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1 – 10 of over 2000Kerry Hendricks, Nick Deal, Albert J. Mills and Jean Helms Mills
The purpose of this study is to draw attention to the heuristic value of intersectionality by historicizing it as a framework appropriate for the use of studying discrimination…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to draw attention to the heuristic value of intersectionality by historicizing it as a framework appropriate for the use of studying discrimination and discriminatory practices in organizations over time.
Design/methodology/approach
Utilizing a fusion between amodernist historiography vis-à-vis the nascent ANTi-History approach and intersectional complexity, the authors draw upon historical narratives from archival materials British Airways to empirically examine the utility of, and turn to, intersectional history in historical organization studies.
Findings
Analysis of archival materials and commissioned corporate histories revealed subjectivities of socially constructing historicized intersectional identities. This suggests that certain identities have been and continue to “enjoy” privilege while others are marginalized and/or neglected through serial interconnected historical meanings. These processes of privileging and marginalization rely on the way a nexus of meaning is configured.
Research limitations/implications
The research process relied and is dependent on limited archival materials within a single organization (British Airways) and industry (civil aviation). The critique herein should not be misinterpreted as judgment of the airline itself as an exemplar of discriminatory practices but rather for its longevity as an ongoing concern; its rich, colonialist history within the United Kingdom and accessibility of data. Archival traces are housed within a semi-public corporate archive which means those traces available for study have been professional and rhetorically curated.
Practical implications
From the perspective of workplace diversity, our aim has been to reveal to diversity professionals and activists not only the role of history in shaping discrimination but also, in particular, to be alert to the processes whereby the production of knowledge of the past takes place. The authors hope also to have drawn attention to the power of organizations in the generation of discriminatory historical accounts and the need to further explore how such accounts are produced as knowledge of the past. Finally, the authors introduce the notion of “nexus of meaning” to suggest that in the complexity of intersectionality, the authors need to explore not only how people experience different and combined forms of discrimination but also how those experiences are shaped in a complex series of meaning that owe much to past experiences.
Social implications
The research directs attention to the nexus of meaning that constitute intersecting identities.
Originality/value
The research attempts to historicize intersectionality as a qualitative framework worthy of consideration in management and organization studies. From the perspective of studying discrimination in organizational life, the aim of this paper is to bring forward the role history plays in shaping discrimination as well as the processes whereby the production of knowledge of the past takes place. Attention is also drawn to the power of organizations in the generation of discriminatory historical accounts and the need to further explore how such accounts are produced. This study introduces the nexus of meaning analytic that understands how the experiences of different and combined forms of discrimination are shaped by meanings of the past.
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Patrick Primeaux realized that the ethical story is far more complicated than the tale of individual responsibility we typically spin for our students. Pat brought pop culture…
Abstract
Patrick Primeaux realized that the ethical story is far more complicated than the tale of individual responsibility we typically spin for our students. Pat brought pop culture (e.g. Bruce Springsteen) (Primeaux, 1996) into business ethics precisely because he knew that culture shapes each of us in myriad ways, creating habits, expectations and outlooks we then bring to the workplace. In his book Reinterpreting the American Dream: Persons and Ethics, Pat showed how American culture encourages us to concentrate all of our energy into work and the pursuit of wealth and distinction (Primeaux, 2000). Pat also realized that institutions knowingly or unwittingly shape the kind of experiences individuals have and that these experiences directly inform our consciousness and, hence, our behaviour within organizations (Primeaux, 1992).
A recent novel – A. D. Miller's Snowdrops – does a wonderful job of exploring psychic and cultural dynamics and in the process raises some troubling questions of where responsibility for wrongdoing lies. This essay uses Miller's book to explore from a psychological viewpoint how and why employees who are sent abroad by multinational corporations (MNCs) may get involved in local corruption; to show why personal integrity requires external support if agents are to be able to do the right thing; and to raise the issue of what sort of responsibilities MNCs have to the employees whom they send abroad.
