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The relationship between perceived participative decision making and employee performance was examined in matched samples of employees from the Hong Kong and U.S. branches of one organization. Self-efficacy in regard to participating in decisions and idiocentrism moderated the relationship between perceived participative decision-making opportunity and individual performance. Perceptions of the participation efficacy of a work unit and allocentrism moderated the relationship between participative decision-making opportunity and group performance. Idiocentrism and allocentrism appeared to explain regional differences in how participative decision making and efficacy perceptions interacted to predict performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: In sub-tropical city of Hong Kong where summer is hot and humid, the usage of outdoor spaces is often hindered due to thermal discomfort. In order to improve the thermal comfort of the outdoor environment and to make urban outdoor spaces delightful places for people to use and enjoy, better understanding of the thermal perception of people is needed. This paper presents the results of an outdoor thermal comfort study conducted in Hong Kong. The findings of the study reveal that air temperature, wind speed and solar radiation intensity are influential factors in determining the thermal sensation of people outdoor. Based on our analysis, the neutral physiological equivalent temperature (PET) in summer in Hong Kong is around 28°C. Under shaded condition, a wind speed of 0.9–1.3m/s is needed for a person in light clothing to achieve neutral thermal sensation in an urban environment. This understanding can contribute towards establishing wind performance standards for thermal comfort in hot and humid tropical and sub-tropical cities. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The article discusses the mandated reporting of key performance indicators by public agencies to public accountability authorities in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Singapore. The author suggests that the existence of these indicators in public agencies' annual reports and budget papers does not necessarily lead to their effective use for decision making. The actual utilization of these indicators for making decisions should be described as careful and cautious. They are still affective because they give symbolic benefits to the government.

The evolution of market-based building environmental assessment methods is explored to show how they are influenced by, and subsequently influence, other systems. Two contexts are considered – Hong Kong and North America – where there are two or more voluntary systems operating in the same market. The dynamic interactions of the coexisting systems are the primary focus rather than the evaluation of the characteristics, strengths and weaknesses of each method individually. While it is clearly difficult to predict how building environmental assessment systems will evolve in the future, or whether coexisting systems will be effective in furthering green building practices, a number of valuable observations can be made. The coexistence of systems can potentially offer a powerful driver for excellence and ease of use or, if there is no clear differentiation, it can confound the market. In practice, the organizational and market context in which the systems operate, the financial and political support they receive, and personal interests and biases are all complicit in their market acceptance and influence. There is a need for a greater understanding of the evolution and relationship between coexisting assessment methods, and for a strategic approach to evaluating changes in the marketplace as a result of their presence. L'auteur étudie ici l'évolution des méthodes d'évaluation environnementale des bâtiments basées sur le marché pour montrer comment elles sont influencées et, par conséquent, comment elles influencent d'autres systèmes. L'auteur étudie deux contextes – Hong Kong et l'Amérique du Nord – où l'on compte au moins deux systèmes volontaristes sur le même marché. Les interactions dynamiques des systèmes coexistants sont plus intéressantes que l'évaluation des caractéristiques des points forts et des points faibles de chaque méthode prise individuellement. Alors qu'il est très difficile de prévoir comment des systèmes d'évaluation environnementale de bâtiments évolueront dans l'avenir ou de savoir comment des systèmes coexistants seront efficaces dans la promotion des pratiques de bâtiments ‘verts’, l'auteur fait un certain nombre d'observations précieuses. La coexistence de systèmes peut être un facteur puissant d'excellence et de facilité d'utilisation ou, s'il n'y a pas de différenciation précise, elle peut être un facteur de confusion pour le marché. En pratique, le contexte organisationnel et commercial dans lequel ces systèmes fonctionnent, le soutien financier et politique qu'ils reçoivent et les intérêts et les partis pris personnels sont tous complices dans leur acceptation et leur influence sur le marché. Il est nécessaire de mieux comprendre l'évolution et les relations entre des méthodes d'évaluation coexistantes et de disposer d'une approche stratégique pour évaluer les changements sur le marché du fait de leur présence. bâtiments, méthodes coexistantes, évaluation environnementale, Amérique du Nord, Hong Kong [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A fire safety ranking system (FSRS), excluding the fire safety management at the moment, is proposed for assessing the fire safety provisions for existing karaoke establishments in Hong Kong. The objective is to investigate how far existing karaokes deviate from the expectation of new codes. Suitable fire safety management can then be worked out based on the scores. There are three attributes in the FSRS grouped as the key parameters for local fire safety requirements, passive building design and active fire protection systems. From the results of a survey carried out in May 2000, fire safety of 19 karaokes is rated by studying their architectural features and interior details. The results are compared with those by the National Fire Protection Association-Fire Safety Evaluation System (NFPA-FSES) on the part on fire safety parameters. Apart from dealing with fire spreading for interior finish, the proposed FSRS and NFPA-FSES are similar. The study of 19 of the existing karaoke establishments shows that the assessed level of fire safety is similar to the result of an assessment using the modified American system of evaluation. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Examines the casual relationship among work conflict, family conflict, job satisfaction, marital satisfaction, life satisfaction and stress, with emphasis on studies conducted among employees of various industries in Hong Kong. Identification of possible factors which influence an individual's work performance; Information on the negative linkage between family conflict and marital satisfaction; Methods used to conduct studies on casual relationships.

Drawing from a cultural values perspective, we investigate the effects of country origins on HR (human resource) practices of firms from the United States, Great Britain, Japan and Hong Kong operating in Hong Kong. In general, results supported hypothesized differences in HR practices of firms from different countries. In addition, results indicated that HR practices, specifically structural training and development and retention-oriented compensation, were related to various measures of firm performance. Of further interest was the finding that country origin moderated relationships of HR practices with firm performance; in general, relationships of structural training and development and retention-oriented compensation were stronger for Hong Kong firms. Implications of the results are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The construction industry is commonly believed to have slow growth in labour productivity. This belief is partly due to the labour intensive nature of the construction process and partly due to the inherent difficulty the industry has in adopting labour saving technologies such as the production line technique due to the one-off nature of construction projects. The 'fragmented' structure of the industry and its apparent stagnant technological progress further strengthens this belief. However, on the other hand, it can also he argued that a 'fragmented' structure facilitates the division of labour and therefore enhances the productive efficiency of labour. Furthermore, the labour intensive nature of the construction process simply means that output (in value added terms) per unit of labour, at any point in time, is likely to be lower than that in the economy. This however does not necessarily imply that growth in labour productivity in the construction industry over time will be also lower than that of the economy. Whether labour productivity growth in the construction industry compares favourably with that in the economy is purely an empirical question which this paper attempts to investigate. It presents a simple method of estimating the relative labour productivity (RLP) trend of the construction industry (labour productivity of the construction industry relative to that of the economy) from national accounting data. The method is then used to derive the trend of RLP in Hong Kong's construction industry. The results do not support the common belief that labour productivity in the construction industry grows at a slower rate compared with that in the economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]