bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Struggles with Symptoms
Authors: Stevens Patricia E.
Published: June 2007

The purpose of this research report is to derive a holistic view of the symptom experiences of women living with HIV/AIDS. A racially diverse sample of 38 HIV-infected women participated in in-depth narrative interviews describing their perceptions, evaluations, and responses related to HIV symptoms. Findings suggest a pattern to their struggles with symptoms: They experienced an accumulation of overwhelming symptoms, grew intensely fearful of these symptoms and what it meant to have HIV, and acted to protect themselves from allowing the HIV to "take hold." Many women perceived health care contact and cooperation with prescribed regimens as avenues for HIV to "take over" their lives, so they avoided these actions. Exemplar narratives illustrate analytic findings.
The Effects of Relaxation Exercises on Anxiety Levels in Psychiatric Inpatients
Authors: Weber Sheila
Published: June 2007

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of relaxation exercises on anxiety levels in an inpatient general psychiatric unit. The conceptual framework used was holism. A convenience sample of 39 subjects was studied. Anxiety levels were measured prior to and post interventions with the state portion of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. Progressive muscle relaxation, meditative breathing, guided imagery, and soft music were employed to promote relaxation. A significant reduction in anxiety level was obtained on the post-test. The findings of this study can be incorporated by holistic nurses to help reduce anxiety levels of general psychiatric inpatients by using relaxation interventions.
Self-Help and Help-Seeking Behavior Patterns in Healthy Elders
Authors: Zauszniewski Jaclene A.
Published: June 2007

The challenges and losses that accompany aging may alter task performance and self-care ability. However, resourceful elders maintain independence in daily tasks despite adverse situations. Resourcefulness consists of self-help strategies for coping with adversity. Elders may also seek help from others when faced by challenges or losses. This study examines self-help and help-seeking behaviors in relation to depressive cognitions, adaptive functioning, and life satisfaction among 120 healthy elders. Self-help was significantly correlated with the absence of depressive cognitions and with higher adaptive functioning, but help-seeking was not. Both self-help and help-seeking were significantly correlated with greater life satisfaction. However, self-help and help-seeking were not associated. The findings suggest that healthy elders may benefit from interventions that facilitate self-help and those that teach them to seek outside help. Future research should examine self-help and help-seeking strategies in elders whose physical or psychological health is compromised.
Use of Alternative Therapies among Mexican Americans in the Texas Rio Grande Valley
Authors: Keegan Lynn
Published: June 2007

Alternative therapies have gained increasing recognition and usage in North America during the past decade. In a descriptive study with a convenience sample of 213 Mexican Americans, three research questions were asked: (1) What specific kinds of alternative therapies do Mexicans in the Rio Grande Valley use? (2) What percentage of the sample group uses alternative therapies? and (3) Do the users of alternative therapies self-report these visits to their established, conventional, primary health care provider? Findings showed that 44% of respondents had used an alternative practitioner one or more times during the previous year. The most commonly sought therapies were herbal medicine, spiritual healing and prayer, massage, relaxation techniques, chiropractic, and visits to a curandero (Mexican folk healer). The majority (66%) never report visits to alternative practitioners to their established primary health provider.
Use of Neonatal Boundaries to Improve Outcomes
Authors: Beckmann Claudia A.
Published: June 2007

Technological advances have dramatically improved survival rates for the high-risk infant, yet developmental delays are common due to complications resulting from immature organ systems. The neonatal intensive care unit environment itself may pose barriers to optimal development of these infants. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of an oval-shaped cloth nest to make the environment less stressful and enhance neonatal development. Specifically, the study hypothesized that infants who were placed in the cloth nest would gain more weight and would have shorter lengths of hospital stay than would infants receiving routine care. A total of 102 healthy infants ranging from 26 to 31 weeks of gestation were recruited into the study. No significant differences were found in the groups on amount of weight gained. Infants who were placed in the cloth nest actually had longer hospital stays than did infants receiving routine care. Perhaps infants who received routine care received more touch than did nested infants, and the touch may have facilitated development as measured by length of stay.
The Effectiveness of Therapeutic Touch for Decreasing Pain in Elders with Degenerative Arthritis
Authors: Eckes Peck Susan D.
Published: June 2007

