006

The author describes an innovative, iterative review paradigm for synthesizing the knowledge base of a given subject, leading to a state-of-the-art consensus document regarding "best practice" in that field, namely, chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPD). The method consisted of bringing together a project team of eminent physicians concerned with treatment and comprehensive care of COPD patients. The project director (a psychologist) served as process facilitator and project administrator. The state-of-the-art document went through five drafts that were carefully examined by the team members before the paper was deemed "fit" for review by peers. After eight more iterative critiques by 60 respected outside reviewers, the thirteenth draft was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (1975). Over 8,500 reprint requests have been received; the paper has been endorsed by all of the medical groups in the U.S. that have a major concern with pulmonary disease; the article (and subsequent monograph) are being used for continuing medical education; and a 45-minute documentary of the treatment-in-action has been filmed by Warner-Chilcott Laboratories.
Diagnosing Race Relations in Management
Authors: Alderfer Clayton P. , Alderfer Charleen J. , Tucker Leota , Tucker Robert
Published: March 2006

This paper reports the theory, process, results, and consequences of diagnosing the race relations among managers of a large industrial corporation. A four person diagnostic team consisting of a black female, black male, white female, and white male, aided by a 12-person advisory committee of similar race/sex composition, developed an organic questionnaire and administered it to more than 600 managers. Data were collected and analyzed on general race relations, management groups, hiring, advancement, firing, actions for change, and reactions to the study. Analysis showed that the state of race relations in the company was related to a variety of systemic conditions including the ideas and feelings of individuals, the perceptions and actions of key groups, and the structure of the whole organization. As a result of the diagnosis, management committed itself to an action plan that addressed all the problematic issues uncovered by the diagnosis.
The Making of a Black Slum-Ghetto: A Case Study of Neighborhood Transition
Authors: Snow David A. , Leahy Peter J.
Published: March 2006

This paper attempts to advance understanding of neighborhood transition by describing and analyzing the transformation of Cleveland's Hough district from a white, middle-class neighborhood into a black slum-ghetto. The findings indicate that of the various factors precipitating the change, none was more important than several urban renewal programs and the profiteering activities of a number of realty companies and investors. These and other findings are discussed and analyzed in terms of their correspondence with the human ecological and power-conflict approaches to neighborhood and community transition. The analysis finds considerable support for the power-conflict approach and raises several questions regarding the assumptions and methodology of human ecology. Several policy implications of the findings and of applying the power-conflict approach are discussed.
Increasing Productivity and Morale in a Municipality: Effects of Organization Development
Authors: Paul Christian F. , Gross Albert C.
Published: March 2006

A year-long organization development project in the Communications and Electrical Division of the City of San Diego was completed and assessed. The goals of the project were to increase productivity and to improve morale, without allowing either goal to interfere with achievement of the other. The treatment group received an intervention that consisted of personal interviews of all employees, team-building workshops, counseling, process consultancy, and training in management skills. Measures of productivity (number of tasks performed, efficiency in both time and money) and job satisfaction (three surveys: absenteeism, turnover, grievances filed) as well as customer satisfaction (mail and telephone surveys) were taken both before and during the intervention period. Data from suitable comparison groups were collected for several of the dependent measures. The results lent strong support to the notion that both productivity and morale can be increased by means of organization development techniques.
Changes in the Legal Status of Mental Patients and Hospital Management
Authors: Decker Frederic H.
Published: March 2006

The recent legal, ethical, and therapeutic concerns over the appropriateness of involuntary psychiatric hospitalization have led many states to modify their civil commitment procedures. One change has been to limit involuntary commitment to a specified interval. If the hospital wishes to continue an involuntary hospitalization beyond this authorized period, a judicial hearing is required during which the hospital must justify extension. Since this requirement for a periodic judicial hearing impinges on the autonomy of hospital management, the hospital has an interest in circumventing it. This report investigates the possibility that the hospital staff circumvents hearing requirements by transferring patients from involuntary to voluntary hospitalization. Data regarding patient status changes under the limited commitment model in Florida have been collected and are presented. The data support the argument that a major function of changes to voluntary status is the circumvention of hearing requirements. The data also suggest that this circumvention subverts the therapeutic reason for permitting status changes.
Managing Organizational Change: An Integrative Perspective
Authors: Nadler David A.
Published: March 2006

