The adjustment from Russia to Finland for corporate repatriates: How the repatriation experience influences readjustment in the workplace

To manage foreign operations, companies must often send their employees on international assignments. Repatriating these expatriates can be difficult because they have been forgotten during their posting, and their new experiences are not utilised. In addition to the possible difficulties in organisational repatriation, the returnee can suffer from readjustment problems after a lengthy stay abroad has changed their habits and even identity. This thesis examines the repatriation experience of Finnish assignees returning from Russia. The purpose of the study is to understand how the repatriation experience influences their readjustment to work in Finland. This experience is influenced by many factors including personal and situational changes, the repatriation process, job and organisational factors, and individual’s motives. The theoretical background of the study is founded on two models of repatriation adjustment. A refined, holistic theoretical framework for the study is created. It describes the formation of the repatriation experience and its importance for readjustment to work and retention. The qualitative research approach is suitable for the thesis which examines the returnees’ personal experiences and feelings: a qualitative case study aims to explain the phenomenon in-depth and comprehensively. The data was collected in summer 2013 through semi-standardised interviews with eight Finnish repatriates. They had returned from Russia within the last two years. The data was analysed by structuring the interview transcripts using template analysis. The results supported earlier literature and suggest that the re-entry remains a challenging phase for both the individual and the company. For some, adjusting to a new job was difficult for various reasons. The repatriates underwent personal change and development and felt it was for the better. Many repatriates criticised the company’s repatriation process upon return. Finding a suitable return job was not clear. Instead, the returnees had to be active in finding a new position. Many assignees had only modest career-related motives regarding the assignment and they had realistic expectations about the return. Therefore they were not extremely surprised or dissatisfied when they were not actively offered positions or support by the company. The significance of motives stood out even more than the theory predicted. As predicted, they are linked to the expectations of employees. Moreover, if the employees are motivated to remain in the company, they can tolerate partly a negative repatriation experience. Despite the complexity of the return and readjustment, the assignment as a whole was seen as a rewarding experience by all participants.

Acquisition and transfer of experiential learning from rock climbing to the corporate workplace

There were three purposes to this study. The first purpose was to determine how learning can be influenced by various factors i~ the rock climbing experience. The second purpose was to examine what people can learn from the rock climbing experience. The third purpose was to investigate whether that learning can transfer from the rock climbing experience to the subjects' real life in the workplace. Ninety employees from a financial corporation in the Niagara Region volunteered for this study. All subjects were surveyed throughout a one-day treatment. Ten were purposefully selected one month later for interviews. Ten themes emerged from the subjects in terms of what was learned. Inspiration, motivation, and determination, preparation, goals and limitations, perceptions and expectations, confidence and risk taking, trust and support, teamwork, feedback and encouragement, learning from failure, and finally, skills and flow. All participants were able to transfer what was learned back to the workplace. The results of this study suggested that subjects' learning was influenced by their ability to: take risks in a safe environment, fail without penalty, support each other, plan without time constraints, and enjoy the company of fellow workers that they wouldn't normally associate with. Future directions for research should include different types of treatments such as white water rafting, sky diving, tall ship sailing, or caving.

The antecedents to participation in learning activities among support staff at a college in Ontario

