title: Employee fairness perceptions of performance appraisal: a Saint Lucian case study

authors: Narcisse, Sharon

subjects: fairness

abstract: This research identifies the essential factors which influence employees' fairness perceptions of their performance appraisals, and determines the applicability of these factors to the experiences of employees in a Saint Lucian public service organization. Fairness perceptions are of three main types. First, distributive justice refers to the perceived fairness of an actual appraisal rating. Second, procedural justice refers to the perceived fairness of procedures used to determine the appraisal rating. Third, interactional justice refers to the perceived fairness of the rater's interpersonal treatment of the ratee during the appraisal process. A qualitative case study method was used to gain a rich understanding of employee perceptions of the fairness of their performance appraisals. Data were obtained from both completed appraisal forms and interviews with 20 knowledgeable employees. All interviews were transcribed and assessed using a thematic analysis. Overall, results show that distributive, procedural, and interactional justice factors identified in the existing literature influence employee perceptions of fairness in their appraisals. Results suggest that employees also consider four additional justice factors, as yet not formally recognized in the justice literature, one distributive – the consistency in reward distribution – and three procedural – appraisal frequency, job relevant criteria, and rater and ratee training.

text: Employee fairness perceptions of performance appraisal: a Saint Lucian case study This research identifies the essential factors which influence employees' fairness perceptions of their performance appraisals, and determines the applicability of these factors to the experiences of employees in a Saint Lucian public service organization. Fairness perceptions are of three main types. First, distributive justice refers to the perceived fairness of an actual appraisal rating. Second, procedural justice refers to the perceived fairness of procedures used to determine the appraisal rating. Third, interactional justice refers to the perceived fairness of the rater's interpersonal treatment of the ratee during the appraisal process. A qualitative case study method was used to gain a rich understanding of employee perceptions of the fairness of their performance appraisals. Data were obtained from both completed appraisal forms and interviews with 20 knowledgeable employees. All interviews were transcribed and assessed using a thematic analysis. Overall, results show that distributive, procedural, and interactional justice factors identified in the existing literature influence employee perceptions of fairness in their appraisals. Results suggest that employees also consider four additional justice factors, as yet not formally recognized in the justice literature, one distributive – the consistency in reward distribution – and three procedural – appraisal frequency, job relevant criteria, and rater and ratee training.

year: 2008

title: Rendering Titanium Superhydrophobic

authors: Pachal, Sam Rewi

abstract: Two methods are reported herein to render titanium metal superhydrophobic. A superhydrophobic surface by definition is one that shows a water contact angle of equal to or greater than 150˚,(1) while in contrast bare titanium metal is hydrophilic and exhibits a water contact angle of 73±3˚.(2) Titanium metal is extremely reactive in air and rapidly forms a self-repairing oxide layer, which makes the necessary surface modification of the material to render it superhydrophobic challenging.
The first method employed in this work consists of a cold compression procedure whereby copper powder that has been previously rendered superhydrophobic by galvanic deposition of silver followed by treatment with 1-dodecanethiol is compressed onto titanium powder. The resulting compact consists of a superhydrophobic copper layer on a titanium substrate. The superhydrophobic copper layer is robust in that if it is damaged, the damaged layer can be abraded away to expose a new, fresh superhydrophobic copper layer beneath. Each successive layer exposed after abrasion throughout the superhydrophobic copper portion of the material is shown to exhibit the same wetting characteristics with regards to water roll-off angle.
The superhydrophobic titanium material prepared by this method exhibited a static water contact angle of 157±1º and water roll-off angles of 3.8±0.9º. The method was also successfully applied to aluminium powder, which showed a water roll-off angle of 4.2±0.4˚.
An additional superhydrophobic titanium material was prepared using this method which had a polyfluoroalkylthiol surface modifier, 1H,1H,2H,2H-perfluorodecanethiol, used in place of the 1-dodecanethiol. This material showed no statistically significant difference in wetting behaviour from its alkylthiol treated counterpart, with a water roll-off angle of 3.4±0.5˚ and a static water contact angle of 159±3˚.
The second method employed in this work was applicable to a foil form of titanium. It involves the deposition of copper onto a titanium foil, followed by galvanic reduction of silver onto the copper plate and adsorption of 1H,1H,2H,2H-perfluorodecanethiol in a self-assembled monolayer. Difficulty was encountered in getting a reproducibly adherent copper plate onto the titanium foil, and two methods were experimented with to find optimum conditions for an adherent copper deposit.
The first strategy used to deposit copper onto titanium involved a high voltage capacitor discharge across a titanium electrode in an acidic copper sulfate solution to destroy the native oxide layer present on titanium. A copper electroplate immediately followed this step, though unfortunately none of the deposits prepared in this manner passed adherence tests. The second method involved an anodic etching step before deposition of copper and showed much improved adherence over the first method, but was inconsistent and the copper coatings were non-uniform.
The superhydrophobic titanium materials prepared on titanium foils using both methods of copper deposition showed the same roll-off angles for an applied glycerol droplet as a purely superhydrophobic copper foil. A previous publication1 has quoted superhydrophobic copper foil prepared by the same method as having a water contact angle of 173±1˚ and a water roll-off angle of 0.64±0.04˚. Extrapolating from the materials sharing the same glycerol roll-off angles gives some confirmation that a superhydrophobic surface has successfully been applied to titanium foil in this work.