An integrative approach to managing organizational change is presented. This approach is based on a congruence model of organizational behavior which views the organization as an interdependent set of elements including tasks, individuals, formal organizational arrangements, and the informal organization. Within the context of the organization, change is seen as presenting three major problems: resistance, control, and power. These imply a need to motivate people to change, a need to manage the transition, and a need to shape the political dynamics of change. Specific action steps related to each of these three needs are discussed. A brief illustrative case is described.
The Marketing of Organization Development: Past, Present, and Future
Authors: Krell Terence C.
Published: March 2006

Organization Development is more than an academicor a professional discipline; it is also an industry. This paper applies two marketing models, the Product Life Cycle and the Marketing Concept, to the field of OD to predict the next stage of development. Two approaches to the field are identified, "Traditional OD" and "Mainline OD," each with a different scenario for the future.
Clinical Applications of Sociology in Health Care
Authors: Glassner Barry
Published: March 2006

Prospects and problems for clinical applications of sociology in health care are proposed. The author suggests areas in which sociological insights and techniques are notably and uniquely beneficial for clinical practice. Special emphases are upon the symbolic dimensions of illness, locating illness processes in social structures, and viewing persons as members of groups. The paper concludes with a critical appraisal of clinical sociology at its current level of development. The basic goal is to indicate an agenda for sociologists working in health care.
Processes and Payoffs of Programmatic Acon Research
Authors: Stebbins Michael W. , Snow Charles C.
Published: March 2006

This article discusses the processes and payoffs of large-system or programmatic action research. Experiences gained from a long-term, action-research program in a large health-maintenance organization indicate that current OD theory and practice do not address satisfactorily major issues associated with large-system development. Viewed in retrospect, the change program offers several implications for future programmatic action-research efforts-OD programs that are complex, evolutionary, system-wide, and firmly grounded in behavioral science theories and concepts.
Maintaining Organizational Effectiveness During Organizational Retrenchment
Authors: Greenhalgh Leonard
Published: March 2006

Organizational changes usually imply work force changes. The method used to make personnel changes can reduce organizational effectiveness, particularly in terms of productivity and turnover. This paper describes and assesses an action research program to alter an organization's procedures for achieving work force changes in response to a declining environmental niche. Evaluation research was conducted to assess the consequences of existing procedures, and the resulting data were reported in dollar terms to demonstrate more effectively their negative impact on the organization. A demonstration program, subsequently evaluated as successful, provided the model for change. The paper examines the difficulty of establishing the revised procedures, the unintended side effects, the generalizability of the experience, and the social values underlying the approach.
Effects of an Instructional Change Program on Teachers' Behavior, Attitudes, and Perceptions
Authors: Sharan Shlomo , Hertz-Lazarowitz Rachel
Published: March 2006

A field experiment was conducted to change current instructional methods in the classroom to cooperative, small-group teaching (SGT) instead of the whole-class, presentation-recitation method. Fifty teachers, constituting the majority of the staff in three elementary schools serving a lower class neighborhood in the larger Tel-Aviv, Israel area participated in this experiment which lasted more than 18 months. Findings revealed that: Implementation of SGT occurred during the second year of the project following eight months of workshops and the adoption of teacher self-help teams for monitoring classroom instructional performance. The experimental group registered a significant positive change on an attitude questionnaire indicating a more progressive and less controlling approach to teaching and to education in general. Implementers of small-group learning were found to be less conservative and more willing to take risks, more spontaneous and imaginative, more open to feelings, and more socially oriented than were teachers who did not implement the new methods in their classrooms. In intensive interviews conducted with all teachers, implementers of SGT expressed greater openness to educational innovations and a greater sense of being able to cope with problems in the classroom than teachers who did not implement the small-group approach.
Social Exchange in Research: Toward a "New Deal"
Authors: Leitko Thomas A. , Peterson Steven A.
Published: March 2006

This paper calls for the enfranchisement of respondents into research decision making. Respondent participation is one way to overcome respondent posturing to control information. Respondent posturing is produced when researchers create an unbalanced exchange where respondents have no motivation to participate, or when, through their use of rewards, researchers change the rules of the game. Typical researcher-respondent relations are explored in relation to respondent posturing, and the problems and prospects of using respondent participation to create a more open and productive research relationship are examined. We conclude by pointing to respondent relations as an area in which social researchers need to be trained.
American Jury Voir Dire and the Ideal of Equal justice
Authors: Mahoney Anne Rankin
Published: March 2006