Les tendances de la participation à la formation des adultes au Canada n’ont pas évolué depuis des décennies, malgré les nouvelles influences économiques qui ont stimulé l’augmentation et la diversification permanente de la formation des employés et malgré les initiatives plus nombreuses en faveur de l’apprentissage des employés en milieu de travail. Il est donc nécessaire de ne plus se contenter d’étudier les prédicteurs de la formation déjà connus dans les profils des employés et des employeurs. Il est, en revanche, indispensable d’étudier les antécédents de la participation des employés à la formation, y compris les aspects et les étapes du processus qui la précède. Cette étude porte sur les antécédents de la participation des employés aux formations dans un important collège communautaire urbain en Ontario. Afin de préparer le recueil des données, un cadre théorique a été élaboré à partir du concept d’expression de la demande. Ce cadre implique l’existence d’un processus qui comporte plusieurs étapes, au cours desquelles plusieurs intervenants interagissent et dont la formation est susceptible d’être le résultat. Les résultats de l’enquête sur le profil d’apprentissage ont permis de conclure que le comportement des employés et de l’employeur est conforme aux modèles de prédicteurs existants et que les taux et les types de participation étaient similaires aux tendances nationales et internationales. L’analyse des entrevues d’un groupe d’employés atypiques, de leurs superviseurs, ainsi que de représentants du collège et du syndicat, a révélé d’importants thèmes clés : l’expression de la demande n’est pas structurée et elle est communiquée par plusieurs canaux, en excluant parfois les superviseurs. De plus, la place de l’auto évaluation est importante, ainsi que la phase de prise de décision. Ces thèmes ont souligné l’interaction de plusieurs intervenants dans le processus d’expression de la demande d’apprentissage et pendant la prise de décision. L’examen des attentes de chacun de ces intervenants au cours de ce processus nous a permis de découvrir un désir tacite chez les superviseurs et les employés, à savoir que la conversation soit à l’initiative de « l’autre ». Ces thèmes clés ont été ensuite abordés dans une discussion qui a révélé une discordance entre le profil de l’employeur et les profils des employés. Celle-ci se prête à la correction par l’employeur de son profil institutionnel pour l’harmoniser avec le profil dispositionnel des employés et optimiser ainsi vraisemblablement son offre de formation. Ils doivent, pour cela, appliquer un processus plus systématique et plus structuré, doté de meilleurs outils. La discussion a porté finalement sur les effets des motivations économiques sur la participation des employés et a permis de conclure que, bien que les employés ne semblent pas se méfier de l’offre de formation de l’employeur et que celle ci ne semble pas non plus les décourager, des questions de pouvoir sont bel et bien en jeu. Elles se sont principalement manifestées pendant le processus de prise de décision et, à cet égard, les superviseurs comme les employés reconnaissent qu’un processus plus structuré serait bénéfique, puisqu’il atténuerait les problèmes d’asymétrie et d’ambiguïté. Les constatations de cette étude sont pertinentes pour le secteur de la formation des adultes et de la formation en milieu de travail et, plus particulièrement, pour la méthodologie de recherche. Nous avons constaté l’avantage d’une méthodologie à deux volets, à l’écoute de l’employeur et des employés, afin de mieux comprendre la relation entre l’offre de formation et la participation à la formation. La définition des antécédents de la participation sous la forme d’un processus dans lequel plusieurs intervenants remplissent plusieurs rôles a permis de créer un modèle plus détaillé qui servira à la recherche future. Ce dernier a démontré qu’il est indispensable de reconnaître que la prise de décision constitue une étape à part entière, située entre l’expression de la demande et la participation à la formation. Ces constatations ont également révélé qu’il est véritablement indispensable que le secteur de la formation des adultes continue à traiter les questions reliées à la reconnaissance de la formation informelle. Ces conclusions et la discussion sur les constatations clés nous ont inspiré des recommandations à appliquer pour modifier les retombées du processus précédant la participation des employés à la formation. La majorité de ces recommandations ont trait à l’infrastructure de ce processus et ciblent donc principalement l’employeur. Certaines recommandations sont cependant destinées aux syndicats, aux superviseurs et aux employés qui peuvent aider l’employeur à remplir son rôle et favoriser la participation efficace de tous à ce processus. Les recommandations qui précédent impliquent que ce sont les antécédents de la formation qui gagneraient à être plus structurés et non la formation elle même. La structuration de l’infrastructure de l’apprentissage présente cependant des risques à elle seule. En liaison avec ce phénomène, une étude spécifique des effets de la nature, de la qualité et de l’asymétrie de la relation superviseur employé sur la participation des employés à la formation serait bénéfique. Mots clés : formation en entreprise, formation professionnelle continue, antécédents à la participation, employés de soutien

Employees' external representation of their workplace: key antecedents

Drawing on attitude theory, this study investigates the drivers of employees' expression of favorable opinions about their workplace. Despite its theoretical and managerial importance, the marketing literature largely ignores the topic. This study advances prior research by developing, and empirically testing, a conceptual framework of the relationship between workgroup support and favorable external representation of the workplace, mediated by emotional responses to this support. The present research investigates four new relationships: between workgroup support and emotional exhaustion, workgroup support and organizational commitment, workgroup support and job satisfaction, and emotional exhaustion and external representation of the workplace. Based on a sample of over 700 frontline service employees, this study finds that workgroup support affects favorable external representation of the workplace through various emotional responses (i.e., emotional exhaustion, organizational commitment and job satisfaction). In addition, the results identify employees' organizational commitment as the most important determinant of favorable external representation of the workplace, followed by job satisfaction and reduced emotional exhaustion. These results suggest that companies should develop practices that encourage workgroup support and organizational commitment to achieve favorable external representation of the workplace.

