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The role of evidence-based psychological knowledge in cases of juvenile offending is essential to make appropriate decisions relating to youth who violate legal or social norms, as it carries implications for treatment, intervention and practice. Psychological expert opinions therefore need to meet high formal and methodological requirements while maintaining ethical standards. The purpose of this study is to investigate psychological expert opinions in cases of juvenile misbehavior reported to regional courts in Poland. Juvenile court proceedings concern cases of demoralization and/or delinquent offenses. Demoralization is a legal concept described in the Act of June 9, 2022 on juvenile support and resocialization. This concept was not defined; it was only described through examples of behaviors indicating demoralization. These include the following: violations of the principles of community life; evading compulsory education or schooling; use of alcohol, narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances, their precursors, substitutes or new psychoactive substances; and prostitution.

To reach these goals, court records of juvenile cases in six district courts (N = 253) were gathered and analyzed. A semistructured questionnaire was used to examine the cases in which psychologists were appointed and to analyze the procedures used by these experts for assessing adolescents and their families.

Findings revealed that family judges appoint psychologists both in cases of “demoralization” (i.e. status offenses) and in cases of juvenile delinquency. The opinions were delivered by psychologists who were mostly members of diagnostic teams. Results indicate that such opinions generally comply with the minimal standards recommended by the Ministry of Justice, yet a few problems were observed with the determination of levels of demoralization.

The limitations of diagnostic tools used by psychologists are discussed, and recommendations for future practice are provided.

In this paper, the authors aim to clarify the relationship between organization and society. They argue that the proliferation of organization in modernity has not yet been properly understood in light of the absence of organization in premodern times. The authors therefore ask: Why do organizations proliferate? Why do they proliferate in such manifold organizational forms? And how can these heterogeneous forms nevertheless be related to a common problem to which organizations provide a solution? A comparative historical analysis based on the theory of social systems reveals that organizations fill a gap which the decline of morality as an integrative success medium created.

The paper develops a conceptual framework focusing on the theory of media within Luhmann’s theory of social systems as a point of departure. The authors discuss the concept of “interpenetration” to assess the relation between morality and organization. They raise several follow-up questions for future empirical research, most prominently pertaining to the relationship between organization and digitalization.

The main finding is that morality can be conceptualized as a specific success medium (alongside religion and symbolically generalized communication media) which used to structure premodern societies by means of social and interhuman interpenetration at once. Modern society instead employs two differentiated forms of interpenetration: Social interpretation through organizations and interhuman interpenetration through love relationships. These centripetal counterforces help to mediate the centrifugal forces unleashed by the full development of modern success media. Modern society critically depends on the proliferation of organizations.

This paper examines the relationship between morality and organization not from the perspective of interaction or organization, but from the perspective of society. This approach provides novel insights in that it opens up promising avenues of comparison between organization and other social forms. Understanding the distinctively modern “success story” of organization as a social form makes it possible to ask about corresponding potentials and limitations, but also alternative possibilities. In doing so, the authors depart from most studies of organizations grounded in social systems theory as the authors primarily focus on Luhmann’s theory of media (as opposed to the theory of differentiation).

The remaining question about reactions to unemployment for this group was whether they passed through the same phases of shock, optimism, pessimism and acceptance suggested in previous studies. Harrison referred to doubt beginning within three weeks, demoralisation starting by the 11th week and beginning to settle by the 17th week, about four months. Hill suggested that “after nine months to a year out of work the individual tends to settle down to a life of unemployment”. Fifteen of the men in this sample had been unemployed for between two and six months, two for eight or nine months, and three for between one and two years. Most had passed through the shock phase, but none really had reached the pessimism or acceptance stage. A few did go through spells of pessimism about getting another job, but this could not be taken as permanent pessimism. Few had reached the stage of accepting a lower job or salary. On the basis of their self report, either this group was not going through the same phases as previously reported for blue collar workers or they were going through them at a much slower pace. The evidence suggested that as a result of several factors, the latter was the case.

This paper seeks to examine how organizations can not only survive the effects of a downturn by taking a strategic approach, but also use this opportunity to emerge from uncertain times leaner, fitter and better able to adapt to new market conditions. The paper includes contributions from Mark Goodridge, CEO, Louise Earle, Jane‐Catherine Hartshorn, Martyn Sakol and Mike Thackray, all at ER Consultants, which specializes in organization behavior change.

Thie paper draws on research and the experience of ER Consultants in the field to examine how organizations can successfully deal with a downturn and positively approach a reorganization situation.

