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1 – 10 of 30Niki A. Rust, Emilia Noel Ptak, Morten Graversgaard, Sara Iversen, Mark S. Reed, Jasper R. de Vries, Julie Ingram, Jane Mills, Rosmarie K. Neumann, Chris Kjeldsen, Melanie Muro and Tommy Dalgaard
Soil quality is in decline in many parts of the world, in part due to the intensification of agricultural practices. Whilst economic instruments and regulations can help…
Abstract
Soil quality is in decline in many parts of the world, in part due to the intensification of agricultural practices. Whilst economic instruments and regulations can help incentivise uptake of more sustainable soil management practices, they rarely motivate long-term behavior change when used alone. There has been increasing attention towards the complex social factors that affect uptake of sustainable soil management practices. To understand why some communities try these practices whilst others do not, we undertook a narrative review to understand how social capital influences adoption in developed nations. We found that the four components of social capital – trust, norms, connectedness and power – can all influence the decision of farmers to change their soil management. Specifically, information flows more effectively across trusted, diverse networks where social norms exist to encourage innovation. Uptake is more limited in homogenous, close-knit farming communities that do not have many links with non-farmers and where there is a strong social norm to adhere to the status quo. Power can enhance or inhibit uptake depending on its characteristics. Future research, policy and practice should consider whether a lack of social capital could hinder uptake of new practices and, if so, which aspects of social capital could be developed to increase adoption of sustainable soil management practices. Enabling diverse, collaborative groups (including farmers, advisers and government officials) to work constructively together could help build social capital, where they can co-define, -develop and -enact measures to sustainably manage soils.
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As institutional theory increasingly looks to the micro-level for explanations of macro-level institutional processes, institutional scholars need to pay closer attention to the…
Abstract
As institutional theory increasingly looks to the micro-level for explanations of macro-level institutional processes, institutional scholars need to pay closer attention to the role of emotions in invigorating institutional processes. I argue that attending to emotions is most likely to enrich institutional analysis, if scholars take inspiration from theories that conceptualize emotions as relational and inter-subjective, rather than intra-personal, because the former would be more compatible with institutional theory’s relational roots. I review such promising theories that include symbolic interactionism, psychoanalytic and psychodynamic perspectives, moral psychology, and social movements. I conclude by outlining several possible research questions that might be inspired by attending to the role of emotions in institutional processes. I argue that such research can enrich the understanding of embedded agency, power, and the use of theorization by institutional change agents, as well as introduce a hereto neglected affective facet into the study of institutional logics.
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This chapter looks into unpleasant affective states, or rather “dreaded emotions,” in leadership. Specifically, the adaptive roles and functions of fear, anger, and sadness are…
Abstract
Purpose
This chapter looks into unpleasant affective states, or rather “dreaded emotions,” in leadership. Specifically, the adaptive roles and functions of fear, anger, and sadness are reviewed and discussed in a leadership context.
Design
The social functions of fear, anger, and sadness are first presented. Following each emotion, the target of emotional expression – both other-directed (i.e., targeting followers and/or emotion-eliciting events) and self-directed (i.e., targeting leader) – is further discussed.
Findings
A symmetrical assumption has emerged over recent years that positive emotions result in positive outcomes and negative emotions lead to negative outcomes. In practice, the realities of organizational life and leader–follower interactions do not reflect such a neat juxtaposition. Positively valenced emotions can yield negative outcomes, and negatively valenced emotions can bring about positive outcomes.
Research Implications
Unpleasant emotions – fear and sadness, in particular – remain understudied in organizational and leadership literature, even though leaders experience these emotions just like the rest of us. This review offers ideas, through the combination of psychological and leadership research, on how social functions of dreaded emotions, including fear, anger, and sadness, can yield desirable leadership outcomes.
Originality/Value
This chapter provides a review on unpleasant emotions (i.e., fear, anger, and sadness) that are rarely discussed and underresearched in leadership literature.
Noel Scott, Brent Moyle, Ana Cláudia Campos, Liubov Skavronskaya and Biqiang Liu
Hester van Sprang, Jasper Driessen and Brenda Groen
This study aims to explore modern learning (ML) scenarios in Dutch higher education towards 2030 and corresponding consequences for facility management (FM) and corporate real…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to explore modern learning (ML) scenarios in Dutch higher education towards 2030 and corresponding consequences for facility management (FM) and corporate real estate strategies (CRES) of universities of applied sciences (UAS).
Design/methodology/approach
The designing an accommodation strategy model is used to retrieve the match between demand and supply in real estate of Dutch UAS for both present and future. Application of this model resulted in a scenario-planning session with six education experts to determine future demand in education towards 2030. Subsequently, corporate real estate (CRE) managers of nine Dutch UAS were interviewed concerning this subject (one per UAS).
Findings
The results show that CRES of Dutch UAS is only partly aligned to consequences of ML scenarios towards 2030. Most UAS have real estate portfolios that are only partially flexible, so changes in qualitative and quantitative demand due to ML scenarios are not easy to adapt to. The consequences for FM and real estate of the ML scenarios “institute learning” and “mass customization” seem manageable for Dutch UAS, whereas the other ML scenarios, namely, “navigator” and “natural learning”, would create major portfolio problems.
Originality/value
There is an ongoing interest in developments in higher education combined with FM and CRES and its alignment with the corporate vision. Previous studies into modern ways of learning mainly focused on the past and present. However, this study is explorative and explores possible future ML scenarios. These scenarios can contribute to awareness amongst UAS in The Netherlands and abroad regarding their long-term vision. Moreover, these scenarios will help Dutch UAS facility and CRE managers to develop a more future-proof strategic real estate strategy aligned with the corporate vision.