The purpose of this study was to determine if Therapeutic Touch (TT) decreased pain in elders with degenerative arthritis, compared with routine treatment and progressive muscle relaxation (PMR). Eighty-two noninstitutionalized subjects, age 55 or older, were randomly assigned to TT or PMR treatments. Subjects served as their own controls for 4 weeks and then received six treatments at 1-week intervals. Visual analogue scales (VAS)for pain intensity and distress were used. Significant differences from baseline to post sixth treatment were found within groups. TT decreased pain (t(46) = 7.60, p = <.001) and distress (t(44) = 7.08, p = < .001). PMR decreased pain (t(36) = 6.58, p = .005) and distress (t(36) = 6.90, p = < .001). Differences in effectiveness existed between the IT and PMR groups; the pain and distress scores were lower in the PMR group. The differences approached significance for pain, F(2, 76) = 2.8, p = .06, and were significant for distress, F(2, 75) = 5.6, p = .005.
Ingredients of an Old and Healthy Life
Authors: Pascucci Mary Ann , Loving Gay L.
Published: June 2007

This phenomenological study elicited centenarians' meanings of longevity and their perceptions of any common biological or psychosocial factors that they attributed to health and functioning. Twelve centenarians, ages 100 to 109, were interviewed. Common themes in their lived experiences included the meaning of long life, views of health, relationships with others, affirmation of worth, reasons for longevity, and God. Centenarians are long-term "survivors" with important lessons to share about high functioning, productive lives.
The Experience of Therapeutic Touch for Novice Recipients
Authors: Sneed Nancee V. , Olson Melodie , Bonadonna Ramita
Published: June 2007

This study explored the experience of receiving Therapeutic Touch (TT)from the point of view of recipients with no prior experience with TT. Eleven female graduate students who were part of a larger study were interviewed after the second of two TT sessions and statements from the transcripts were analyzed for words, phrases, or sentences that fell into one of five categories: (a) relaxation, (b) physical sensations, (c) cognitive activity, (d) emotional (feelings), and (e) spiritual/transcendent. All participants reported feeling relaxed and had physical sensations and cognitive activity during the TT sessions, and most of the statements fit into these categories. Fewer statements reflected emotional or spiritual experiences and not all participants had these experiences. The sensations associated with TT may occur developmentally. Initially, physical and cognitive experiences are identified. The deeper, meaningful sensations may occur after an individual has more experience with the intervention.
Sexual Risk Behaviors among Rural Women of Childbearing Age
Authors: Abel Elizabeth , Miller Ida
Published: June 2007

Given the morbidity and mortality associated with sexually transmitted diseases and HIV/AIDS, the increasing number of HIV/AIDS cases among heterosexual women, and the limited information regarding rural women's health, it is timely to holistically examine the determinants of sexual risk behavior(s) among rural women of childbearing age. Use of the Interaction Model of Client Health Behavior allows an integrated perspective of demographic characteristics, motivation, problem-solving, self-esteem, and sexual risk behaviors for this population. The 144 subjects in this study included 76 African American and 60 White women (average age 28.76 years, SD 6.58 years). Sexual risk behaviors were defined as more than one sex partner and (partner) not using a condom. African American women reported using condoms more than White women. Younger married women used condoms more than older married women.
A Lifeworld Paradigm for Nursing Research
Authors: Dahlberg Karin , Drew Nancy
Published: June 2007

This article is a companion to an earlier article entitled "Challenging a Reductionistic Paradigm as a Foundation for Nursing," which appeared in the December 1995 issue of the Journal of Holistic Nursing. The authors discuss how five concepts—encounter, openness, immediacy, uniqueness, and meaning—which constitute their philosophy for nursing practice, also comprise a foundation for human sciences research. In the first article, encounter was presented as the core concept for practice. In the present work, openness is the central idea in a lifeworld research paradigm, with encounter, immediacy, uniqueness, and meaning as supporting concepts. Openness is explicated with the notions of open-mindedness, open-heartedness, phenomenological questioning, and preunderstanding. A lifeworld paradigm for research is based on phenomenological philosophy and the understanding that the conduct of research is guided by the researcher's openness to the phenomena of the everyday world.
Affiliated-Individuation as a Mediator of Stress and Burden in Caregivers of Adults with Dementia
Authors: Acton Gayle J.
Published: June 2007

The purpose of this study was to test a midrange model based on Modeling and Role-Modeling Theory. The self-care resource of affiliated-individuation was tested to determine its mediational qualities between the stress and burden of caregiving and caregiver life satisfaction. The sample of 107 family caregivers of adults with dementia completed measures of stress, burden, affiliation, individuation, and life satisfaction. All variables were correlated in the expected direction. Affiliated-individuation decreased the effects of stress and burden on caregiver life satisfaction, lending support for the theory-based model.
The Case of Baby M
Authors: Hamilton Rebekah J.
Published: June 2007