Two approaches to the minimizing of jury bias have gained attention in recent years. One attempt is to increase the representativeness of juries by developing jury lists that better reflect a cross-section of the community. The second leads to more extensive voir dire examination and the use of what has been called "scientific jury selection." This article focuses upon the second approach—extensive voir dire—and argues that gains in representativeness from expanded jury pools may be lost because citizens are needlessly dismissed from juries during voir dire. This is of particular concern since the small amount of empirical evidence available on the effectiveness of voir dire suggests that it may not be very useful in identifying biased jurors. The article reviews the literature on voir dire, discusses the effects of dismissal on attitudes of jurors, and suggests some topics for research.
Administrative Practice in Human Services: Future Directions for Curriculum Development
Authors: Austin David M.
Published: March 2006

Administrative practice in human services programs has distinctive characteristics that distinguish itfrom business administration and public administration. A specialized curriculum that includes both common elements of administrative practice and elements specific to human services administration is needed. Such a curriculum must include examination of the political economy of human service programs. This paper identifies some of the key aspects of the macro political economy, the operationalpolitical economy, and the interorganizational political economy that should be dealt with in a human services administration curriculum.
Prison Overcrowding and Disciplinary Problems: An Analysis of the Texas Prison System
Authors: Ekland-Olson Sheldon , Barrick Dennis M. , Cohen Lawrence E.
Published: March 2006

Data on prison overcrowding and disciplinary rates are examined. Trends for the total system, as well as individual institutions within the Texas Department of Corrections are presented. This is followed by analysis of data from individual inmates. Both assault and total disciplinary rates are found to be a function of the age of the inmate population rather than overcrowding. This is consistent with findings from the Federal Bureau of Prisons as well as data from English prisons (Nacci, Teitelbaum & Prather, 1977; Farrington & Nuttall, 1980). Although prison overcrowding may be an important factor in the overall quality of prison life, it is inappropriate to conclude that it has much influence on either the total disciplinary or the assault rates in prisons.
Structural Clarity of Interdisciplinary Teams: A Research Note
Authors: Fennell Mary L. , Sandefur Gary D.
Published: March 2006

Previous studies of scientists in formal organizations have stressed the conflict between the scientist's professional needfor autonomy and the organization's needfor an efficient-often bureaucratic-formal structure. In this paper the importance of a clearly articulated formal structure (that need not be bureaucratic) in interdisciplinary research teams is discussed as a necessary condition for the development of adequate communication among team members. The authors argue that without a basic formal structure that is clear to all members, effective interaction and communication will not take place. Findings from a study of one interdisciplinary team are presented as illustrative of the ideas linking clarity offormal team structure, status problems, and interaction and communication within the team.
A Change Strategy for Linking the Worlds of Academia and Practice
Authors: Johnson Knowlton W. , Frazier William D. , Riddick Major F.
Published: March 2006

This article presents a case study of a change strategy to link academia to the world of practice. The case involved a state university and a county government and its network of criminal justice agencies. The strategy centered on developing, implementing, and evaluating an innovative linkage model; adopting and stabilizing the model in the host environment; and disseminating and diffusing knowlege about the model to other jurisdictions. The authors describe the sequence of events, which spanned six years, and highlight the use of change tactics from the following four theoretical perspectives: research development and diffusion; problem solving; social interaction; and power coercion.

An analysis of the change process revealed that behavioral scientists can plan and engineer change, but that the outcomes of events are occasionally governed solely by chance. The authors suggest that social engineering and political finesse complement each other and that change agents can employ them in concert to stimulate meaningful change. The study systematically integrates rational planning and politics in linking academia and local government.
Spiderman and the Burma Raiders: Collateral Organization Theory in Action
Authors: Rubinstein David , Woodman Richard W.
Published: March 2006

A collateral organization is designed to co-exist parallel with the formal organization on a relatively permanent basis. Proponents contend that collateral organizations prove especially valuable in supplementing the formal organization because they provide (1) a means for identifying, analyzing, and mastering ill-structured problems and (2) an arena for participation. Advocates concede, however, that the parallel arrangement offormal and collateral organizations creates a complexity that may confuse participants and cause role problems.