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Jacquelien van Stekelenburg and Teodora Gaidytė
Social inequality is a key recurring theme animating various protest movements over the past decade. Take, for example, the Occupy Wall Street movement conceived by many as a new…
Abstract
Social inequality is a key recurring theme animating various protest movements over the past decade. Take, for example, the Occupy Wall Street movement conceived by many as a new global movement phenomenon. Others, however, maintain that these demonstrations displayed characteristics typical of “old” social movements. We argue that in order to understand differences between old and new movements, it is necessary to compare Occupy protests with other contemporaneous anti-austerity protests, as demonstrators in both protested against stark inequality following the financial meltdown. To do so, we rely on the Caught in the Act of Protest data where data were collected at actual demonstrations at Occupy protests and anti-austerity protests between 2009 and 2012. We examine sociodemographics (the who of protest), motivational dynamics (the why of protest), and mobilization dynamics (the how of protest). We find that the two types of demonstrations brought different crowds into the streets. Occupy protesters were younger, higher educated, and much less involved in formal organizations compared to anti-austerity demonstrators. Moreover, Occupiers were more dissatisfied with democracy. Finally, we discuss these findings against contemporary anti-inequality mobilization. We argue that political entrepreneurs on the (populist) left and/or the right will politicize current inequality-related grievances and mobilize people in the streets and/or at the voting booth.
The aim of this paper is to assess highly toxic leaders and dysfunctional organizations as presented via management consulting and executive coaching assignments.
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of this paper is to assess highly toxic leaders and dysfunctional organizations as presented via management consulting and executive coaching assignments.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper employs an action research approach via two participant observer case studies incorporating the DSM IV‐TR: Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders.
Findings
The paper finds that the nexus of dysfunctional organizational systems may be located in “pre‐existing” leadership pathologies.
Research limitations/implications
First, additional research will be needed to confirm and extend the findings of individual pathologies in leaders to dysfunctional organizational systems; second, a closer look is necessary at the applicability of the DSM IV‐TR to pathologies at the organizational level; third, due to the action research, case study approach utilized, there is somewhat limited generalizability; fourth, there are limitations re: the applicability of DSM IV‐TR as an assessment tool for management researchers due to the necessity of training in clinical psychology.
Practical implications
The importance of distinguishing personality disorders in leaders from toxic behaviors falling within a range of “normal pathology,” and the ability to assess individual leadership pathology within organizational systems via the clinically trained usage of the DSM IV‐TR; providing clinical assessment tools for reducing the number of misdiagnoses of leadership pathology in the workplace; encouraging collaboration between management and psychology researchers and practitioners.
Originality/value
This paper fills a gap in the toxic organizations research by identifying personality disorders in leaders and providing an action research agenda for incorporating the DSM IV‐TR as a means of extending the repertoire of assessment tools;
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Eve Fine, Jennifer Sheridan, Molly Carnes, Jo Handelsman, Christine Pribbenow, Julia Savoy and Amy Wendt
We discuss the implementation of workshops for faculty search committees at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. A central focus of the workshops is to introduce faculty to…
Abstract
Purpose
We discuss the implementation of workshops for faculty search committees at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. A central focus of the workshops is to introduce faculty to research on the influence of unconscious bias on the evaluation of job candidates and to recommend evidence-based strategies for minimizing this bias. The workshops aim to help universities achieve their goals of recruiting excellent and diverse faculty.
Methodology
With basic descriptive statistics and a simple logistic regression analysis, we utilize several datasets to examine participants’ responses to the workshop and assess changes in the percentage of women who receive offers and accept positions.
Findings
Faculty members are becoming aware of the role bias can play in evaluating faculty applicants and are learning strategies for minimizing bias. In departments where women are underrepresented, workshop participation is associated with a significant increase in the odds of making a job offer to a woman candidate, and with a non-significant increase in the odds of hiring a woman.
Limitations
This study is limited by our inability to assess the diversity of the applicant pools our faculty search committees recruit and by lack of control over the myriad other factors that influence hiring. Data are from a single institution and therefore these results may not generalize to other universities.
Originality/value
Educating faculty search committees about the role of unconscious bias and presenting them with evidence-based strategies for minimizing its influence promotes changes that contribute to increasing representation of women faculty.
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The article draws on a mixed method study of US airline pilots in order to examine the impact of corporate downsizing on pilots' trust, morale, and organizational commitment. The…
Abstract
Purpose
The article draws on a mixed method study of US airline pilots in order to examine the impact of corporate downsizing on pilots' trust, morale, and organizational commitment. The aim of the paper is to review current literature on downsizing and high‐risk teams and to identify gaps in the understanding of how external influences like downsizing can impact high‐risk team's operational performance through an increase in mistakes, distraction, and stress.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were obtained from 127 in depth pilot survey responses from captains and first officers from major US airlines and 43 semi‐structured interviews of one to two hours in length.
Findings
Commercial pilots working in downsized airlines reported increased stress, distraction, and suspicion with a corresponding reduction in trust, morale, and organizational commitment.
Research limitations/implications
The article contributes to the literature in corporate downsizing and high‐risk team performance. Insights from these areas provide a lens by which to evaluate post‐9/11 managerial decision‐making in one high‐risk field, aviation, with implications for leadership in other fields of risky work.
Originality/value
Although research examining leadership and teamwork in high‐risk fields has been growing, few studies consider managerial decisions and the resultant organizational climate within which these teams must operate, particularly in the post‐9/11 period. Findings suggest that this is a unique, emerging area that warrants further research.
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