DISAGREEING OVER EVALUATIVES: PREFERENCE, NORMATIVE AND MORAL DISCOURSE

Abstract Why would we argue about taste, norms or morality when we know that these topics are relative to taste preferences, systems of norms or values to which we are committed? Yet, disagreements over these topics are common in our evaluative discourses. I will claim that the motives to discuss rely on our attitudes towards the standard held by the speakers in each domain of discourse, relating different attitudes to different motives -mainly, conviction and correction. These notions of attitudes and motives will allow me to claim that different domains of evaluative discourse have a different distribution of disagreements driven by them.

Commitment to military service among Finnish conscripts

This research establishes the primary components, predictors, and consequences of organizational commitment in the military context. Specifically, the research examines commitment to the military service among Finnish conscripts and whether initial affective commitment prior to service predicts later commitment, attitudes, behavior, and performance, and, furthermore, analyzes the changes in commitment and its possible outcomes. The data were collected from records as well as by surveys from 1,387 rank and file soldiers, immediately after they reported for duty, near the end of basic training, and near the end of 6 to 12 months of service. The data covered a wide array of predictor variables, including background items, attitudes toward conscription, mental and physical health, sociability, training quality, and leadership. Moreover, the archival data included such items as rank, criminal record, performance ratings, and the number of medical examines and exemptions. The measures were further refined based on the results of factor analysis and reliability tests. The results indicated that initial commitment significantly corresponded with expected adjustment, intentions to stay in the military, and acceptance of authority. Moreover, initial commitment moderately related to personal growth, perceived performance, and the number of effective service days at the end of service. During basic training, affective commitment was mostly influenced by challenging training, adjustment experiences, regimentation, and unit climate. At the end of service, committed soldiers demonstrated more personal growth and development in service, had higher-level expected performance, and less malingering during their service. Additionally, they had significantly more positive attitudes toward national defense. The results suggest that affective commitment requires adequate personal adjustment, experiences of personal growth and development, and satisfaction with unit dynamics and training. This research contributes to the theoretical discussion on organizational commitment and the will to defend the nation and advances developing models to support and manage conscript training, education, leadership, and personnel policy. This is achieved by determining the main factors and variables, including their relative strength, that affect commitment to the military service. These findings may also facilitate in designing programs aimed at reducing unwanted discharges and inadequate performance. In particular, these results provide tools for improving conscripts’ overall attachment to and identification with the military service.

System-wide approaches to uncover Th2 cell lineage commitment

T helper (Th) cells are vital regulators of the adaptive immune system. When activated by presentation of cognate antigen, Th cells demonstrate capacity to differentiate into functionally distinct effector cell subsets. The Th2 subset is required for protection against extracellular parasites, such as helminths, but is also closely linked to pathogenesis of asthma and allergies. The intracellular molecular signal transduction pathways regulating T helper cell subset differentiation are still incompletely known. Moreover, great majority of studies regarding Th2 differentiation have been conducted with mice models, while studies with human cells have been fewer in comparison. The goal of this thesis was to characterize molecular mechanisms promoting the development of Th2 phenotype, focusing specifically on human umbilical cord blood T cells as an experimental model. These primary cells, activated and differentiated to Th2 cells in vitro, were investigated by complementary system-wide approaches, targeting levels of mRNA, proteins, and lipid molecules. Specifically, the results indicated IL4-regulated recruitment of nuclear protein, and described novel components of the Th2-promoting STAT6 enhanceosome complex. Furthermore, the development of the activated effector cell phenotype was found to correlate with remodeling of the cellular lipidome. These findings will hopefully advance the understanding of human Th2 cell lineage commitment and development of Th2-associated disease states.

De-escalation of commitment management strategy in IT project management methodology: case of ERP implementation project by IT consulting company

According to several surveys and observations, the percentage of successfully conducted IT projects without over-budgeting and delays in time schedule are extremely low. Many projects also are evaluated as failures in terms of delivered functionality. Nuldén (1996) compares IT projects with bad movies; after watching for 2 hours, one still tries to finish it even though one understands that it is a complete waste of time. The argument for that is 'I've already invested too much time to terminate it now'. The same happens with IT projects: sometimes the company continues wasting money on these projects for a long time, even though there are no expected benefits from these projects. Eventually these projects are terminated anyway, but until this moment, the company spends a lot. The situation described above is a consequence of “escalation of commitment” - project continuation even after a manager receives negative feedback of the project’s success probability. According to Keil and Mähring (2010), even though escalation can occur in any type of project, it is more common among complex technological projects, such as IT projects. Escalation of commitment very often results in runaway projects. In order to avoid it, managers use de-escalation strategies, which allow the resources to be used in more effective. These strategies lead to project termination or turning around, which stops the flow of wasted investments. Numbers of researches explore escalation of commitment phenomena based on experiments and business cases. Moreover, during the last decade several frameworks were proposed for de-escalation strategy. However, there is no evidence of successful implementation of the de-escalation of commitment strategy in the literature. In addition, despite that fact that IT project management methodologies are widely used in the companies, none of them cover the topic of escalation of commitment risks. At the same time, there are no researches proposing the way to implement de-escalation of commitment strategy into the existing project management methodology The research is focused on a single case of large ERP implementation project by the consulting company. Hence, the main deliverables of the study include suggestions of improvement in de-escalation methods and techniques in the project and in the company. Moreover, the way to implement these methods into existing project management methodology and into the company general policies is found.