Forum: social network for the surveillance and prevention of workplace accidents

In 2008, academic researchers and public service officials created a university extension studies platform based on online and on-site meetings denominated "Work-Related Accidents Forum: Analysis, Prevention, and Other Relevant Aspects. Its aim was to help public agents and social partners to propagate a systemic approach that would be helpful in the surveillance and prevention of work-related accidents. This article describes and analyses such a platform. Online access is free and structured to: support dissemination of updated concepts; support on-site meetings and capacity to build educational activities; and keep a permanent space for debate among the registered participants. The desired result is the propagation of a social-technical-systemic view of work-related accidents that replaces the current traditional view that emphasizes human error and results in blaming the victims. The Forum uses an educational approach known as permanent health education, which is based on the experience and needs of workers and encourages debate among participants. The forum adopts a problematizing pedagogy that starts from the requirements and experiences of the social actors and stimulates support and discussions among them in line with an ongoing health educational approach. The current challenge is to turn the platform into a social networking website in order to broaden its links with society.

Health and fitness benefits of a resistance training intervention performed in the workplace

Zavanela, PM, Crewther, BT, Lodo, L, Florindo, AA, Miyabara, EH, and Aoki, MS. Health and fitness benefits of a resistance training intervention performed in the workplace. J Strength Cond Res 26(3): 811-817, 2012-This study examined the effects of a workplace-based resistance training intervention on different health-, fitness-, and work-related measures in untrained men (bus drivers). The subjects were recruited from a bus company and divided into a training (n = 48) and control (n = 48) groups after initial prescreening. The training group performed a 24-week resistance training program, whereas the control group maintained their normal daily activities. Each group was assessed for body composition, blood pressure (BP), pain incidence, muscular endurance, and flexibility before and after the 24-week period. Work absenteeism was also recorded during this period and after a 12-week follow-up phase. In general, no body composition changes were identified in either group. In the training group, a significant reduction in BP and pain incidence, along with improvements in muscle endurance and flexibility were seen after 24 weeks (p < 0.05). There were no changes in these parameters in the control group, and the between-group differences were all significant (p < 0.05). A reduction in worker absenteeism rate was also noted in the training (vs. control) group during both the interventional and follow-up periods (p < 0.05). In conclusion, it was found that a periodized resistance training intervention performed within the workplace improved different aspects of health and fitness in untrained men, thereby potentially providing other work-related benefits. Thus, both employers and employees may benefit from the setup, promotion, and support of a work-based physical activity program involving resistance training.

Forum: social network for the surveillance and prevention of workplace accidents

In 2008, academic researchers and public service officials created a university extension studies platform based on online and on-site meetings denominated "Work-Related Accidents Forum: Analysis, Prevention, and Other Relevant Aspects. Its aim was to help public agents and social partners to propagate a systemic approach that would be helpful in the surveillance and prevention of work-related accidents. This article describes and analyses such a platform. Online access is free and structured to: support dissemination of updated concepts; support on-site meetings and capacity to build educational activities; and keep a permanent space for debate among the registered participants. The desired result is the propagation of a social-technical-systemic view of work-related accidents that replaces the current traditional view that emphasizes human error and results in blaming the victims. The Forum uses an educational approach known as permanent health education, which is based on the experience and needs of workers and encourages debate among participants. The forum adopts a problematizing pedagogy that starts from the requirements and experiences of the social actors and stimulates support and discussions among them in line with an ongoing health educational approach. The current challenge is to turn the platform into a social networking website in order to broaden its links with society.

Enhancing Workers’ Well-Being. Scientific and social relevance of managing stress in the workplace

Purpose. Despite work-related stress is one of the most studied topic in organizational psychology, many aspects as for example the use of different measures (e.g. subjective and objective, qualitative and quantitative) are still under debate. According to this, in order to enhance knowledge concerning which factors and processes contribute to create healthy workplaces, this thesis is composed by four different studies aiming to understand: a) the role of relevant antecedents (e.g. leadership, job demands, work-family conflict, social support etc.) and outcomes (e.g. workplace phobia, absenteeism etc.) of work-related stress; and b) how to manage psychosocial risk factors in the workplace. The studies. The first study focused on how disagreement between supervisors and their employees on leadership style (transformational and transactional) could affect workers well-being and work team variables. The second and third study used both subjective and objective data in order to increase the quality of the reliability of the results gained. Particularly, the second study focused on job demand and its relationship with objective sickness leave. Findings showed that despite there is no direct relationship between these two variables, job demand affects work-family conflict, which in turn affect exhaustion, which leads to absenteeism. The third study analysed the role of a new concept never studied before in organizational settings (workplace phobia), as a health outcome in the JD-R model, demonstrating also its relationship with absenteeism. The last study highlighted the added value of using the mixed methods research approach in order to detect and analyse context-specific job demands which could affects workers’ health. Conclusion. The findings of this thesis answered both to open questions in the scientific literature and to the social request of managing psychosocial risk factors in the workplace in order to enhance workers well-being.

