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Data were collected from a sample of 262 Korean employees to (a) examine personality correlates of Organizational Citizenship Behaviors (OCBs) motivated by “good soldier” (i.e., prosocial values and organizational concern) and “good actor” (i.e., impression management [IM]) motives and (b) investigate how these OCB motives influenced actual coworker ratings of OCB. Personality variables were measured using the six-dimensional model of personality known as the HEXACO model. As hypothesized, (low) Honesty–Humility is the primary personality dimension underlying IM motivated OCB. Further, Conscientiousness positively related to OCB driven by each of the three motives. Agreeableness, Emotionality, and Openness to Experience also demonstrated relationships with the OCB motives. Second, OCBs for the organizational concern and IM motives, but not for the prosocial values motive, were positively associated with coworker ratings of OCB. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Managing people can be an unanticipated responsibility—suddenly there aren't only collections to care for, but also human beings. Learning what resources and training opportunities are available to hone managerial skills is a task that can't be delayed until a difficult personnel situation develops. Working with supervisors, those we supervise and human resource departments will lead to a better working environment for all members of the archives staff, from administrators to student workers. This article highlights some of the skills and techniques that a manager can utilize to nurture and sustain good working relationships in an archives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes a research project investigating the workplace learning experience of information technology (IT) workers in Hong Kong. The research project explored in depth the workplace learning experiences of 65 IT workers from three different work sites. It went beyond the identification of workplace learning methods and resources workers used at work by probing into the complexities of workplace learning processes and the theoretical issues of workplace learning. A qualitative approach was used, relying primarily on data collected via in-depth interviews. This paper reports that (1). IT workers found troubleshooting, project work and installation of hardware and software, the most likely contexts to produce significant learning; and that (2). the rapid pace of technological growth in the IT industry results in a different learning environment to traditional industries such as tailoring, thus raising questions about the applicability of the notion of the community of practice as proposed by Lave and Wenger (1991). Furthermore, by probing into the processes of known workplace learning methods such as learning from colleagues and vendors, this study uncovered many interesting findings about the workplace learning experience of IT workers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article considers how curricula vitae (C. V.s) reflect and contribute to the social and political conditions of their production. Working with observations of a 2001 workshop in Slovakia on how to write a new style of C. V. and with the related style of life chronicles from personnel files in socialist Czechoslovakia, I argue that this genre's social effects in different economic orders might arise from how authors couple or decouple the referent of a text to other actors in time and space. One ideology that I observed in the workshop encouraged shifts in notions of evidence. Such shifts, I argue, might be furthering the ideological work of creating new forms of personhood and inequality that underlie Slovakia's 'transition' to capitalism. Post-socialist C.V.s and socialist life chronicles appear to rise out of different graphic ideologies that govern how actors see themselves as social subjects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Juggling work and care presents particular challenges to carers and employers. Employers are increasingly under pressure, both from within organizations and from recent government legislation and policy, to develop family-friendly policies to support informal carers in the workplace. Yet existing 'family-friendly' schemes and services are still primarily designed for working parents of young children and rarely address the needs of employees who care for older or disabled adults. This paper reports on a study which investigated how working carers and managers in two public sector organizations - a Social Services Department (SSD) and a National Health Service (NHS) Trust - combined their work and caring responsibilities. A multi-method approach was adopted consisting of five phases. First, a profile of the two organizations was established, followed by a short screening questionnaire to all employees to identify who was caring for an older adult over the age of 60. Third, a lengthier postal survey was sent to the 365 carers who had indicated a willingness to participate further. In the fourth and fifth phases, carers and managers were interviewed in depth about their experiences. This paper reports briefly on the survey, but then concentrates in particular on what was said in the interviews about what helps and hinders working carers of older adults. Despite the existence of policies to support carers, our findings suggest that these were far less important than informal support from colleagues and a sympathetic manager in the workplace. Commuting distance between work, home and the older person also posed difficulties for carers, along with inflexible schedules and work overload. Employers are urged to explore these issues further if they are serious about recruiting and retaining employees, and developing the work - life balance agenda to meet the needs of those caring for older and disabled adults. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When trauma affects a University workforce, health and productivity are compromised, and an organized response can help lessen the emotional impact and accelerate recovery of function. Responding to traumatic events in the workplace has evolved into being the responsibility of many EAPs. The authors present how the Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) model was adapted by their internal EAPs in academic settings at Duke and Vanderbilt to help manage the psychological and occupational ramifications of critical incidents. Outcome data generated from evaluation of Duke's program is presented, which demonstrates the value of the interventions in helping employees manage reactions and in the restoration of personal and occupational functioning. A survey conducted by the authors provides an overview "snapshot" of the active roles that University EAPs have currently in responding to workplace traumas. The survey results underscore the importance of developing a coordinated response and using trained responders, and of the need for additional evaluation of interventions to determine effectiveness of response. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this article is to develop the foundations of a socio-cultural approach and to determine how this shapes our perception of a newcomer’s construction of identity in two different workplaces: a high-technology delivery ward with newly employed midwives and a real estate agency with newly employed real estate agents. We explore how newcomers construct their identity through participation in different communities of practice at work and focus on what kind of learning processes the newcomer must be involved in and how they become involved. The construction of identity is seen as a mutual process between individual disposition (pre-existing identity) and the work structure. We find that initiative and the ability to act in anticipation of future problems or needs are decisive characteristics for how the newcomer learns, and that these are important for the creation of personal knowledge and for the ability to develop a new identity in a new profession. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author examined human-resource professionals' occupation-related and general work experience, socialization from participation in professional activities, organizational size, and perceived independence as predictors of perceptions of organizational politics (POPS). Results varied with the author's use of the overall POPS scale (K. M. Kacmar & G. R. Ferris, 1991) vs. a more specific subscale that measured perceptions related to such issues as pay- and promotion-related politics. It was most notable that work experience appeared to have an inverse relationship with POPS among human-resource professionals in the area of pay and promotions. The author discussed results in relation to the implications and directions for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]