Information networks and worker recruitment

This paper studies experimentally how the existence of social information networks affects the ways in which firms recruit new personnel. Through such networks firms learn about prospective employees' performance in previous jobs. Assuming individualistic preferences social networks are predicted not to affect overall labor market behavior, while with social preferences the prediction is that when bilaterally negotiated: (i) wages will be higher and (ii) that workers in jobs with incomplete contracts will respond with higher effort. Our experimental results are consistent with the social preferences view, both for the case of excess demand and excess supply of labor. In particular, the presence of information networks leads to more efficient allocations.

Relations of the job demands-control-support model of job strain with personality attributes : a cross-cultural study in Switzerland and South Africa

Among the various work stress models, one of the most popular to date is the job demands-­‐control (JDC) model developed by Karasek (1979), which postulates that work-­‐related strain will be the highest under work conditions characterized by high demands and low autonomy. The absence of social support at work will further increase negative outcomes. However, this model does not apply equally to all individuals and to all cultures. In the following studies, we assessed work characteristics, personality traits, culture-­‐driven individual attributes, and work-­‐related health outcomes, through the administration of questionnaires. The samples consist of Swiss (n = 622) and South African (n = 879) service-­‐oriented employees (from health, finance, education and commerce sectors) and aged from 18 to 65 years old. Results generally confirm the universal contribution of high psychological demands, low decision latitude and low supervisor support at work, as well as high neuroticism predict the worse health outcomes among employees in both countries. Furthermore, low neuroticism plays a moderating role between psychological demands and burnout, while high openness and high conscientiousness each play a moderating role between decision latitude and burnout in South Africa. Results also reveal that culture-­‐driven individual attributes play a role in both countries, but in a unique manner and according to the ethnic group of belonging. Given that organizations are increasingly characterized with multicultural employees as well as increasingly adverse and complex job conditions, our results help in identifying more updated and refined dynamics that are key between the employee and the work environment in today's context. -- L'un des modèles sur le stress au travail des plus répandus est celui développé par Karasek (1979), qui postule qu'une mauvaise santé chez les employés résulte d'une combinaison de demandes psychologiques élevées, d'une latitude décisionnelle faible et de l'absence de soutien social au travail. Néanmoins, ce modèle ne s'applique pas de façon équivalente chez tous les individus et dans toutes les cultures. Dans les études présentées, nous avons mesuré les caractéristiques de travail, les traits de personnalité, les traits culturels et les effets lies à la santé à l'aide de questionnaires. L'échantillon provient de la Suisse (n = 622) et de l'Afrique du Sud (n = 879) et comprend des employés de domaines divers en lien avec le service (notamment des secteurs de la santé, finance, éducation et commerce) tous âgés entre 18 et 65 ans. Les résultats confirment l'universalité des effets directs des demandes au travail, la latitude décisionnelle faible, le soutien social faible provenant du supérieur hiérarchique, ainsi que le névrosisme élevé qui contribuent à un niveau de santé faible au travail, et ce, dans les deux pays. De plus, un niveau faible de névrosisme a un effet de modération entre les demandes au travail et l'épuisement professionnel, alors que l'ouverture élevée et le caractère consciencieux élevé modèrent la relation entre la latitude décisionnelle et l'épuisement professionnel en Afrique du Sud. Nous avons aussi trouvé que les traits culturels jouent un rôle dans les deux pays, mais de façon unique et en fonction du groupe ethnique d'appartenance. Sachant que les organisations sont de plus en plus caractérisées par des employés d'origine ethnique variées, et que les conditions de travail se complexifient, nos résultats contribuent à mieux comprendre les dynamiques entre l'employé et l'environnement de travail contemporain. personnalité, différences individuelles, comparaisons culturelles, culture, stress au travail, épuisement professionnel, santé des employés.

Quelle assistance psychologique pour les couples requérant une aide médicale à la procréation [Which psychological support for couples seeking medical assistance for procreation?]