This is a reflective case study of an infant with Down Syndrome and a potentially fatal cardiac defect. It is a story of hope and loss, of silence and learning to speak, and of relinquishing space and standing ground. The purpose of this article is to explore the conflicting claims a neonatal intensive care (NICU) nurse faces in caring for critically ill infants. The questions of "Who speaks?" and "Who listens?" are addressed. The concepts of women's moral development and a nursing definition of voice are included. It is proposed that the conventional feminine voice and the embodied knowledge so integral to expert nursing actually draw strength away from the voice that needs to be permitted into the circle of decision makers when ethical issues are raised in the NICU.
The Meaning of Diabetes
Authors: Hartrick Gweneth A.
Published: June 2007

Recent research has raised questions about the validity and relevance of health practitioners' perspectives of diabetes and diabetes care. This article describes a qualitative research study that was undertaken to illuminate an insider's perspective of how Type I diabetes is meaningfully experienced. The results of this study reveal that although people with diabetes share a common disease, the meaning of that disease in people's lives is unique and varied. To provide holistic care, nurses must assist people in discovering and articulating the meaning of diabetes in their lives as well as acknowledging and attending to the significant elements within their experiences.
Florence Nightingale
Authors: Dossey Barbara M.
Published: June 2007

Florence Nightingale's Crimean fever and chronic illness have intrigued historians for more than a century and a half. The purpose of this article is threefold: (a) to discuss the facts that point to the cause of Nightingale's Crimean fever as brucellosis, (b) to show that her debilitating illness for 32 years (1855-1887) was compatible with the specific form of chronic brucellosis, and (c) to present new evidence that she was still having severe symptoms in December 1887, when it was previously felt that she had no severe symptoms after 1870.
"Codependency"
Authors: Biering Páll
Published: June 2007

A hermeneutic phenomenological study was conducted to explore how eight professionally competent nurses experienced and evaluated the relation between their childhood adaptation to dysfunctional families and their nursing careers. From the participants' discussion of this topic, the following themes emerged: escaping difficulties by becoming a nurse, coping roles guide nursing career, sensitivity to the untold, transforming dysfunctional responses, and wounded healers. The study did not support the view that children of alcoholics seek careers in nursing to meet their codependent needs for self-esteem, control, or belonging. Instead, its findings indicate that some children of alcoholics become competent nurses by finding positive application for the coping skills they learn in their families. This indicates that, when working with individuals from dysfunctional families, nurses could support them to create new avenues for their coping skills instead of trying to "exterminate" them because of their "codependent" nature.
Parish Nursing
Authors: Boland Clara S.
Published: June 2007

Literature about the significance of health promotion for the elderly and identification of various determinants of health-promoting activities contains numerous inconsistencies. From a review of nursing and health-related literature over the past decade, it is possible to draw only limited conclusions about the commitment of the elderly to health-promoting behaviors. Despite this, the importance of the roles of social support and spirituality for the empowerment of older adults to practice health-promoting activities is a consistent research finding in this population. Parish nurse programs expand home health and public health provider roles and use the faith community as a cooperative means for sociocultural implementation of successful health promotion. Significance for nursing education, practice, and research is discussed.
Does Your Care Plan Tell My Story? Documenting Aspects of Personhood in Long-Term Care
Authors: Coker Esther
Published: June 2007

Learning about aspects of one's personhood allows the nurse to know the individual as a person and to individualize the care provided. A pilot project was conducted on a supportive residential care unit to explore why health records in long-term care rarely reveal who the person is. Five nurse participants generated a list of features of an individual's personhood that they felt should be known by members of the team. They subsequently gathered that information from a variety of sources, with documentation in a designated location provided on the plan of care. They were thus able to overcome some of the previously encountered barriers to collecting and documenting the personhood data reflecting their knowledge of the individual as a person. Although nurses were successful in learning who the persons were, changes in approach to care as a result of the new knowledge have not been measured.
Contribution of Education to Health and Life Satisfaction in Older Adults Mediated by Negative Affect
Authors: Meeks Suzanne , Murrell Stanley A.
Published: June 2007

Objectives: The authors developed a model of relationships between two enduring attributes (educational attainment and negative affect) and two indicators of successful aging (health and life satisfaction). Methods: A probability sample of 1,177 participants (age 55 and older) were interviewed four times at 6-month intervals. Structural equation models were developed based on the authors’ hypothetical model proposing a mediating effect of negative affect between health and successful aging. Results: As predicted, education and negative affect both were directly related to health and life satisfaction. Also, as predicted, negative affect mediated the relationship between education and successful aging indicators. Discussion: Education appears to confer a lifelong advantage for healthy aging. Part of this advantage is accounted for by the relationship between education and trait negative affect. Higher educational attainment is related to lower levels of trait negative affect; lower negative affect results in better health and life satisfaction.
Self-Care among Older Adults
Authors: McDonald-Miszczak Leslie , Wister Andrew V. , Gutman Gloria M.
Published: June 2007