The secret is not to fall into the trap of knee‐jerk reorganization. Reorganization can be a wonderful way of creating an illusion of progress while producing only confusion, inefficiency and demoralization. This is not to deny that change is sometimes necessary – it is just that organizations need to be strategic and choose the right architecture. Successful reorganizations require trust that is built on respect and timely communication, as well as energized leaders and strategic responses that eliminate actions based on panic. Successful high performance organizations get through tough times by avoiding laying people off, cutting funding or reducing investment in core parts of the business unless it is absolutely necessary. Instead they are innovative about retaining talent in order to gain competitive advantage when market conditions improve and create an energizing environment.

In a credit crunch environment it can be all too easy for external factors and concerns to drain the positive energy that forms the powerhouse of a successful organization. As recent research has demonstrated, leadership energy can be directly linked to customer satisfaction, absenteeism, turnover, employee energy levels and, therefore, bottom‐line results. The ability to boost energy in the workplace provides significant competitive advantage by helping to retain and motivate staff.

This paper has been written in the style of a provocative essay. This paper aims to show how neo-liberalism has become the leading “policy doctrine” in higher education (HE) systems across the globe. This has put increasing systemic political and economic pressure on many universities which not only undermine but also “colonize” the Lebenswelt or “lifeworld” (Habermas, 1987) of academics.

This study draws on concrete empirical examples based on the authors’ subjective experiences within the higher educational sector and secondary sources.

The authors highlight and illustrate how the increasing dominance of “neo-liberal science” principles (Lave et al., 2010) severely damage the quality of knowledge production and working conditions of ordinary academics in both national and international academic communities.

This paper provides insights into the practical implications of the spread of “neo-liberal science” principles on the work and employment of academics.

The authors aim to trigger critical discussion concerning how emancipatory principles of teaching and research can be brought back into the Lebenswelt of academics to reverse some of the destructive effects to which this paper refers to.

This paper aims to explore the ways in which recent “managerial” changes in Australian universities affect academics' experiences of their working lives; and the significance of time and space in academics' resistance to managerialism.

This paper draws on interviews with 27 academics from eight Australian universities, in which they explored their experiences of managerialism. The analysis reported here focuses on academics' experiences of time and space in the managerial university. A Foucauldian approach to power and resistance underpins the overall research approach employed in this study.

The paper finds that academics in this study argued that managerial practices in their universities imposed significant time‐burdens in already full workloads. However, many of them also employed time and space – often in highly creative way – in resisting these same practices. Much of this resistance involves academics “fiddling” time and space from themselves in order to fulfil their obligations as teachers and research. Such resistance has implications for further academic demoralisation and burnout.

While other studies have acknowledged academics' opposition to managerialism in their universities, this study focus specifically on the ways in which this opposition is enacted in resistance.

Performance evaluations (appraisals) have been blamed for everything from team destruction to personal demoralization. The problem is not the concept of performance evaluation but the way they have been implemented. This technical report provides a sound path to effect constructive appraisals.

Spiritual intelligence (SQi) plays a vital part in deepening leadership effectiveness and staff performance in the public sector. Spiritually intelligent leaders (SQLs) use SQi to develop leadership skills beyond just emotional intelligence.

Studies of the characteristics of those commonly recognised as outstanding leaders consistently identify skills and qualities relating to the spirit or soul. The SQi metric identifies 21 such attributes and the ways in which they can be developed at five levels of competence. Their conscious deployment of four cornerstone skills keeps them focused and effective, motivates their staff and produces more effective results.

This paper provides concrete explanations of the attributes of the SQL and expands on how these are key antidotes to dealing with the most frequently reported common leadership dilemma: demoralisation and loss of meaning.

This paper will be of immediate value and practical application to those in public sector leadership roles who wish to develop their own leadership skills and the commitment of their staff.

Previous studies of unemployment have suggested that when work disappears, knowing what to do with yourself becomes progressively more difficult, inactivity settling in after the initial reaction, bringing with it boredom, demoralisation and further inactivity. The studies suggested that it had become a major problem within the six‐month period that most of these men had been unemployed. One explanation given was that, particularly for blue collar workers, the problem derived from having too little experience of leisure, another that to have to rely exclusively one's own initiative for all structure and purposeful activity, as the unemployed do, might be just too demanding psychologically. The first would suggest that people could learn to use time themselves, the second that some kind of outside organisation is necessary. Hence, the question arose as to whether a sample of white collar managers and professional workers in 1980 coped with the problem differently or better.

Performance evaluations (appraisals) have been blamed for everything from team destruction to personal demoralization. The problem is not the concept of performance evaluation but the way they have been implemented. This technical report provides a sound path to effect constructive appraisals.