OBJECTIVES: The objective of our qualitative study was to define modalities of psychological support to be offered to couples seeking medically assisted procreation. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Forty couples participated in a semi-structured videotaped interview, which touched on themes such as personal and family histories, the couple's relationship, etc. We focused on the "narrative mobility", that is the way in which the couples transmit their personal and family history during the interview and the interviewer's impression that he may or may not share this with the couples. RESULTS: Observed differences in narrative mobility led us to distinguish three groups of couples and to propose various types of psychological support. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: This exploratory study, with its interest for the narrative mobility, concerns the couples' capacity to stand back from their own story as responsible interlocutors. We made the hypothesis that this capacity is linked to their capacity to handle their emotional stress, to act as partners to the medical team and to prepare themselves for their future parenthood.

Survey of Lifestyle, Attitudes and Nutrition in Ireland. Mental Health and Social Well-being Report

SĹN 2007: Older People, Loneliness and Social Support to Mental HealthSĹN, the national Survey of Lifestyle, Attitudes and Nutrition, shows that most Irish adults have a reasonably high level of positive mental health. It is the largest national survey on positive and negative mental health and social well-being in the Irish adult population.��One finding highlights the significance of loneliness and social support to mental health. Finding reveal that 14% of respondents reported being often lonely in the last four weeks, with women, older people and respondents in lower social class groups reporting high levels of loneliness. The SĹN report indicates that being widowed and not being in paid employment are the strongest overall predictors of loneliness. Respondents who are widowed are about five times more likely to feel lonely than those who are married or cohabiting, while 17% of respondents aged 65 and over report being often lonely.��SLAN 2007 highlights the significance of loneliness and social support to mental health. It proposes community-based interventions, including community development approaches and strategies to promote community involvement as a way to tackle such social and health inequities at local level. The report also highlights the importance of implementing the recommendations of the policy document A Vision for Change. It says that protection and promotion of the future health and well-being of the Irish population requires the implementation of effective cross-sectoral policies that will help create and maintain a mentally healthy society, with consequent health, economic and social benefits for all.����SLAN is commissioned by the Department of Health and Children and involved face-to-face interviews with 10,364 respondents aged 18 years and over.��

L'Àrea Bàsica de Serveis Socials de Pineda de Mar : Intervenció des del Suport Social.

Aquesta memòria mostra la intervenció social des del suport social. Se n'han constatat els efectes en la participació en un grup d'autoajuda i s'ha volgut generar en el projecte de creació d'un grup de suport a dones víctimes de la violència de gènere.

Apoyo social a drogodependientes en programa de mantenimiento con metadona en una prisión

Goal: To learn more about the social support available to patients participating in a prison methadone maintenance program (PMM). Methodology: Descriptive, with controls. Setting: A penitentiary in Albolote (Granada) Population Sample: The total prison population was 1,579; 364 patients were included in the PMM; 35 were female and 329 were male. 60 patients, 7 women and 53 men, were used as cases. 30 non-drug dependent prisoners, 3 women and 27 men, were the control group. They had no antecedents of problems with drug addiction. Interventions: Interviews with cases and controls to learn about their addictive antecedents, family structure, socio-economic level, and a hetero-applied MOS questionnaire was completed. Percentages of each social support variable were obtained and compared using the chi-squared technique. Results: The overall support received is low in 38 cases (74.5%) and in 9 controls (30%): p = 0.0001. OR 0.1466, confidence interval at 95% (0.0538-0.3989). Support received is normal in 13 cases (25%) and 21 controls (70%): p = 0.0007. OR 0.69, confidence interval at 95% (0.44-0.93). All of the variables were statistically significant for non-drug addicts, except for emotional support, which was the same for both groups. Conclusion: The perception of inmates participating in the methadone maintenance program was that they received less social support than the non-drug dependent inmates.

Soins palliatifs et soins de support: à la frontière de la toute-puissance médicale [Palliative and supportive care: at the frontiers of medical omnipotence].

