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A survey of three organizations that had been recently acquired was conducted. The three firms were different in size and purpose. Based on the method of carrying out the acquisitions, there were significantly differing results in levels of job satisfaction, reported staying and leaving behavior, and post‐merger productivity. Recommendations concerning Management and, specifically, Human Resources Department interventions are made.

Large-scale organizational change, such as seen through mergers and acquisitions, CEO succession, and corporate entrepreneurship, sometimes is necessary in order to allow firms to be competitive. However, such change can be unsettling to existing employees, producing considerable uncertainty, conflict, politics, and stress, and thus, must be managed very carefully. Unfortunately, to date, little research has examined the relationships among change efforts, perceptions of political environments, and employee stress reactions. We introduce a conceptual model that draws upon sensemaking theory and research to explain how employees perceive and interpret their uncertain environments, the politics in them, and the resulting work stress, after large-scale organizational change initiatives. Implications of our proposed conceptualization are discussed, as are directions for future research.

Background: The introduction of antiviral agents, most particularly ‘highly active antiretroviral therapy’ (HAART), has changed the very nature of the care for persons with HIV and/or AIDS, from preparing patients to die to assisting patients with living with a chronic illness. Despite this dramatic turnaround in prognosis, the limited literature available indicates that these individuals often do not have a high degree of hope for the future. Accordingly, this study seeks to explain how hope might be inspired and maintained in people living long‐term with HIV/AIDS (the so‐called ‘Lazarus Syndrome’). Design: The study used a modified Glaserian grounded theory method and was conducted in the United States of America. A total of 10 participants were selected by means of theoretical sampling. Methods: The study adhered to the principal features of Glaserian Grounded Theory, namely: (a) theory generation, not theory verification; (b) theoretical sampling; (c) the constant comparative method of data analysis; and (d) theoretical sensitivity (searching for/discovering the core variable, one which identifies the key psychosocial process and contains temporal dimensions or stages). Further, the authors ensured that the study was concerned with generating conceptual theory, not conceptual description. Findings/conclusion: The findings indicate that the key psychosocial problem (i.e. the maintenance of hope) is addressed through the core variable, ‘Turning from death to life: finding new meaning’. This parsimonious theory describes and explains a four‐stage process of hope maintenance consisting of the subcore variables: ‘Losing the Ontological Self’, ‘Turning from Death to Life’, ‘Finding Acceptance and Reconciliation’, and ‘Finding New Meaning’.

Depressive disorders are a focus of growing social and economic concern. While antidepressant medications are widely accepted, they are ineffective for nearly 40% of users, and cause numerous adverse drug reactions. The pharmacogenomics of depression attempts to better understand the role of genetic variation in antidepressant metabolism in the hope of improving drug efficacy and tolerability. However, the development and delivery of genome‐based antidepressants face many hurdles. In this paper we provide an overview of the potential impact of the pharmacogenomics of depression on public mental health care by focusing on the social and ethical issues at stake. These include questions about genetic testing, informed consent, drug access, and market fragmentation. We end the paper with a brief discussion of the wider context and how the pharmacogenomics of depression relates to broader trends in psychiatry and biomedicine.

This special “Anbar Abstracts” issue of Employee Relations is split into seven sections covering abstracts under the following headings: Design of Work; Performance, Productivity and Motivation; Patterns of Work; Pay, Incentives and Pensions; Career/Manpower Planning ; Industrial Relations and Participation; Health and Safety.

The purpose of this study is to analyze research output in the naturopathy field at the global level and to examine the various trends in scientific literature available on naturopathy using bibliometric analysis.

The data was collected from the SciVerse Scopus database published from 2000 through 2019. The search was conducted using Medical Subject headings entry terms, i.e. “Naturopathy” OR “Naturopathic Medicine” using the “Document” search option. The search results comprised of documents that had these above search terms in their article title, abstract and keywords. The retrieved documents were then analyzed concerning different parameters like the growth of publications, authorship patterns, productive countries and institutions, highly cited papers, top prolific authors, funding agencies and document types.