To the contrary, this article argues that the proclaimed "advantages" of collateral organizations are problematic while their "problems" actually provide the paramount advantage. Despite claims by proponents, a collateral organization is (1) not inherently a proficient medium for solving-or even seeing-ill-structured problems, and (2) is no less prone to abuse of participation than other participatory forms. Yet collateral organizations offer the invaluable advantage of complex role sets-i.e., interaction opportunities with a large number of very different people. Complex role sets may enhance mastery of the environment for both individuals and organizations.
Client Control in Organizational Settings
Authors: Tripi Frank J.
Published: March 2006

This article, based on a study of a county welfare department, presents evidence that the "normal" process of waiting for service at a welfare agency leads to conflicts between clients and public officials. Organized clients usually generate conflicts because they are unwilling to accept long waiting periods as normal. Their resistance to bureaucratic norms modifies the traditional dominant-subordinate relationship between officials and clients.
Attitudes Toward Genetic Engineering: The Dilemma of the Genetically Abnormal Child
Authors: Young Gay , Robinson Cherylon
Published: March 2006

Ethicists and scientists have grappled with issues of genetic engineering for years, yet the position of the lay public on this topic remains largely unexplored. This study examines the attitudes of potential consumers — i.e., women of childbearing age — toward seven medical procedures for genetic engineering. We define genetic engineering as the use of medical procedures to terminate the life or prevent the birth of a genetically abnormal child. This article considers the following procedures: passive euthanasia, amniocentesis, abortion, genetic screening, sterilization, artificial insemination with donor sperm, and in vitro fertilization with a donor egg.

The only two procedures that a majority of the women surveyed find acceptable are genetic screening and amniocentesis. Many women, however, apparently do not know enough about genetic engineering procedures to make informed decisions about their use. By far the most important predictor of attitudes toward genetic engineering procedures is frequency of participation in religious observances; the more frequent the participation, the more negative the attitudes. This suggests that decisions about genetic engineering are now and will continue to be based on both ideology and information. Thus, any campaign designed to raise the level of public understanding about genetic science and technology should confront the moral issues inherent in this field and in its application to human beings.
Empirical Identification of the Criteria for Effective Affirmative Action Programs
Authors: Hitt Michael A. , Keats Barbara W.
Published: March 2006

Legislation prohibits discrimination in most social activities. Organizations have implemented affirmative action programs to comply with the law and to attempt to reduce discrimination. Research indicates, however, that discrimination still exists. Research must therefore identify the key factors that make affirmative action programs truly effective. The authors designed this study to capture the policies of personnel and affirmative action officers in institutions of higher learning regarding criteria for effective affirmative action programs. The research identified 13 potential criteria. The results suggest that attitudinal and procedural factors — e.g., commitment from higher administration, receptive attitudes of key personnel, formal and informal grievance procedures — were the most important criteria for program effectiveness. The institution type — i.e., public versus private — and size — number of students — have no moderating effects.
Path Analysis Using LISREL: Comparing Income Attainment of White and Black Men
Authors: Hennessy Michael
Published: March 2006

The use of standardized regression coefficients makes the comparison of causal models difficult to perform. Using Duncan's (1969) path model for white and black men, this article shows how one can use LISREL to analyze such models with unstandardized coefficients and compare them in terms of overall goodness offit, tests of differential specifications across groups, and assumptions of equality or inequality of corresponding regression coefficients. This article therefore demonstrates that researchers can use LISREL constructively, even if they do not wish to use all of LISREL's many statistical features.
Don't Be Misled by LEAD
Authors: Lueder Donald C.
Published: March 2006

Recently, many researchers have used Paul Hersey and Kenneth Blanchard's Leader Effectiveness and Description instrument of self-perception (LEAD-Self) to measure leadership styles. This may be unfortunate because this instrument appears to have certain confounding variables associated with it, variables that can affect the data and thus lead to questionable results. The author hypothesizes that the vast majority of LEAD-Self instrument respondents consistently score in the high task/high relationship leadership style category, and he suspects that this clustering of scores results from self-deception by the respondents. In a study of doctoral students in educational administration training groups in the Northeast and Midwest, a significantly high number of responses -69% -fell into the high task/high relationship category. These respondents apparently "knew" how they should or wanted to score, and they responded accordingly. The results of this study indicate that the LEAD Self instrument is an inappropriate tool for measuring leadership style.
Disability Labeling vs. Rehabilitation Rhetoric for the Chronically Ill: A Case Study in Policy Contradictions
Authors: Kutner Nancy G. , Brogan Donna R.
Published: March 2006