Johtamisen, kommunikaation ja organisaation oikeudenmukaisuuden vaikutus sitoutumiseen ICT-alan organisaatiossa ja sitouttamisen keinot

Organisaatioon sitoutuminen on organisaation kannalta kriittinen ilmiö. Sen nähdään vähentävän henkilöstön vaihtuvuutta ja aineettoman pääoman katoa organisaatiosta. Tässä työssä tutkittiin erään valtionhallinnon laitoksen henkilöstön organisaatioon sitoutumisen tasoa ja siihen vaikuttavia tekijöitä. Tutkimuksessa organisaatioon sitoutumista tarkasteltiin johtamisen, kommunikaation ja organisaation oikeudenmukaisuuden näkökulmasta. Kaikkia tutkittavia tekijöitä tarkasteltiin sekä globaalista, että lokaalista näkökulmasta. Tutkimuksessa havaittiin ainoastaan globaalin tason vaikuttajilla olevan merkittävä vaikutus organisaatioon sitoutumisessa, ainoana poikkeuksena lokaali oikeudenmukaisuus. Organisaatioon sitoutumisen havaittiin perustuvan sitoutumisen tunneperäiseen elementtiin, velvollisuudentunnon ja jatkuvuusperäisen komponentin jäädessä heikommiksi. Merkittävä havainto oli tutkimuksissa havaittujen demografisten vaikuttajien korreloivan joko ainoastaan heikosti tai ei lainkaan organisaatioon sitoutumiseen. Tutkimuksessa tarkasteltiin myös kriittisten asiantuntijoiden ja perusasiantuntijoiden sitoutumisen eroja. Kriittisten asiantuntijoiden havaittiin olevan heikommin sitoutuneita ja sitoutumisen tekijöiden globaalin tason vaikutuksen olevan merkittävästi vahvempi heihin, kuin perusasiantuntijoihin. Perusasiantuntijoiden havaittiin kiinnittyvän lokaaleihin tekijöihin, joilla on heikompi, tai ei juurikaan vaikutusta organisaatioon sitoutumiseen. Vaikuttavimmiksi organisaatioon sitoutumista vahvistaviksi tekijöiksi tunnistettiin johtamisen ja kommunikaation laadukkuus, ja organisaation osoittama oikeudenmukaisuus.

Normative data for the Brazilian population in the Boston Diagnostic Aphasia Examination: influence of schooling

In Neurolinguistics, the use of diagnostic tests developed in other countries can create difficulties in the interpretation of results due to cultural, demographic and linguistic differences. In a country such as Brazil, with great social contrasts, schooling exerts a powerful influence on the abilities of normal individuals. The objective of the present study was to identify the influence of schooling on the performance of normal Brazilian individuals in the Boston Diagnostic Aphasia Examination (BDAE), in order to obtain reference values for the Brazilian population. We studied 107 normal subjects ranging in age from 15 to 84 years (mean ± SD = 47.2 ± 17.6 years), with educational level ranging from 1 to 24 years (9.9 ± 4.8 years). Subjects were compared for scores obtained in the 28 subtests of the BDAE after being divided into groups according to age (15 to 30, N = 24, 31 to 50, N = 33 and 51 years or more, N = 50) and education (1 to 4, N = 26, 5 to 8, N = 17 and 9 years or more, N = 61). Subjects with 4 years or less of education performed poorer in Word Discrimination, Visual Confrontation Naming, Reading of Sentences and Paragraphs, and Primer-Level Dictation (P < 0.05). When breakdown by schooling was 8 years or less, subjects performed poorer in all subtests (P < 0.05), except Responsive Naming, Word Recognition and Word-Picture Matching. The elderly performed poorer (P < 0.05) in Complex Ideational Material, Visual Confrontation Naming, Comprehension of Oral Spelling, Written Confrontation Naming, and Sentences to Dictation. We present the reference values for the cut-off scores according to educational level.