The results of this study reveal that a total of 1,099 documents were published during 20-year time span. The most preferred publication type is research articles 683 (62.14%). Germany, USA, Australia, India and Canada were the most productive countries in terms of the number of scientific documents. The findings also show that the most preferred journal in the field of naturopathy is MMW Fortschritte der Medizin, with 115 documents followed by Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine with 58 documents. In contrast, the journal BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine had the highest citations per paper (17.85). For the 20-year study period, the average value for the degree of collaboration was calculated as 0.57, indicating 54% of the total publications in naturopathy were multi-authored. The value of the collaboration coefficient (CC) signifies the levels of multi-authored papers. CC was highest in the year 2019 (0.55) indicating that the publications were contributed in collaboration rather than in isolation and the number of multi-authored/mega-authored papers outnumbered the single authors in the collection of all authors in the year 2019. Bastyr University, USA was the most productive Institution. Journal articles were the most preferred form of publication.

This study traces various trends in the research behavior and preferences of researchers in the field of naturopathy. It thus can be of immense help to identify strong areas in naturopathy research. Further, this study will help the librarians to identify the core/preferred journals in naturopathy. 

This paper makes an endeavor to carry an extensive bibliometric study that provides an overview of emerging trends in naturopathy research.

David Tuffield, former UK marketing manager for Augat/Isotronics, has been appointed European marketing manager to head the company's plans to increase penetration into this expanding hybrid micropackaging industry. He will be responsible for the complete marketing and sales effort for micropackaging products providing the interface between US manufacturing facilities and Augat subsidiary product managers.

In the literature of mergers and social justice, equality is regarded as a crucial phenomenon to achieve social integration. This paper is based on the philosophy that during mergers and acquisitions (M&As), the employees who experience the equal distribution of resources, equal respect to each other’s policies and procedures, and fair and respectful interactions, are more likely to have a sense of control and lower social isolation and hence tend to get influenced positively by the M&A process. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to study the relationship between perceived organizational justice and employee feelings of alienation during post-M&As.

A cross-sectional survey research design has been used. This study was undertaken on a sample of 315 employees from five organizations in India. The quantitative data were subjected to univariate and bivariate analysis, while qualitative data were subjected to relational content analysis. Different dimensions of justice were studied in relation to the feelings of alienation using multiple correlational analysis and hierarchical regression analysis.

Multiple correlational analyses revealed significant negative correlation of perceived organizational justice and of all of its dimensions with all the dimensions of alienation. However, the results of the hierarchical regression analysis found interactional justice and distributive justice to be the major predictors of alienation during M&As. Apart from the quantitative analysis, qualitative analysis also revealed interesting insights, unique to the individual organization.

The study has significant value for both MNCs and researchers. This study has strong implications for the multinational corporations that are making inroads into M&As but consistently failing due to employee issues. This study also presents future directions to the researchers to explore more in the area of soft issues of M&As.

The primary purpose of this article is to examine two alternative approaches for the use of performance appraisals in selecting individuals out of the organization (i.e. to be laid off). A rank‐order approach and a banding approach are compared to provide insight regarding issues associated with each approach.

Literature examining the status of downsizing as an organizational strategy, as well as some of the legal and practical considerations associated with the use of performance appraisals in downsizing decisions is reviewed as a precursor to an illustrated comparison of a rank‐order approach and banding approach to select individuals to be downsized. Actual performance appraisal scores for 106 individuals working in an organization were analyzed for the purposed of the comparative illustration.

The illustrative comparison highlights specific issues associated with using two different approaches for selecting individuals for an organizational downsizing.

To provide a more comprehensive examination of rank‐order and banding approaches for selecting individuals for an organizational downsizing, larger samples from a variety of organizations in different industries would be insightful. Further, organizations considering either approach for the purpose of making downsizing decisions should more closely examine existing case law and legal precedents to insure compliance with appropriate laws.

The article highlights the potential dilemmas faced by organizations using a banding or rank‐order approach in making downsizing decisions.

The paper contributes to a growing body of literature emphasizing the importance of performance appraisals in organizations.

Review paper which draws together the various theoretical and disciplinary strands used in the literature to evaluate downsizing and redundancy. Defines downsizing and redundancy within the organisational context. Explores complexity of the relationships with performance and effectiveness at both organisation and sub‐organisation levels. Evaluates downsizing strategies and implementation methods that organisations may use. Utilises the individual perspective to examine and discuss the consequences of downsizing relative to survivors. Considers the implications of this for managers. Relates theories of equity, organisational justice, job insecurity, job redesign and organisational stress to approaches which may mitigate negative responses to downsizing that impact on organisations’ performance and effectiveness.