Among persons with chronic renal disease, limited encouragement to use self-care treatment options and easy access to disability income benefits tend to reinforce the concept of disability rather than foster rehabilitation goals. More than 80% of all chronic renal disease patients on dialysis therapy receive treatment in facilities at which they become highly dependent on medical staff, and estimates of unemployment among persons aged 21-59 years suffering from this disease range from 60% to 75%. The authors' data indicate that patients who receive dialysis treatment within facilities experience negative effects on their perceived health status and health locus of control as compared to patients who practice self-care dialysis at home. Although many factors contribute to unemployment among dialysis patients, the availability of disability income benefits seems to act as the most important deterrent to employment. Increasing the emphasis on the rehabilitation of this chronically ill population will require a movement away from disability labeling by providers of care and the patients themselves, as well as adjustments in the dialysis reimbursement system and in the eligibility requirements for disability compensation.
The Viability of Public Hearings in Transportation Planning
Authors: Kihl Mary R.
Published: March 2006

Despite the development of numerous new techniques of citizen participation, and continued criticism of public hearings, hearings are still the predominant vehicle for citizen involvement in transportation planning. To review the effectiveness of hearings more objectively, the study discussed in this article employed content analysis to examine the transcripts of more than 30 hearings conducted in Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa, and Missouri during the design stage of proposed highway improvements. The resulting analysis assessed the level of citizen frustration evident at the meetings and provided support for a more positive view of public hearings or at least those conducted in the target area. The hearings reviewed invited participation by citizens with a wide range of interests and concerns, and they helped to further understanding of if not agreement on specific highway projects.
Observations from a Long-Term, Survey-Guided Consultation with a Mining Company
Authors: Gavin James F.
Published: March 2006

During a nine-year period, consultants conducted four attitude surveys with increasing levels of employee involvement in making feedback-guided behavioral science interventions with a large underground mining company. This consultation pattern emerged not from a conscious plan by the organization or its consultants but from a step-wise progression based on the successes and failures of previous interventions. The consultants derived models for the consultation process and survey-guided development from an adaptation of action research to OD interventions and from Argyris's perspectives on intervention, including his more recent analysis of "theories in action." This article describes the activities and progress that occurred during the period of the consultation, and the author discusses the changing organizational processes and the plausibility of linking them to organizational effectiveness and health criteria.
An Empirical Exploration of a Framework of Organizational Viability: Maintaining Block Organizations
Authors: Prestby John E. , Wandersman Abraham
Published: March 2006

Block and neighborhood organizations can play an essential role in the preservation and revitalization of urban communities, but they are vulnerable to rapid decline or failure. In examining active and inactive block organizations, this article presents an open-systems framework of variables related to the maintenance of such groups. The framework, which consists offive general systems-level variables-each made up of lower-level variables open to empirical evaluation-was applied to a longitudinal study of 17 block organizations. To gather data, researchers distributed questionnaires and held comprehensive interviews with organization leaders. The results indicate that one can successfully use the framework to differentiate between active, functioning block organizations and inactive ones. Specifically, the data indicate that the active block organizations acquired more extensive resources, used more effective maintenance and production subsystems, and were more successful in attaining external goals than were the inactive groups. The authors discuss the conceptual and empirical aspects of this study and make recommendations for future research.
The Decision To Participate in Quality Circles
Authors: Dean James W.
Published: March 2006

This article discusses a study of the reasons behind workers' decisions as to whether or not to join quality circles. For this study, a sample consisting of blue-collar employees of an electronics division in a diversified manufacturing firm participated in interviews and completed questionnaires. Items used with the interviews and questionnaires included both openended and closed-choice questions. From the data, the author has found that the desire for greater involvement in the organization and a belief that quality circles will be instrumental in solving problems of quality, productivity, and working conditions relate significantly to one's decision to join a circle. This leads to the conclusion that the goals of employees who become members of quality circles are closer to the those of management than is generally thought.
The Future of Public-Private Sector Partnerships for the Provision of Human Services: Problems and Possibilities
Authors: Poole Dennis L.
Published: March 2006

This article examines the responses of states, localities, and the private sector to recent attempts by the federal government to realign domestic responsibilities for the provision of human services. In exploring this issue, the author conducted a study of agencies assisting the developmentally disabled in Greater Richmond, Virginia. The authorfinds that the nation is experiencing afundamental paradigm shift-a reconceptualization of structure, goals, and responsibilities-with respect to social welfare, with new public-private sector partnerships emerging to meet human needs.
Alternative Professional Roles in Health Care Delivery: Leadership Patterns in Self-Help Groups
Authors: Yoak Margaret , Chesler Mark
Published: March 2006