Commitment in Finnish–Japanese strategic alliances

Finnish companies have usually formed a strategic alliance as entry mode when entering the Japanese market. However, these strategic alliances have not been studied in a general level and it remains unknown, what kind cooperation the Finnish companies are operating with their Japanese partners. Especially Finnish companies that aims to penetrate the Japanese market are eager to know more about this. The recent studies on topic have focused on a single industry or company and that is why more general level study was needed. The purpose of this study is to analyze types of Finnish–Japanese strategic alliances from the Finnish point of view. The analysis is conducted by answering the questions what strategic alliance types appear in the strategic alliances between Japanese and Finnish companies, and how commitment affects strategic alliance type. This study also examines how committed Finnish–Japanese strategic alliances are. In this study multiple case study was selected as research method. The data is collected by interviewing six representative of Finnish companies in Japan individually. Multiple case study was chosen for this study, because this study is interested in the topic in general level and this research method is suitable for this kind of research. From the interviews common attributes were pointed out and from them the big picture of the topic was created. Types of strategic alliances were determined by using previous literature on that topic. Two different types of strategic alliance were discovered: supplier alliance which is the most common one and learning alliance. The commitment of strategic alliance was measured visually by utilizing a figure that was modified for this study.The figure is originally based on earlier studies on strategic alliance types and their connection to ownership and commitment. By utilizing the figure it was noticed that commitment affects strategic alliance types: the more there is commitment involved, the more there is cooperation. Finnish–Japanese strategic alliances are not very committed despite they have existed for a long time. However, there is potential to be more committed. That is why Finnish companies should increase the commitment and attract the partners to develop the strategic alliances, because it would possible increase competitive advantage. This would be beneficial to all members within the strategic alliance.

Milleniaalit tietotyössä – organisaatiositoutumisen näkökulmia henkilöstöpalvelualan yrityksessä

Tämän tutkielman tavoitteena on selvittää, mitkä tekijät vaikuttavat henkilöstöpalvelualan yrityksessä työskentelevien y-sukupolveen kuuluvien tietotyöläisten organisaatiositoutumiseen ja näin löytää keinoja edistää tämän henkilöstöryhmän sitoutumista. Päätutkimuskysymys on ”Miten tietotyötä tekevän milleniaalin organisaatiositoutumista voidaan edistää?”. Tutkielma on kvalitatiivinen tapaustutkimus, aineisto kerättiin puolistrukturoiduilla haastatteluilla. Aineisto analysoitiin teoriaohjaavasti organisaatiositoutumiseen, milleniaaleihin ja tietotyöhön liittyvää teoreettista viitekehystä tukena käyttäen ja abduktiivista päättelyä hyödyntäen. Tutkimustulosten mukaan tietotyötä tekevä milleniaali on sitoutunut työhönsä, työyhteisöönsä ja organisaatioon. Organisaatiositoutuminen muodostuu useammasta kuin yhdestä komponentista ja on aineiston mukaan muodoltaan niin affektiivista, normatiivista kuin jatkuvaakin. Nykyorganisaatiossa sitouttavat erityisesti hyvä esimiestyö, työn haastavuus, mahdollisuudet työnkuvan monipuolistamiseen, uramahdollisuudet ja ammatillisen kehittymisen tukeminen. Tulevaisuudessa tietotyötä kohdeyrityksessä tekevät milleniaalit toivovat, että organisaatio panostaisi sitouttamisen edistämiseksi erityisesti yksilön arvostamiseen, työntekijöiden ammatilliseen kehittymiseen, urasuunnitteluun, palkitsemiseen, esimiestyöhön ja yhteisöllisyyteen.

Commitment in Finnish–Japanese strategic alliances

Finnish companies have usually formed a strategic alliance as entry mode when entering the Japanese market. However, these strategic alliances have not been studied in a general level and it remains unknown, what kind cooperation the Finnish companies are operating with their Japanese partners. Especially Finnish companies that aims to penetrate the Japanese market are eager to know more about this. The recent studies on topic have focused on a single industry or company and that is why more general level study was needed. The purpose of this study is to analyze types of Finnish–Japanese strategic alliances from the Finnish point of view. The analysis is conducted by answering the questions what strategic alliance types appear in the strategic alliances between Japanese and Finnish companies, and how commitment affects strategic alliance type. This study also examines how committed Finnish–Japanese strategic alliances are. In this study multiple case study was selected as research method. The data is collected by interviewing six representative of Finnish companies in Japan individually. Multiple case study was chosen for this study, because this study is interested in the topic in general level and this research method is suitable for this kind of research. From the interviews common attributes were pointed out and from them the big picture of the topic was created. Types of strategic alliances were determined by using previous literature on that topic. Two different types of strategic alliance were discovered: supplier alliance which is the most common one and learning alliance. The commitment of strategic alliance was measured visually by utilizing a figure that was modified for this study. The figure is originally based on earlier studies on strategic alliance types and their connection to ownership and commitment. By utilizing the figure it was noticed that commitment affects strategic alliance types: the more there is commitment involved, the more there is cooperation. Finnish–Japanese strategic alliances are not very committed despite they have existed for a long time. However, there is potential to be more committed. That is why Finnish companies should increase the commitment and attract the partners to develop the strategic alliances, because it would possible increase competitive advantage. This would be beneficial to all members within the strategic alliance.