Objectives: The authors hypothesize that older adults diagnosed with arthritis showa greater reliance on objective factors in their self-care behaviors, whereas those diagnosed with heart problems or hypertension demonstrate a greater reliance on more general belief-laden factors. Methods: A total of 794 older adults (mean age = 69.3) who were professionally diagnosed with arthritis, heart problems, or hypertension completed a telephone survey about a number of aspects of their illness condition and their general well-being. Results: The results from the hierarchical regression analyses indicate that objective factors and illness-specific beliefs are better predictors of self-care behavior in the arthritis group, whereas general beliefs (e.g., self-efficacy and general well-being) are better predictors of such behavior in the heart problems and hypertension groups. Discussion: The analyses support the authors’ hypothesis. The results are discussed in the context of expanding the Health Belief Model of self-care.
An Implementation Revolution as a Strategy for Fulfilling the Democratic Promise of University-Community Partnerships: Penn-West Philadelphia as an Experiment in Progress
Authors: Benson Lee , Harkavy Ira , Puckett John
Published: June 2007

In this article, the authors argue that the academic-practitioner divide is largely a product of the Platonic false dualism between “superior” pure theory and “inferior” applied practice. The authors call for a Dewey-inspired implementation revolution to build local democratic neighborly communities as a means for advancing academic-practitioner collaboration, fulfilling America’s democratic promise, and overcoming the influence of Plato’s aristocratic philosophy on American higher education. The authors describe the University of Pennsylvania’s Center for Community Partnerships’work with public schools as an experiment in progress designed to advance academic-practitioner collaboration and a “democratic devolution revolution.” Academically based community service learning and research and communal participatory action research are highlighted as particularly useful approaches for improving scholarship and communities and forging democratic, mutually beneficial, and mutually respectful university-school-community partnerships.
Alternative Models of Government-Nonprofit Sector Relations: Theoretical and International Perspectives
Authors: Young Dennis R.
Published: June 2007

Economic theories of the nonprofit sector suggest several different ways of understanding the relationship between government and private, not-for-profit organizations. In particular, different strands of theory support the alternative views that nonprofits (a) operate independently as supplements to government, (b) work as complements to government in a partnership relationship, or (c) are engaged in an adversarial relationship of mutual accountability with government. A historical review of the United States revealed that all three views have validity and that government-nonprofit sector relations must be understood as a multilayered phenomenon. In this article, the foregoing analysis is extended internationally. The three theoretical perspectives are applied to four countries: the United States, the United Kingdom, Israel, and Japan, in an effort to illuminate nonprofit-government relations in those countries and to assess whether the multilayered approach provides a substantially richer understanding than any one theoretical perspective.
Politics, Policy, and the Motivations for Advocacy in Nonprofit Reproductive Health and Family Planning Providers
Authors: Nicholson-Crotty Jill
Published: June 2007

Despite the important symbolic and substantive benefits of political activity by nonprofit organizations, recent evidence suggests that a relatively limited number of charities actively advocate. The existing literature on nonprofit advocacy adequately explains why so few charities are actively political; however, it fails to illuminate the reasons why some individual charities choose to advocate despite documented constraints. This article offers an alternative to existing explanations for nonprofit advocacy that focuses on the causes for, and the constraints on, this behavior. It suggests that nonprofit organizations are more likely to be politically active when public policies restrict their ability to deliver core services, and when the probability of success is highest because of the presence of political allies. Analyses of advocacy behavior in more than 450 501(c)(3) organizations suggest that these factors persist as motivators of political activity even after controlling for the dominant constraints suggested in the literature.
The Debate Regarding the Better Business Bureau’s Commitment to Neutrality: An Analysis of Local Better Business Bureau Boards of Directors
Authors: Garrett Dennis E.
Published: June 2007

The Better Business Bureau (BBB) states that it is a neutral party striving to serve equally the interests of both businesses and consumers. However, critics have alleged that the BBB’s policies and practices are biased in favor of businesses. This study analyzes the composition of the boards of directors of local BBB offices. Using resource-dependency theory, arguments are advanced to explain why the BBB may be more inclined to have board members from business backgrounds rather than board members who are “community influentials” (e.g., executives with nonprofit organizations and charities, academicians, and government employees). Results show that the vast majority of BBB board members are businesspeople from industries that generate large numbers of BBB consumer complaints. Discussion focuses on the implications of these findings for the credibility and legitimacy of the BBB as a representative of consumer interests in the marketplace.
Toward an Empirical Characterization of Bridging and Bonding Social Capital
Authors: Coffé Hilde , Geys Benny
Published: June 2007