The increasing professionalization of health care delivery systems, improved client awareness, funding cutbacks, and an emphasis on voluntarism have led recipients of health services to turn increasingly to self-help groups. This article examines the leadership and organizational pattern of such groups, using a study of 43 self-help groups from around the U.S. whose members are parents of children with cancer. Three leadership patterns emerged: groups were independent and parent-led, were led by professionals, or had a shared leadership of parents and professionals. Data indicate that the professionally led groups were the smallest, leastformal, and had the narrowest range of activities. The groups with shared leadership had the greatest longevity, tended most often to retain as members parents of deceased children. The authors conclude that such coalitions of clients and professionals are vital for ensuring proper service delivery at a time when health care systems will likely remain bureaucratic and public resources for professional care are being reduced.
Single-Point Entry: An Organizational Form in the Delivery of Services to the Aged
Authors: Leon Joel , Braisted Dawn
Published: March 2006

Demographic shifts, the further commercialization of the health and human services industry, and various economic trends point to a restructuring of the systems delivering services to the aged. Emerging are approaches that offer a broad range of services under the auspices of separate organizational entities. Called continuums of care, such organizational forms use single points of entry as mechanisms to control access to the array of available services. Using the life care community as the prime example, this article examines the operations of single-point entry organizations. The authors also explore the implications of such structures for the health and human services industry, noting their potential for stratifying the aged along the dimensions of health and income.
Neighborhood Planning Organizations: Perspectives and Choices
Authors: Checkoway Barry
Published: March 2006

Reductions in government expenditures for human services have worsened conditions in lowincome urban neighborhoods at a time when needs are increasing. Despite these conditions, some neighborhood planning organizations have increased in scope and capacity. This article discusses the development, activities, and accomplishments of such organizations and raises questions and choices for practice. The author concludes that, despite accomplishments of neighborhoodplanning organizations, they alone cannot be expected to save urban areasfrom decline, for this requires national policy and intervention in the larger context in which planning operates.
Team Building by Disclosure of Internal Frames of Reference
Authors: Mitchell Rex
Published: March 2006

This article discusses a new team building intervention based on the theory that disclosure of internal frames of reference improves group members' working relationships with one another. The author designed this intervention using alignment theory and conducted a study of its effects. The sample consisted of 17 intact work teams of 4-S persons each, 13 of which comprised MBA students and 4 of which comprised management teams in business. Each team was randomly assigned to one of three experimental conditions: the alignment theory-based intervention, a conventional team-building intervention, and a control condition (no intervention). Using the Barrett-Lennard Relationship Inventory, the author conducted measurements before, immediately after, and two months after interventions were conducted. The research results showed that teams participating in the new intervention experienced substantial improvements immediately following the intervention andfurther improvements two months later, and in every case the effect was significantly greater for these teams than for the control-condition teams and was greater (though not statistically significant) than for the teams participating in the conventional team-building intervention.
The Use of Ordinal Time-Series Analysis In Assessing Policy Inputs and Impacts
Authors: Dinitto Diana M. , Mcdaniel Reuben R. , Ruefli Timothy W. , Thomas James B.
Published: March 2006

In recent years, analysts have relied more heavily on time-series methodologies to evaluate the effects of public policies. This article describes ordinal time-series analysis (OTSA), a technique originally developed to analyze the behavior of business firms. OTSA is a descriptive tool. Its advantages are that it uses ordinal data and eliminates the need for selecting appropriate discount factors. The use of OTSA in public policy analysis is illustrated through an assessment of the relationship between social welfare expenditures and infant mortality rates at state, regional, and national levels.
The Use of Survey Results by Democratically Controlled Organizations
Authors: Sommer Robert , Nelson Sandra
Published: March 2006

This article reports afollow-up study taken three years after asurvey of is food cooperatives in California and other Western states. This study was conducted to determine the levels of dissemination and use of the survey results. Employing telephone interviews, the authors sought to determine a contact person's ability to recall the survey and to find evidence of specific applications of the results. This study uncovered instances of use previously unknown to the survey team, andfound more evidence of use in examinations of those cooperatives nearest the center conducting the survey, leading the authors to conclude that geography was the most important predictor of such usage. The authors further conclude thatfollow-up studies are both practicable and important, and that such studies should seek to find tangible instances of use rather than elicit general statements regarding value. As a final note, the authors indicate that a salutary by-product of the study was an increased interest among the organizations studied in conducting their own research.
The Labor Model for Mediation and its Application to the Resolution of Environmental Disputes
Authors: Lentz Sydney Solberg
Published: March 2006