text: Rendering Titanium Superhydrophobic Two methods are reported herein to render titanium metal superhydrophobic. A superhydrophobic surface by definition is one that shows a water contact angle of equal to or greater than 150˚,(1) while in contrast bare titanium metal is hydrophilic and exhibits a water contact angle of 73±3˚.(2) Titanium metal is extremely reactive in air and rapidly forms a self-repairing oxide layer, which makes the necessary surface modification of the material to render it superhydrophobic challenging.
The first method employed in this work consists of a cold compression procedure whereby copper powder that has been previously rendered superhydrophobic by galvanic deposition of silver followed by treatment with 1-dodecanethiol is compressed onto titanium powder. The resulting compact consists of a superhydrophobic copper layer on a titanium substrate. The superhydrophobic copper layer is robust in that if it is damaged, the damaged layer can be abraded away to expose a new, fresh superhydrophobic copper layer beneath. Each successive layer exposed after abrasion throughout the superhydrophobic copper portion of the material is shown to exhibit the same wetting characteristics with regards to water roll-off angle.
The superhydrophobic titanium material prepared by this method exhibited a static water contact angle of 157±1º and water roll-off angles of 3.8±0.9º. The method was also successfully applied to aluminium powder, which showed a water roll-off angle of 4.2±0.4˚.
An additional superhydrophobic titanium material was prepared using this method which had a polyfluoroalkylthiol surface modifier, 1H,1H,2H,2H-perfluorodecanethiol, used in place of the 1-dodecanethiol. This material showed no statistically significant difference in wetting behaviour from its alkylthiol treated counterpart, with a water roll-off angle of 3.4±0.5˚ and a static water contact angle of 159±3˚.
The second method employed in this work was applicable to a foil form of titanium. It involves the deposition of copper onto a titanium foil, followed by galvanic reduction of silver onto the copper plate and adsorption of 1H,1H,2H,2H-perfluorodecanethiol in a self-assembled monolayer. Difficulty was encountered in getting a reproducibly adherent copper plate onto the titanium foil, and two methods were experimented with to find optimum conditions for an adherent copper deposit.
The first strategy used to deposit copper onto titanium involved a high voltage capacitor discharge across a titanium electrode in an acidic copper sulfate solution to destroy the native oxide layer present on titanium. A copper electroplate immediately followed this step, though unfortunately none of the deposits prepared in this manner passed adherence tests. The second method involved an anodic etching step before deposition of copper and showed much improved adherence over the first method, but was inconsistent and the copper coatings were non-uniform.
The superhydrophobic titanium materials prepared on titanium foils using both methods of copper deposition showed the same roll-off angles for an applied glycerol droplet as a purely superhydrophobic copper foil. A previous publication1 has quoted superhydrophobic copper foil prepared by the same method as having a water contact angle of 173±1˚ and a water roll-off angle of 0.64±0.04˚. Extrapolating from the materials sharing the same glycerol roll-off angles gives some confirmation that a superhydrophobic surface has successfully been applied to titanium foil in this work.

year: 2012

title: 'Reclaiming the Ancient Feminine in Māori Society.' 'Kei wareware i a tātou te Ūkaipō!'

authors: Yates-Smith, Aroha

subjects: Atua wāhine

abstract: With our constant interface with the threat of globalisation, it is timely that we reflect on the words of an ancient god who advised his brother, Tāne, to return to their mother, Papatūānuku (Best, 1923, p. 111). His words, which translate loosely as ‘lest we forget the Mother who nurtured us at her breast,’ remind us of the importance of considering the feminine, respecting our Earth Mother, and not taking either for granted.

This paper addresses several issues pertaining to the Māori feminine. The discussion of these will begin with a brief reflection on the importance of balance between the male and female in Māori cosmogony and the marginalisation of the feminine as a result of two hundred years of colonisation. The principal focus of the article as a whole will be the last two decades and the efforts made to address some of the negative effects brought about by colonisation, which could be described as forming the first waves in the tide of globalisation.

The key for the ordering of Māori society lay within our cosmogonic beginnings. Recent studies of Māori cosmology reveal that both male and female deities held prominent positions in the pantheon of gods (Yates-Smith, 1998). There was a strong presence of the feminine at the embryonic stage of Māori society.

text: 'Reclaiming the Ancient Feminine in Māori Society.' 'Kei wareware i a tātou te Ūkaipō!' With our constant interface with the threat of globalisation, it is timely that we reflect on the words of an ancient god who advised his brother, Tāne, to return to their mother, Papatūānuku (Best, 1923, p. 111). His words, which translate loosely as ‘lest we forget the Mother who nurtured us at her breast,’ remind us of the importance of considering the feminine, respecting our Earth Mother, and not taking either for granted.

This paper addresses several issues pertaining to the Māori feminine. The discussion of these will begin with a brief reflection on the importance of balance between the male and female in Māori cosmogony and the marginalisation of the feminine as a result of two hundred years of colonisation. The principal focus of the article as a whole will be the last two decades and the efforts made to address some of the negative effects brought about by colonisation, which could be described as forming the first waves in the tide of globalisation.

The key for the ordering of Māori society lay within our cosmogonic beginnings. Recent studies of Māori cosmology reveal that both male and female deities held prominent positions in the pantheon of gods (Yates-Smith, 1998). There was a strong presence of the feminine at the embryonic stage of Māori society.

year: 2003