Though a vast amount of empirical work stresses the beneficial effects of social capital, the recent literature has explicitly recognized the importance of distinguishing different types of social capital. Particularly, a distinction has been made between homogeneous (or bonding ) and heterogeneous (or bridging ) networks under the argument that the latter are more likely to generate positive externalities than the former. The empirical operationalization of this theoretical distinction has thus far, however, remained underdeveloped. The authors take a step to resolve this issue by assessing the diversity of (voluntary) association membership on a number of socioeconomic traits. The proposed methodology is applied to Flemish survey data on voluntary association membership. This analysis indicates that hobby clubs and humanitarian associations such as the Red Cross are among the most bridging associations, whereas women’s groups and associations for retired people are among the most bonding groups.
Relationships between Nonprofit and for-Profit Organizations: A Stakeholder Perspective
Authors: Abzug Rikki , Webb Natalie J.
Published: June 2007

The purpose of this article is to provide a new, more comprehensive stakeholder theory of the relationships between nonprofit, for-profit, and government sectors. This theory combines aspects of neoclassical economics and principal-agency theory to complement the traditional notions that these organizations either compete or exist in a vacuum relative to one another. The article discusses nonprofit organizations that are employee groups (unions and professional associations), shareholders (institutional investors including pension funds and endowments), community and other interest groups, government contractors, competitors, consumers, and suppliers. By viewing these organizations as agents relative to a principal for-profit (or government) organization, it is possible to hypothesize about relationships and behaviors between organizations of different sectors of the economy. This new perspective allows a better understanding of the many relationships observed in the nonprofit sector and of a much greater range of nonprofit stakeholders than is currently possible given existing theory.
Electronic Advocacy by Nonprofit Organizations in Social Welfare Policy
Authors: Mcnutt John G. , Boland Katherine Mary
Published: June 2007

Technology is revolutionizing the practice of political advocacy, a fact that has important ramifications for the nonprofit sector. This exploratory study examines the current application of electronic advocacy techniques in the affiliates of a national social work professional association and considers what factors tend to predict the affiliates that are most successful at adopting these techniques. The study found that all of the affiliates were using some of these technology-based advocacy techniques in their advocacy practice and that the factors that predicted utilization depended on whether affiliates were planning new technology or actually using new technology.
Unemployment and Informal Support: Dependency, Exclusion, or Participation?
Authors: Morris Lydia , Irwin Sarah
Published: June 2007

This paper reports on research carried out in Hartlepool, and is based on a comparison between four groupings; couples in which the man is long-term unemployed; couples in which the man is securely employed; couples in which the man was recently recruited to employment; and couples in which the man is out of the labour-force. The paper asks the question of to what extent the social polarization between households detected by Pahl and others, extends beyond household boundaries to kinship and friendship patterns. Whilst there is evidence of concentrations of unemployment both in kinship and friendship networks, the unemployed are not entirely confined to others without work in the exchange of mutual support. Three types of aid are considered: services, aid in kind, and financial aid. It is the last of these in which reliance on other unemployed people is greatest, and here kin are more highly represented than friends. This fact suggests the possibility of an attenuation of friendship with long-term unemployment, and points to limitations on the potential for development of a collective awareness.
The Changing Face of the Professions? Gender and Explanations of Women's Entry to Pharmacy
Authors: Bottero Wendy
Published: June 2007

Discussions of women in the professions have stressed the gendered nature of employment in such positions, and increasing female entry has been seen as an extension of gender segregation and disadvantage to new areas. It has also been suggested by some authors that women have entered with the growth of secondary professional labour markets. This paper questions whether it is helpful to see women's position in the professions in terms of gender divisions. By examining patterns of entry and employment in the case of pharmacy it will be argued that both `de-skilling' and `feminisation' are inadequate descriptions of processes occurring in the professions, and that a concentration on gender divisions has led to the neglect of other important variation. A re-examination of theoretical categories is necessary for further analysis.
Where do You Draw the Line? Functional Flexibility, Training & Skill in Britain & France
Authors: O'Reilly Jacqueline
Published: June 2007

This article argues that the concept of functional flexibility fails to make a clear distinction between a deliberate strategy to enhance skills and training, in contrast to where task enlargement has developed in an ad hoc manner, as a result of restructuring. By drawing on detailed research conducted in the retail banking sector in Britain and France it is argued that the flexibility debates need to be more clearly situated in the specific social and economic context of a given society.
Employment Restructuring in the Health Service: Efficiency Initiatives, Working Patterns and Workforce Composition
Authors: Pulkingham Jane
Published: June 2007