Emergence of normative beliefs legitimizing antisocial behaviour in adolescents : the roles of monitoring, attachment, and temperament /

Beliefs about the rightness or wrongness of engaging in various antisocial acts, referred to here as nonnative beliefs legitimizing antisocial behaviour (nblab), have been shown to playa role in the emergence oflater antisocial behaviour. The current study represented an attempt to understand whether parental monitoring and parent-child attachment have differential relationships with these antisocial nonnative beliefs in adolescents of different temperaments. The participants, 7135 adolescents in 25 high schools (ages 10- 18 years, M = 15.7) completed a wide-ranging questionnaire as part of the broad Youth Lifestyle Choices - Community University Research Alliance project, whose goal is to identify and describe the major developmental pathways of risk behaviours and resilience in youth. Two aspects of monitoring (monitoring knowledge and surveillance/tracking), attachment security, and two measures of temperament (activity level and approach) were examined for main effects and in interactions as predictors of adolescent nonnative beliefs. All of these measures were based on adolescent self-ratings on either 3- or 4-point Likert-type scales. Several important results emerged from the study. Males were higher than females in nblab; parental monitoring knowledge and adolescent attachment security were negatively related to nblab; and temperamental activity level was positively related. Monitoring knowledge, the strongest of the predictors, was much more strongly related to nonnative beliefs than was parental surveillance/tracking, supporting the contention that it is how much parents actually know, and not their surveillance efforts, that predict adolescent nonnative beliefs. A surprising finding that is of the utmost importance was that, although several of the interactions tested were significant, none were considered to be of a meaningful magnitude (defined as sr^ > .01). The current study supported the suggestion that normative beliefs legitimizing antisocial behaviour are multiply determined, and the results were discussed with respect to the observed differential relations of parental monitoring, parent-child attachment, temperament, age, and gender to antisocial normative beliefs in adolescents. Also discussed were the need to test other parenting, temperament, and other variables that may be involved in the development of nblab; the need to directly test possible mechanisms explaining the links among the variables; and the usefulness of longitudinal research in determining possible directions of causality and developmental changes in the relationships.

Elements that contribute to staff nurses' commitment to lifelong professional development

This research explored the elements that contribute to staff nurses' commitment to lifelong professional development. This exploration has been undertaken to provide insights into those factors that motivate individuals to continue their education for professional development and for clinical practice improvement. This study was conducted in an acute care hospital in Southern Ontario, and investigated the thoughts and experiences ofhealth care staffworking within that setting. A qualitative case study was undertaken which involved the collection of interview, document, and class observation data. Two exemplary clinical nurse educators and two motivated, professionally committed staffnurses were interviewed during the study. Teaching document review and observation ofclasses involving the clinical nurse educators were conducted to facilitate triangulation of fmdingswith data sources and strategies. These participants provided rich data that were captured in field notes and coded for conceptual meaning. Emerging from the data were the identification ofthree major elements of influence that contribute to staffnurses' commitment to lifelong professional development. Identified within the three intersecting spheres of influence upon staff nurses' lifelong commitment to professionalleaming were the environment, the clinical nurse educator, and the staff nurse. This research explored the intersecting spheres of influence and the elements within the partnership model ofprofessional education for staff nurses.

Exploring the relationship between professional and organizational commitment : the attitudes of Ontario chartered accountancy students

This study was undertaken to investigate the attitudes of chartered accountancy (CA) students toward professional commitment and organizational commitment. The focus of the study was to discover if a relationship between these two constructs existed and determine which situational and individual characteristics facilitate or impede commitment. The sample included those CA students who wrote the 1995 UFE (n=423). Four instruments were used for data collection: Job Diagnostic Survey, Organizational Commitment Questionnaire, Career Commitment Questionnaire, Career Facilitation Survey, and individual demographic inquiry. The study found a significant relationship between professional commitment and organizational commitment. Situational characteristics tended to influence organizational commitment, while individual characteristics more often governed professional commitment. Specific satisfactions, general satisfaction, growth satisfaction, and satisfaction with compensation, co-workers, and supervision were found to facilitate organizational commitment. Organizational commitment was also influenced by supplemental job characteristics, internal work motivation, career facilitation, and autonomy. Implications for practice involved the cooperation and collaboration of the governing body for the CA profession and the CA firms in activities addressing pertinent issues that influence commitment. Implications for future research were also discussed.