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This chapter sets out to examine the topic of a spatial analysis of urban crime through an analysis of David Simon’s seminal television series The Wire. By developing an analysis…
Abstract
This chapter sets out to examine the topic of a spatial analysis of urban crime through an analysis of David Simon’s seminal television series The Wire. By developing an analysis of the issues that are presented in the series, issues such as race, ethnicity and representation will be addressed in order to add to the understanding of these topics in relation to race and media representations. Each section will address a set of themes which are evident in The Wire. The chapter highlights the idea of race in the series and how characters are presented on screen. The research is also concerned with economic issues depicted in the series and the effect of the economy on the characters in Baltimore, the U.S. city in which The Wire was set.
The conclusion of the chapter addresses poverty class and inequality as topics and sets out to document these themes in relation to race. The third chapter also discusses the racism and discrimination that is apparent in The Wire. By contextualising the series, the book is attempting to theorise relevant issues surrounding race, gender and power through an examination of relevant literature and the development of a theoretical framework from which key issues will be addressed.
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Nicholous M. Deal, Christopher M. Hartt and Albert J. Mills
The purpose of this article is to consider how project leadership knowledge and behaviour influence project team trust and social capital development and use in the context of a…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this article is to consider how project leadership knowledge and behaviour influence project team trust and social capital development and use in the context of a global HR information systems project.
Design/methodology/approach
A comparative interpretive case study approach was used, including interviews (n=45) and participant observation with members at all levels of the two examined projects. Interpretive patterns from situated activities enabled inferences to be drawn about different types of project leader (PL) knowledge and behaviours and trust and the bridging and bonding aspects of social capital.
Findings
PLs need to apply knowledge in three areas in order for trust to develop within the project team (external leadership, internal leadership and hybrid leadership), which in turn is a necessary pre‐condition for the development and exploitation of social capital, a significant influence on project success.
Research limitations/implications
The choice of two extreme cases (one where trust did not develop and one where trust did) means that further research is needed to corroborate the findings in order to make generalisations.
Practical implications
The study highlights ways in which a PL can foster the development of trust in the context of complex cross‐cultural, cross‐functional IS project teams. The study identifies how there are different types of trust that need to be generated and how this depends on good internal, external and hybrid PL leadership.
Originality/value
The study highlights the importance of different types of trust for being able to exploit social capital at the project level that has not been studied explicitly in the literature.
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Gail L. Rein and Clarence A. Ellis
Reinterprets data from an empirical study conducted in 1987 –the Nick Experiment – concerned with the interaction betweentechnology, team and task. Combines data with anecdotal…
Abstract
Reinterprets data from an empirical study conducted in 1987 – the Nick Experiment – concerned with the interaction between technology, team and task. Combines data with anecdotal evidence. Reports gains in meetings quality and effectiveness. Comments on the potential effectiveness of the messaging facility on the electronic workstations and the electronic blackboard. Comments strongly on the value of field experiments and case studies – as opposed to controlled experiments – to obtain realistic data.
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An interesting article by Nick Smith, Head of Information Services at Aston University, appears in Information World Review, No. 65, December 1991, pp. 21–3. The underlying…
Abstract
An interesting article by Nick Smith, Head of Information Services at Aston University, appears in Information World Review, No. 65, December 1991, pp. 21–3. The underlying strategy at Aston is not to have an archival library, but to supplement a core collection to meet the immediate needs of staff and students by a wide range of self‐service electronic information sources, interlibrary loans and, eventually, electronic document delivery. There are clearly many problems to be solved, such as the extent to which training in use of the electronic services should (or could) be given, how it is all to be paid for, and even whether the alternative to books and periodicals is entirely acceptable to users. Nick Smith believes that data producers should be willing to offer massive discounts to academic users with unlimited access deals, but it seems evident that as the economic situation worsens attitudes have hardened, driving the university to rely on CD‐ROM‐based network services rather than on‐line sources. Downloading problems evidently cause far more trouble and requests for help than does search strategy. Lack of requests for help on search strategy may, however, be giving false impression that all is well. Users whose search capability is limited could still be receiving information which appears satisfactory to them although an experienced searcher could find much more on the same topics.