The evidence which has accumulated regarding the impact of contracting-out and the implementation of measures designed to increase `efficiency' in NHS domestic ancillary services suggests that the circumstances of the jobs concerned have sharply deteriorated. But what are the repercussions of this process, in which employment opportunities have been radically restructured, on the profile of the workforce itself? Have there been any significant changes in the workforce composition as a result of the changes in working conditions and employment opportunities? The research presented in this paper suggests that with the restructuring of domestic ancillary employment, in particular, the increased reliance on part-time work, the profile of the workforce has changed significantly. Existing studies investigating the dynamics of the `flexibility drive' and of job degradation, however, have essentially ignored these questions, and instead have largely conceptualized the problem in a way that accords primacy to economic variables and `demand-side' factors. In contrast, the research presented here suggests that the primary significance of so-called `background' characteristics of incumbents must be recognized in order to more fully understand the dynamics of the flexibility drive and the nature of employment restructuring.
Ford versus `Fordism': The Beginning of Mass Production?
Authors: Williams Karel , Haslam Colin , Williams John
Published: June 2007

This article questions the stereotypes of Fordism and mass production. It does so by demonstrating that there is a contradiction between the stereotypes and the reality of Henry Ford's manufacturing practice in production of the Model T at the Highland Park factory between 1909 and 1919. Highland Park was not an inflexible factory which combined dedicated equipment, Taylorised semi-skilled workers and a standardised product. More positively, the article quantifies Ford's heroic achievement in taking two-thirds of the labour hours out of the product at the same time as he built more of each car. Ford used productive intervention to realise manufacturing flow through proto-Japanese manufacturing techniques which involved a commitment to continuous improvement.
Entrepreneurial Professionals: Australian Engineers, 1965-1984
Authors: Makkai Toni
Published: June 2007

Little research has been conducted on how and why workers enter self-employment. Even less research has been devoted to self-employment among professionals, despite its theoretical and practical significance. Four explanations derived from the literature - family socialisation, social marginality, bureaucratisation and attitudes and values - are tested to determine whether they predict entry into self-employment for professionals. The data are a panel survey of 192 professional engineers collected between 1965 and 1984. Although there is partial support for each explanation the results show that the relative importance of factors vary between career points. Whereas attitudes and values are more important early in a career, family socialisation and bureaucratic constraints have stronger effects as the career progresses. Schooling and social marginality, on the other hand, have a consistent impact across the career. The results suggest the need for a dynamic understanding of professional career paths and the processes whereby professional entrepreneurs reproduce themselves.
The Curriculum Vitae: Confessions of a Wage-Labourer
Authors: Metcalfe A. W.
Published: June 2007

This paper examines the curriculum vitae as a confessional document. The C.V. and similar devices have a crucial role in encouraging workers to take personal responsibility for the step leading from the surveillance, normalising judgements and examinations of the school to the new disciplinary and confessional regimes of the paid workplace. They also have an important role in making wage-labour seem both `free' and destined. The article argues that post-structuralist accounts of subjectivity are capable of lending new depth to traditional Marxist understandings of alienation and consciousness.
Worker Support for Organisational and Technical Change: Workplace Industrial Relations in UK Manufacturing - The Case Study Evidence
Authors: Hogarth Terence
Published: June 2007

This paper provides evidence from a series of case studies which explored in greater detail the differential levels of worker support for organisational and technical change recorded in the 1984 Workplace Industrial Relations Survey (WIRS84). The case studies were completed between 1989 and 1990 in fourteen manufacturing establishments drawn from the WIRS84 sample. Interviews were conducted with managers and union representatives as well as production workers. The results from the case studies are consistent with those reported in Workplace Industrial Relations and Technical Change (Daniel 1987) and provide further clues as to the workforce's perception and interpretation of each form of change.
Make Me a Cake as Fast as You can: Forces for and Against Change in the Sexual Division of Labour at an Industrial Bakery
Authors: Dumais L. , Messing K. , Seifert A. M. , Courville J. , Vézina N.
Published: June 2007

Jobs considered as `naturally' women's in one situation are assigned to men a few years or miles away. We ask how a sexual division of labour which is so fluid when regarded in a historical perspective appears so rigid when observed at a given time. One type of factor which is variable historically but very solid and material in a given workplace is the physical installation which represents a considerable economic investment. Ergonomists and sociologists together studied the forces acting on the sexual division of labour in an industrial bakery in Quebec. Using direct observations, videotaping, questionnaires and interviews, we examined the physical characteristics of men's and women's jobs, cultural representations, and union and management practices. We found that physical difficulties were as important as organisational and cultural barriers in maintaining the division of labour, while the age of women workers, union support and economic impetus were significant determinants of change.
Unemployment and Peripheral Work
Authors: Payne Joan , Payne Clive
Published: June 2007