The mediation of disputes over the use of the environment requires alterations in the traditional labor model of mediation. In this article the author explores the characteristics of conflicts related to labor and the environment, compares the mediation processes usedfor settling such disputes, and outlines four additional functions required for environmental dispute mediation: process identification, party identification, issue identification, and process facilitation. The author discusses how traditionalist mediators of environmental disputes alter the process but retain the labor model standard of respect for the parties' autonomy, whereas revisionist mediators alter both the process and the role of mediation to further their own goalsfor the public interest. In concluding the article, the author states that revisionist alterations in the labor model result in the mediator's role losing its essential nature.
Grounded Theory and Organizational Research
Authors: Martin Patricia Yancey , Turner Barry A.
Published: March 2006

Grounded theory is an inductive, theory discovery methodology that allows the researcher to develop a theoretical account of the general features of a topic while simultaneously grounding the account in empirical observations or data (Glaser & Strauss, 1967). This article explicates the utility of a grounded theory approach to research on work organizations. Following a general introduction to the grounded theory method, the authors'review of the organizational literature using grounded theory illustrates the variety of issues and topics studied through this approach. The authors describe and explain specific strategies for conducting grounded theory research in and on organizations, including note taking and note writing, concept discovery, and concept definition and preliminary elaboration of theory. Throughout the article emphasis is placed on grounded theory's ability to facilitate understanding and to identify desirable improvements in work contexts.
Quality of Working Life and Community Development: Some Reflections on the Jamestown Experience
Authors: Trist Eric
Published: March 2006

Widespread diffusion of quality of working life (Q WL) innovations among organizations has long been aproblem. This article discusses the author's hypothesis that such diffusion is accelerated when Q WL is linked to a wider process of community change, and how this hypothesis was tested through his work with the area-wide labor-management committee of Jamestown, New York, which acted as a mechanism for such a linkage. The degree of diffusion of QWL innovations varied with the type of project undertaken, but-although individual projects tended to be short-lived the committee's existence helped establish a continuous Q WL trend. The author assesses the emergence of a new community work culture based on labor-management cooperation as a main factor in the growth of Jamestown 's Q WLprojects, and notes the promise ofsuch a new culture, despite limitations, for thefuture of Western industrial societies.
Sociotechnical Systems Ideas as Public Policy in Norway: Empowering Participation Through Worker-Managed Change
Authors: Elden Max
Published: March 2006

Developments in sociotechnical systems (STS) theory and practice in Norway during the past two decades have closely supported and been supported by public policies aimed at democratizing working life. This article discusses the resulting Norwegian model of democratization through empowering participation, comparing this model to similar ones based on work done in Denmark, Australia, and Germany. The author finds that the resulting general model incorporating the major features of this work, while not widely known, is clearly not limited to Norway. The article identifies some of the consequences of participation under different working conditions and some necessary conditions for empowering participation, andnotes that-although work-place participation is populardemocracy in the work place is more often preached than practiced.
The Change Process of Innovative Work Designs: New Design and Redesign in Sweden, Canada, and the U.S.
Authors: Kolodny Harvey , Stjernberg Torbjorn
Published: March 2006

Following their study of change efforts in Sweden, Canada, and the U.S. based on sociotechnical systems concepts, the authors present a model of the change process that takes place in both newly designed and redesigned organizations. This model identifies three key subsystems-legitimization, design, and work-and illustrates feedback loops from one subsystem to another related to performance, commitment, and viability. The authors also describe the effects of values on philosophy, of technology on social aspects of tasks, and the applicability of various forms of education, and consider differences between structure and process and between situations of design vs. redesign.
A Review of Applications of the Sociotechnical Systems Approach to Health Care Organizations
Authors: Chisholm Rupert F. , Ziegenfuss James T.
Published: March 2006

This article reviews the use of sociotechnical systems (STS) theory and methodology to the health care industry. The review indicates that health care delivery is an industry with a significantly complex mixture of technical and social components, one particularly well suited to STS. The authors briefly define the STS approach, provide a history of research on STS in health care settings, match elements of STS with elements of health care organizations to determine degree offit, present issues and topicsforfurther research, and discuss the general application and approach.
The Development of Intellectual Capability: A Discussion of Stratified Systems Theory
Authors: Jaques Elliott
Published: March 2006

