Search results
1 – 10 of over 10000Recently, the public and academic discussion on elite education and the selection of top performers in Germany has led to a renewed controversy about social exclusion and…
Abstract
Recently, the public and academic discussion on elite education and the selection of top performers in Germany has led to a renewed controversy about social exclusion and inequality. Consequently, the use of terms such as ‘elite’, ‘excellence’ and ‘intellectual giftedness’ have provoked a debate about the necessity, opportunities, and rejection of educational distinctions. This chapter takes a comparative perspective to examine a private boarding school with a rich tradition, and a relatively new state-run public boarding school, examining their status as exclusive educational institutions, including their selection processes, elite aspirations and educational philosophies. The analysis focusses on how the schools construe themselves as elite and how exclusive membership is created and negotiated within the boarding school context. Using a multilevel qualitative approach and empirical data, this chapter offers findings on mechanisms of elite formation in boarding schools between two poles: the reproduction of an existing elite status and the production of elites from scratch. The analyses show the establishment of a distinct composition of students – either selected by milieu affiliation or by cognitive abilities – resulting in specific processes of coherence and distinction within the school communities. Thus, this chapter makes a contribution to a differentiated observation of new educational hierarchies in Germany.
Details
Keywords
Jane W. Gibson and Benjamin J. Gray
To illuminate the underlying logic of western Kansas farmers’ decisions to irrigate at unsustainable rates and the state’s regulatory policies and practices that enable depletion…
Abstract
Purpose
To illuminate the underlying logic of western Kansas farmers’ decisions to irrigate at unsustainable rates and the state’s regulatory policies and practices that enable depletion of the Ogallala aquifer.
Methodology/approach
Ethnographic interviewing of 39 western Kansas farmers, state water management personnel, and archival research.
Findings
Farmers occupy an ambiguous position as petty capitalists who focus attention on their own farms with seasonal planning horizons, and they hold a view of “good stewardship” that melds economic and noneconomic considerations, and that provides a rationale for unsustainable irrigation practices. The state resolves the contradiction between the finite groundwater resource and ideological commitments to economic growth by devolving responsibility for water management to groundwater users.
Research limitations/implications
While the small sample size is likely to be representative of the larger pool of irrigators, further research with other farmers representative of the region will be necessary to verify findings.
Social implications
Depletion of the Ogallala aquifer contributes to farm consolidation and community decline, and the ecological costs will leave future farmers and remaining communities without the benefits of groundwater. Western Kansas will likely have to revert to a system of dryland farming.
Details
Keywords
John W. Lounsbury, James M. Loveland, Lucy W. Gibson and Jacob J. Levy
The purpose of this paper is to investigate differences in personality and career satisfaction between quality managers and workers in other fields based on Person-Environment Fit…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate differences in personality and career satisfaction between quality managers and workers in other fields based on Person-Environment Fit theory.
Design/methodology/approach
Field study: personality and career satisfaction data for 965 quality managers were compared with those for a sample of over 85,000 individuals in many different occupations and employment settings using multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) and t-tests.
Findings
Quality managers were higher than other occupations in intrinsic motivation, tough-mindedness, and conscientiousness, but lower in career satisfaction, optimism, and assertiveness.
Research limitations/implications
This paper does not contain any longitudinal study; there is also a lack of some demographic variables, including race/ethnicity, job tenure, and career tenure.
Practical implications
The findings carry implications for career planning, recruiting, pre-employment testing, training, and helping quality managers navigate through their organizations and careers.
Social implications
Overall, the authors provide a personality profile of quality managers and show that many quality managers have lower career satisfaction than other occupations.
Originality/value
These findings provide an occupational profile of salient personality traits of QC managers which can be used in occupational classification, field identity, and career planning.
Details
Keywords
K.M. Fan, W.L. Cheung and I. Gibson
This paper aims to study the effects of solid additives and compounding processes on the selective laser sintering (SLS) behavior of composite powders.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to study the effects of solid additives and compounding processes on the selective laser sintering (SLS) behavior of composite powders.
Design/methodology/approach
Composite powders were prepared from TrueForm™ acrylic‐styrene co‐polymer and SiO2 powder. Dry mixing and melt extrusion were used as the blending processes to produce the composite powders. Some SiO2 powder was ground and treated with silane coupling agent before blending to study the effects of particle size and surface treatment of the filler, respectively. The temperature of the powder bed was monitored using an infrared thermometer. The fusion behaviors of the powders were investigated in situ using an optical microscope and the sintered specimens were examined by scanning electron microscopy.
Findings
For a given volume fraction of the filler, reducing its particle size will hinder fusion between the polymer particles and weaken the sintered specimens. Surface treatment of the filler by silane coupling agent had little effect on the morphology of the sintered specimens; however, it slightly improved their strength. The blending method plays an important role in the sintering behavior of the composite powders. Although melt blending improved the polymer‐to‐polymer contact between the composite powder particles, the high‐resultant viscosity of the material adversely affected the densification of the powder bed, leading to a highly porous structure of the sintered specimens.
Research limitations/implications
The sintering experiments were conducted in ambient conditions using a laser engraving machine instead of a commercial SLS machine with atmospheric control. The temperature gradient within the powder bed was expected to be higher than that in normal SLS processes.
Practical implications
The SLS behavior of a composite powder not only depends on its composition but also on the powder preparation method or powder morphology.
Originality/value
This paper provides some useful information for future development of composite powders for SLS applications.
Details
Keywords
John W. Lounsbury, Eric D. Sundstrom, Lucy W. Gibson, James M. Loveland and Adam W. Drost
The purpose of this paper is to empirically compare managers with employees in other occupations on Big Five and narrow personality traits to identify a distinctive personality…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to empirically compare managers with employees in other occupations on Big Five and narrow personality traits to identify a distinctive personality profile for managers.