A spell of unemployment appears to restrict job choice. We use British Labour Force Survey data for 1979-89 to model whether, after controlling for age, qualifications and other variables, the jobs that unemployed people get are different from the jobs of people who have not been unemployed. We find that they tend to be of lower skill level and more often temporary or part-time; for men with good qualifications they are also more likely to be of self-employed status. During the 1980s the skill profile of the British workforce tended to improve, but not so the jobs of recently unemployed men and women, so that, despite government training schemes, the relative chances of an unemployed person getting a low skill job increased. The strong association between recent unemployment and `non-standard' forms of employment suggests that the labour force is to some extent polarised into secure `core' and insecure `peripheral' jobs, but, despite deregulation in the private sector and the weakening of union power, we found no evidence that the degree of polarisation had increased between 1979 and 1989.
Air France's Strategic Plan: Benevolent `New Despotism'?
Authors: Eaton Jack
Published: June 2007

The strike called by all 14 unions at Air France in November 1992 was in protest against the nationalised company's strategic plan entailing three thousand job losses by the end of 1993, with more to follow. This article discusses how a hegemonic relationship of state, labour and capital is being eroded as a result of globalised competition. However, the `new despotism' that is replacing it is still relatively benevolent. This is because the previous regime and production apparatus at Air France remains deeply entrenched.
A Comparison of the Labour Market Position of Women in Spain and the UK with Reference to the `Flexible' Labour Debate
Authors: Cousins Christine
Published: June 2007

This compares women's employment in Spain and the UK in the context of very different historical and institutional developments in each country. A number of key variations in women's labour market position, for example, participation rates, part-time, temporary work and unemployment rates, are examined and in each area it is found that there are substantial differences in the patterns of women's economic activity. A contribution is also made to the debate on the non-standard or flexible workforce by focusing on the issue of recent changes in labour market deregulation in the two countries and the importance of the informal economy in Spain. In both countries the state has pursued policies of deregulation of the labour market to produce a more flexible workforce. Employers have drawn on a hidden labour supply of married women who in turn have been incorporated into the economy through forms of non-standard work, in the UK this has been part-time work and in Spain either temporary work or irregular or illegal forms of work in the informal economy. It is argued that these developments may have negative consequences for both countries with respect to training, skill and wage levels.
Formal Opportunity, Informal Barriers: Black Women Managers within a Local Authority
Authors: Liff Sonia , Dale Karen
Published: June 2007

This article examines the equal opportunities policies of a local authority which were intended to improve the representation of black women managers. It reports the types of initiatives and proportions of black women employed in different grades over time; and discusses the organisational context, contrasting the views of personnel and line managers, and EO specialists, with those of black women who had achieved senior positions. These latter accounts illustrated how inequalities were sustained despite, and at times in articulation with, an EO policy which was relatively successful in formal terms. Findings are discussed with reference to two criticisms made of EO policies: inadequate implementation, and a failure to redress the effects of social inequalities or challenge white, male work norms. The article suggests that increasing formal controls or the range of initiatives is insufficient: better ways of understanding and challenging the role of organisational structures, cultures and politics in sustaining inequality is needed.
Understanding Class Segmentation in the Labour Market: An Empirical Study of Earnings Determination in Australia
Authors: Martin Bill
Published: June 2007

This paper suggests that, at least amongst employees, social classes may be thought of as having effects on labour market outcomes because they create segmented labour markets. Thus each social class of employees defines the boundaries of a labour market which is at least partially separated from those defined by other employee social classes. This implies that standard labour market variables such as education and labour market experience may have impacts on earnings which vary across class-defined labour markets. Based on a three class picture of the employee class structure (experts, managers/bureaucrats, workers), predictions about the relative impact of education, labour market experience, gender, sector of employment and unionisation on earnings in each class are outlined. These are then tested on data from two Australian national representative samples. Results show that, as predicted, the impact of important variables (notably education and labour market experience) on earnings appear to be quite different for workers than for experts or managers. This supports the view that the labour market is segmented between workers and the middle class. There are other interesting variations in the impact of variables across class-defined labour markets, variation in gender effects being notable. However, evidence for a sharp differentiation of expert and managerial labour markets is more limited than predicted. Overall, the equations used explain far less of the variance in working-class earnings than of expert and managerial earnings, primarily because education and labour market experience appear to be less closely tied to earnings for workers than for experts and managers. Implications of these results for class theory and human capital theory are outlined.
The Greatest Game no more - Redundant Dockers and the Demise of `Dock Work'
Authors: Turnbull Peter , Wass Victoria
Published: June 2007