Cancer patients have physical, social, spiritual and emotional needs. They may suffer from severe physical symptoms, from social isolation, spiritual abandonment, and emotions such as sadness and anxiety, or feelings of deception, helplessness, anger and guilt. In some of them, the disease is rapidly progressing and ultimately they die. Their demanding care evokes intense feelings in health care providers, the more since these incurable patients represent a challenge, which could be condensed under the heading "the challenge of medical omnipotence". We suppose that the way health care providers cope with these circumstances has a profound influence on the way these patients are cared for. The attitudes towards the emerging heterogeneous movement of palliative and supportive care and towards its different models of implementation can be viewed from this point of view. We try to demonstrate these interrelations and to discuss the danger that may arise if they remain obscure and unreflected.

Impacto del apoyo social y la morbilidad psíquica en la calidad de vida en pacientes tratados con antirretrovirales

The impact of the social support and the psychic morbidity on the quality of life of patients with antiretroviral therapy. The aim of this study is to analyse the existing relation between the psychic morbidity and social support and the quality of life. Besides this, the paper analyses the buffer rol that social support plays on the psychic morbidity in these patients. We studied 320 HIV+ patients in truatment with antiretrovirals, who attended the infectious disease services of four hospitals of the Autonomous Andalusian Community. Being associated a better quality of life to an absence of psychic morbidity and to the presence of social support, it is observed the relevant buffer role that the social support like shock absorber of the psychic morbidity in this one type of patients. These results show the importance that the psycho-social factors have during the course of chronic diseases.

Association of education and receiving social transfers with allostatic load in the Swiss population-based CoLaus study.

BACKGROUND: Allostatic load reflects cumulative exposure to stressors throughout lifetime and has been associated with several adverse health outcomes. It is hypothesized that people with low socioeconomic status (SES) are exposed to higher chronic stress and have therefore greater levels of allostatic load. OBJECTIVE: To assess the association of receiving social transfers and low education with allostatic load. METHODS: We included 3589 participants (1812 women) aged over 35years and under retirement age from the population-based CoLaus study (Lausanne, Switzerland, 2003-2006). We computed an allostatic load index aggregating cardiovascular, metabolic, dyslipidemic and inflammatory markers. A novel index additionally including markers of oxidative stress was also examined. RESULTS: Men with low vs. high SES were more likely to have higher levels of allostatic load (odds ratio (OR)=1.93/2.34 for social transfers/education, 95%CI from 1.45 to 4.17). The same patterns were observed among women. Associations persisted after controlling for health behaviors and marital status. CONCLUSIONS: Low education and receiving social transfers independently and cumulatively predict high allostatic load and dysregulation of several homeostatic systems in a Swiss population-based study. Participants with low SES are at higher risk of oxidative stress, which may justify its inclusion as a separate component of allostatic load.

Social network of family caregivers of disabled and dependent patients

Cross-sectional study that used the Social Network Index and the genogram to assess the social network of 110 family caregivers of dependent patients attended by a Home Care Service in São Paulo, Brazil. Data were analyzed using the test U of Mann-Whitney, Kruskal-Wallis and Spearman correlation. Results were considered statistically significant when p<0,05. Few caregivers participated in activities outside the home and the average number of people they had a bond was 4,4 relatives and 3,6 friends. Caregivers who reported pain and those who had a partner had higher average number of relatives who to trust. The average number of friends was higher in the group that reported use of medication for depression. Total and per capita incomes correlated with the social network. It was found that family members are the primary caregiver’s social network.





Sós ou amparados?:a percepção de suporte social numa amostra de imigrantes em Portugal

A presente investigação tem como principal objectivo averiguar o impacto da imigração sobre a percepção de suporte social. A amostra de imigrantes é constituída por 48 participantes, oriundos de países como a Ucrânia, Geórgia, Moldávia, Rússia, Brasil, China e Cabo-Verde. A média das idades é 34,67 anos e a média do tempo de permanência em Portugal é 50,38 meses. Dos participantes, 21 são do sexo feminino e 27 do sexo masculino. A percepção de suporte social foi avaliada através da EPS (Escala de Provisões Sociais, Cutrona e Russel, 1990). Avaliou-se a percepção de suporte social antes da imigração, retrospectivamente, através de uma adaptação da EPS, assim como depois da imigração. Os resultados indicam que a percepção de suporte social difere significativamente antes e depois da imigração, sendo maior na última situação. Os resultados indicam ainda, que a percepção de suporte social é independente dos anos de permanência em Portugal. Quando analisada isoladamente, a amostra de Leste não apresenta uma diferença significativa na percepção de suporte social global, antes e depois da imigração.