This article addresses the cognitive processes requiredfor individuals to plan and carry out goal-directed activities. The author postulates that different states of cognitivefunctioning exist and that individuals change to different states as they reach different points of cognitive power-measured in time horizons-rather than particular ages. Work is measured in terms of time spans for its completion, and from this the author develops a stratified hierarchy of organization. A "quintave" theory of cognitive development based on four cognitive states-shaping, reflective articulation, extrapolation, and transformation of systemsis presented, with the four states appearing repeatedly in increasingly complex settings in higher organizational strata. The author discusses the maturation of individuals' cognitive power, hypothesizing that everyone does not mature along the same track of cognitive development, with some maturing further along the track than others, and proposing instead a multiple track theory. The author concludes that cognitive development differs from intelligence quotient (IQ), and that it occurs regardless of social and economic opportunities for exercising cognitive power.
Some Observations on the Career Paths of Women
Authors: Stamp Gillian
Published: March 2006

This article seeks to contribute to a structural theory considering the connections among individual and organizational influences on career paths. Using stratified systems theory, the author develops a model of structural and individual development that integrates individuals'capabilities and organizations'requirements and defines work in terms of time frames for completing goals. A sample of 168 women managers and military officers from the United Kingdom and U.S. took part in semistructured interviews, and the resulting data is used to describe different types of career paths and consider the consequences of different types of potential. The author concludes that institutional barriers have different natures and impacts on the full realization of women's competence at different strata of organizations.
Organizational Power Styles: Collective and Competitive Power under Varying Organizational Conditions
Authors: Roberts Nancy C.
Published: March 2006

This article reports research on the extent to which managers exercise both competitive and collective power with bosses, peers, and subordinates and the extent to which this exercise is related to organizationalfactors such as resource availability, normative structures, and organizational form (Type A or Type Z). Based on data from a survey of 350 managers from three levels of management in two businesses and two universities, the author finds that managers exercise both collective and competitive power in these organizations, in all role relationships, and that the type of power exercised is associated with resource availability and organizationalform.
A Quantitative Analysis of Experimentwise Error Rates in Applied Behavioral Science Research
Authors: Ottenbacher Kenneth J.
Published: March 2006

This article discusses theproblem of Type I error in behavioral science research and describes three measures of error rate: experimentwise, per-experiment, andpercentage error rates. The author computes error rates for a sample of behavioral science literature using these three procedures, with the sample comprising seven articles published in The Journal of Applied Behavioral Science. The results of the analysis suggest the presence of a substantial incidence of Type I error in the research. The author presents possible solutions to these problems.
Employee Focus of Attention and Reactions to Organizational Change
Authors: Gardner Donald G. , Dunham Randall B. , Cummings L. L. , Pierce Jon L.
Published: March 2006

This article examines the role of employee focus of attention- and the target of this focus-on employee reactions to organizational change efforts. The authors conducted an empirical study of 476 clerical workers in three regional offices of a large insurance company. Subjects were assigned either to an experimental group-which underwent job changes-or a control group, and completed a survey before and after the change effort The authors had hypothesized that employees focusing highly on their jobs would react relatively favorably to the job changes, that those focusing highly on their work units would react relatively little; and that those focusing little on off-the-job factors would reactstrongly. The results provided only mixed support for the first two hypotheses and did not support the third, but indicated that focus of attention indeed moderates the effectiveness of job change interventions for both "soft" dependent variables (e g., satisfaction) and "hard" ones (eg., performance). The authors conclude that organizational change efforts may have strong effects when employees focus on targets of change.
The Informal-Intermittent Organization: A Vehicle for Successful Citizen Protest
Authors: Lindgren H. Elaine
Published: March 2006

This article presents the case history of a local, informal protest group and reasons for its effectiveness and longevity. The Delta Avenue Citizens Organization (DACO), formed to prevent the construction of a bridge, has remained devoted to a single issue and unaffiliated with other groups, a course of action that may harm a social movement organization but that apparently has allowed DACO to survive for more than 25 years. In 1979 the author began studying DACO by interviewing group leaders, attending group and public meetings, and reviewing such documents as city plans and commission minutes, newspaper articles; legal briefs, and correspondence. The author attributes DACO's success thus far to three factors: emergent solidarity, the group's internal nature, and an external support system. The group has become an informal-intermittent organization with an inclusive membership, and the author considers it an efficient, resilient force within its community.