Prior to the abolition of the National Dock Labour Scheme (NDLS) in July 1989, registered dock workers had good jobs. This was the result, first and foremost, of militant solidarity on the part of dock workers and, of course, the NDLS, which was itself a principal outcome of organised struggle. Deregulation post-1989 has transformed `dock work' to such an extent that the industry no longer offers the kind of extrinsic or intrinsic rewards enjoyed by dockers in the past; but the restructuring of the industry was only made possible by the mass redundancy of ex-registered dockers, in particular trade union activists. It was redundancy, in conjunction with the abolition of the NDLS, that led to the demise of what was once the `greatest game in the world'.
Fiddly Jobs, Undeclared Working and the Something for Nothing Society
Authors: MacDonald Robert
Published: June 2007

Whilst it may be easy to dismiss ideological diatribes about `a something for nothing society' as empty rhetoric, there are relatively few recent studies with which to assess claims about `benefit scroungers' and `dole fiddlers'. Qualitative methods were employed to explore the ways in which some working-class people in an economically depressed locality did `fiddly jobs' (i.e. working `undeclared' whilst in receipt of unemployment benefits).

The research explored the motivations underpinning fiddly work and the normative values surrounding it. Informants expressed a clear and conservative morality which stood at odds with descriptions of a `welfare underclass' or `dependency culture': most common types of fiddling (irregular, low-paid, temporary) were economically necessary and were done (usually by men) in order to support household incomes and to preserve self-respect. Fiddly work was distributed through local social networks which allowed a minority to maintain an involvement with work culture and to avoid some of the worst material and social psychological consequences of unemployment.

Thus fiddly jobs in sub-contracted and other sectors of casualised work are part of a survival strategy through which some people develop alternative ways of working in the face of restricted avenues for legitimate employment and a system of benefits which failed to meet people's material needs.
New Forms of Work and Employment in an `Old Industrial Region'? The Offshore Construction Industry in the North East of England
Authors: Cumbers Andy
Published: June 2007

This paper examines the nature of the new forms of work and employment brought to the North East of England by the development of offshore construction activities, serving the North Sea's oil and gas industries in the period since the early 1970s. In particular, it assesses the extent to which these activities differ from traditional forms of work and employment organisation within the region. The results of this analysis suggest the need to interpret contemporary patterns of restructuring, both in a particular local labour market context and more generally, as part of an on-going evolutionary process, rather than as a decisive break (or shift) from the past.
Factors Associated with Employment Status in Later Working Life
Authors: Jackson Paul R. , Taylor Philip E.
Published: June 2007

This article reports on factors affecting the withdrawal of older workers from the labour market associated with unemployment, premature retirement and retirement at 65 years of age. Longitudinal data from three interviews with 175 adult males are examined; and findings show a process of psychological withdrawal from the labour market reflecting changes in personal identity which occur prior to reaching the formal retirement age, most strongly for those without heavy financial commitments. For most of those interviewed, retirement was a preferred option to unemployment, and allowed them to regain control over their lives. Older workers whose financial needs keep them in the employment market are doubly disadvantaged since they cannot select the route of early retirement and find it much harder to compete with younger people.
The Ageing Workforce: Employers' Attitudes towards Older People
Authors: Taylor Philip E. , Walker Alan
Published: June 2007

This article reports the results of a national postal survey of employers' attitudes and policies towards older workers supported by the ESRC. The survey's key findings are discussed in the context of the declining labour force participation of older people over the last twenty years and the recent turnaround in official and some employer attitudes towards this group. Findings of particular importance are those relating to the sectoral differences in employers' orientations towards older workers, such as the larger proportion of those in the production and construction than in the service sectors who were using early retirement schemes and the differences in strategic responses to the ageing workforce, with the service sector leading production, construction and manufacturing; the impact of employers' perceptions of older workers' lack of appropriate skills which, when coupled with figures illustrating the lack of access of older people to both official and employer training programmes, suggests a self-fulfilling prophecy; and the surprising support given by employers for anti-age discrimination legislation. Data from the survey are also used to test the model put forward by Atkinson (1989) suggesting that employers' policies develop incrementally. The article concludes by arguing that the educative approach favoured by the government is not likely to have a significant impact on the employment prospects of older workers. Therefore this group is likely to be increasingly confined to a choice between low-skill/low-wage jobs in the service sector or non-employment.
Intergenerational Social Mobility in Communist Russia
Authors: Marshall Gordon , Sydorenko Svetlana , Roberts Stephen
Published: June 2007

Little is known about patterns of intergenerational social mobility in the former Soviet Union. Extant studies are unrepresentative or methodologically problematic. Using a new national sample from Russia, this paper examines absolute mobility rates for each sex, and relative rates for Russia in relation to Britain. It argues that, contrary to the conclusions reached by many Soviet sociologists during the communist era, Russia was not a `remarkably open' society. Relative mobility rates were in fact rather similar to those found in Britain. This conclusion is little undermined when educational attainment is taken into account.