Avaluació de necessitats i disseny de la intervenció per a la reintegració social dels delinqüents sexuals d’alt risc

Aquest treball recull les necessitats per la reintegració que presenten els delinqüents sexuals a les presons catalanes i com es poden abordar aquestes mitjançant un model que ha donat bons resultats a altres països: Circles of Support and Accountability (CoSA a partir d'ara). L'objectiu és conèixer com funcionen els Cercles de Suport i Responsabilitat i quins són els requisits necessaris per adaptar aquest model als serveis penitenciaris de Catalunya. Amb aquesta finalitat s'ha fet una anàlisi quantitativa dels principals trets de la població penitenciària catalana, s'ha revisat la bibliografia sobre el model CoSA i s'ha fet observació de camp en la seva aplicació al Regne Unit. També s'ha comptat amb les opinions d'experts i professionals de Catalunya i s'han fet entrevistes a una petita mostra de delinqüents sexuals en règim de semillibertat. Tot i que a Catalunya hi ha programes a les presons per potenciar la rehabilitació dels delinqüents sexuals, la investigació destaca l’important paper del suport social i del manteniment dels canvis del tractament en el medi comunitari com elements clau per la reducció de la reincidència. El model Cercles optimitza l'efecte d'aquests processos i alhora ofereix un model de supervisió que concilia l'objectiu de protecció pública amb la reintegració del delinqüent. De l'estudi de la població penitenciària es conclou que hi ha una part d'interns que es podrien beneficiar d'aquest programa i que el reconeixen com una font important de suport davant les importants dificultats que troben en el procés de retorn a la llibertat. Es proposa un programa CerclesCat adaptat a la realitat del sistema penitenciari català i es descriu el procés d'implementació.

Evaluación de necesidades y diseño de la intervención para la reintegración social de los delincuentes sexuales de alto riesgo

Este trabajo recoge las necesidades para la reintegración que presentan los delincuentes sexuales de las prisiones catalanas y cómo se pueden abordar éstas mediante un modelo que ha dado buenos resultados en otros países: Circles of Support and Accountability (CoSA a partir de ahora). El objetivo es conocer cómo funcionan los Círculos de Apoyo y Responsabilidad y cuáles son los requisitos necesarios para adaptar este modelo a los servicios penitenciarios de Cataluña. Con este fin se ha hecho un análisis cuantitativo de los principales rasgos de la población penitenciaria catalana, se ha revisado la bibliografía sobre el modelo CoSA y se ha hecho observación de campo en su aplicación en el Reino Unido. También se ha contado con las opiniones de expertos y profesionales de Cataluña y se han realizado entrevistas a una pequeña muestra de delincuentes sexuales en régimen de semilibertad. Aunque en Cataluña hay programas en las prisiones para potenciar la rehabilitación de los delincuentes sexuales, la investigación destaca el importante papel del apoyo social y del mantenimiento de los cambios del tratamiento en el medio comunitario como elementos clave para la reducción de la reincidencia. El modelo de Círculos optimiza el efecto de estos procesos, y muestra un modelo de supervisión que concilia el objetivo de protección pública con la reintegración del delincuente. Del estudio de la población penitenciaria se concluye que hay una parte de internos que podrían beneficiarse de este programa y que lo reconocen como una fuente importante de apoyo ante las importantes dificultades que encuentran en el proceso de retorno a la libertad. Se propone un programa CerclesCat adaptado a la realidad del sistema penitenciario catalán y se describe el proceso de implementación.