Design/methodology/approach
An archival data set representing employees in a wide range of business sectors and organizations was utilized to compare trait scores of 9,138 managers with 76,577 non-managerial employees. Profile analysis (PA) with MANOVA and analysis of covariance was used to compare managers and non-managers on Big Five traits Openness, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, and Emotional Stability; and narrow traits Assertiveness, Optimism, Work Drive, and Customer Service Orientation.
Findings
As hypothesized, compared to non-managers, managers had significantly higher scores across nine traits, all of which correlated significantly with managerial career satisfaction.
Research limitations/implications
Although job tenure and managerial level are not examined, the findings align with managerial competence models, the Attraction-Selection-Attrition model, and vocational theory and raise questions for research on the adaptive value of these traits for managers’ satisfaction and effectiveness.
Practical implications
The results carry practical implications for selection, placement, training, career planning for managers, and particularly for their professional development.
Social implications
A distinctive personality profile for managers clarifies the occupational identity of managers, which contributes to public and professional understanding of managers and their roles.
Originality/value
This study is original in reporting an empirical, theoretically grounded personality profile of managers that includes both Big Five and narrow traits.
Details
Keywords
J.M. Williamson, A.E. Pemberton and J.W. Lounsbury
This paper aims to investigate whether academic reference librarians, archivists, catalogers, distance education librarians, public librarians, records managers, school…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to investigate whether academic reference librarians, archivists, catalogers, distance education librarians, public librarians, records managers, school librarians, special collections librarians, and systems librarians differ in personality traits measured by the Personal Style Inventory: i.e. adaptability, assertiveness, autonomy, conscientiousness, customer service orientation, emotional resilience, extraversion, openness, optimism, teamwork, tough‐mindedness, visionary/operational work style, and work drive. It also aims to investigate whether personality traits of those in person‐oriented library specialties differ from those in technique‐oriented (technical) library specialties.
Design/methodology/approach
A total of 2,075 librarians/information professionals were surveyed in non‐random sample. The Personal Style Inventory is a normal personality inventory assessing important traits for the world of work. It was used in a two‐step cluster analysis for the data analysis.
Findings
The paper finds that distinct personality traits were associated with the different types of librarians. There was also a “unadaptive” cluster composed of individuals from all specialties. There were distinguishing traits associated with person‐oriented and technique‐oriented specialties.
Research limitations/implications
Results were not generalizable due to the non‐random sample. Gender was not collected. The research has implications for career counseling.
Originality/value
There have been few studies of personality traits in library specialties, none measuring both narrow work trait and broad personality trait variables.
Details
Keywords
John W. Lounsbury, Nancy Foster, Patrick C. Carmody, Ji Young Kim, Lucy W. Gibson and Adam W. Drost
The purpose of the present study is to identify key personality traits which distinguish customer service (CS) employees from other occupations and are related to their career…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of the present study is to identify key personality traits which distinguish customer service (CS) employees from other occupations and are related to their career satisfaction. As hypothesized, 2,610 CS employees were differentiated from other occupational groups by higher levels of conscientiousness, customer service orientation, and lower tough‐mindedness. Conscientiousness, customer service orientation, emotional stability, extraversion, and tough‐mindedness were significantly, positively related to customer service representatives’ (CSRs’) career satisfaction. Results are discussed in terms of the adaptive value of these traits for the recruitment, selection, and management of customer service employees.
Design/methodology/approach
Data for this study were extracted from an archival database containing information on individuals’ many different occupations and industries, including 2,641 CSRs and 76,788 individuals in other occupations. Measures included demographic items and the Big Five personality traits as well six other narrow personality traits.
Findings
As hypothesized, CS employees differed from other occupational groups by having higher levels of conscientiousness, customer service orientation, and lower tough‐mindedness. Also, conscientiousness, customer service orientation, emotional stability, extraversion, and tough‐mindedness were significantly, positively related to career satisfaction. Using hierarchical multiple regression, the Big Five traits (Openness, Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, and Emotional Stability) accounted for 22 percent of the variance in CSR career satisfaction, while the narrow traits added an additional 6 percent.
Originality/value
The findings of the present study are original in that the authors used a relatively large sample to identify key personality traits which distinguish CS employees from other occupations and are related to their career satisfaction. An empirically validated personality profile of CS workers was presented. The typical CS representative is more: conscientious, optimistic, intrinsically motivated, tender‐minded, deferential, conventional, willing to serve other people, and reluctant to work long hours or become workaholics.
Details
Keywords
THE 31st annual meeting of the Library Association passed off very comfortably at Brighton, and if nothing particularly momentous occurred affecting librarianship, everybody…
Abstract
THE 31st annual meeting of the Library Association passed off very comfortably at Brighton, and if nothing particularly momentous occurred affecting librarianship, everybody enjoyed the various entertainments and the breezy weather. Brighton certainly deserved the title to breeziness which it claims, because it was stormy nearly every night or early morning during the run of the Conference, and members must be congratulated on the lucky manner in which it was found possible to dodge the showers.
THE scientist and philosopher will tell us that the mind of man cannot in a lifetime fully grasp and understand any one subject. Consequently it is unreasonable to expect that the…
Abstract
THE scientist and philosopher will tell us that the mind of man cannot in a lifetime fully grasp and understand any one subject. Consequently it is unreasonable to expect that the librarian—who, in spite of popular belief, is but man—can have a complete understanding of every department of knowledge relative to his work. He must, in common with his fellows in other callings, content himself with a more or less general professional knowledge, and may specialize, if he be so disposed, in certain branches of that knowledge. The more restricted this particular knowledge is, the greater will be its value from a specialistic point of view.