Strategies of Active Dissemination of Workplace Health Promotion

Purpose – A growing body of literature provides evidence for the efficacy of workplace health promotion (WHP). However, little is known about effective dissemination strategies for WHP interventions. The purpose of this paper is to describe how a WHP agency in Zurich, Switzerland, used bulk mailings, information events, telephone marketing and free initial consultations for the large-scale geographic marketing of WHP services, with a focus on tobacco prevention (TP). Design/methodology/approach – To analyze the number of companies responding positively to solicitation, examine the predictors of positive responses and explore the reasons for negative responses, the authors used both quantitative (e.g. a standardized questionnaire) and qualitative (telephone interviews) methods. Findings – The results show that except for telephone marketing (69 percent), the success rates of dissemination activities were very low (3-9 percent). Predictors for a positive response were institutionalization of WHP, the representative’s personal concern about TP, and problems with environmental tobacco smoke within the company. The most prominent reason for a negative Response was that the companies had already implemented TP measures by themselves and needed no further external support. Practical implications – It is suggested that TP was the wrong emphasis for a WHP program to be disseminated at that particular time, because a law on protection from passive smoking was introduced in Switzerland shortly afterwards. Originality/value – The study examines dissemination strategies under real-life Consulting conditions. It builds on on a large sample of companies and uses both quantitative and qualitative research methods. It reports specific numbers and success rates of marketing activities and thereby contributes to the knowledge about an important issue for intervention planning in the field of WHP.

Design of a systematic approach to workplace exposure medical surveillance protocols

Current toxic tort cases have increased national awareness of health concerns and present an important avenue in which public health scientists can perform a vital function: in litigation, and in public health initiatives and promotions which may result. This review presents a systematic approach, using the paradigm of interactive public health disciplines, for the design of a matrix framework for medical surveillance of workers exposed to toxic substances. The matrix framework design addresses the required scientific bases to support the legal remedy of medical monitoring for workers injured as a result of their exposure to toxic agents. A background of recent legal developments which have a direct impact on the use of scientific expertise in litigation is examined in the context of toxic exposure litigation and the attainment of public health goals. The matrix model is applied to five different workplace exposures: dental mercury, firefighting, vinyl chloride manufacture, radon in mining and silica. An exposure matrix designed by the Department of Energy for government nuclear workers is included as a reference comparison to the design matrix. ^

Baseline evaluation of environmental physical activity and nutrition support of Texas Medical Center hospital worksites

Background: Obesity is a major health problem in the United States that has reached epidemic proportions. With most U.S adults spending the majority of their waking hours at work, the influence of the workplace environment on obesity is gaining in importance. Recent research implicates worksites as providing an 'obesogenic' environment as they encourage overeating and reduce the opportunity for physical activity. Objective: The aim of this study is to describe the nutrition and physical activity environment of Texas Medical Center (TMC) hospitals participating in the Shape Up Houston evaluation study to develop a scoring system to quantify the environmental data collected using the Environmental Assessment Tool (EAT) survey and to assess the inter-observer reliability of using the EAT survey. Methods: A survey instrument that was adapted from the Environmental Assessment Tool (EAT) developed by Dejoy DM et al in 2008 to measure the hospital environmental support for nutrition and physical activity was used for this study. The inter-observer reliability of using the EAT survey was measured and total percent agreement scores were computed. Most responses on the EAT survey are dichotomous (Yes and No) and these responses were coded with a '0' for a 'no' response and a '1' for a 'yes' response. A summative scoring system was developed to quantify these responses. Each hospital was given a score for each scale and subscale on the EAT survey in addition to a total score. All analyses were conducted using Stata 11 software. Results: High inter-observer reliability is observed using EAT. The percentage agreement scores ranged from 94.4%–100%. Only 2 of the 5 hospitals had a fitness facility onsite and scores for exercise programs and outdoor facilities available for hospital employees ranged from 0–62% and 0–37.5%, respectively. The healthy eating percentage for hospital cafeterias range from 42%–92% across the different hospitals while the healthy vending scores were 0%–40%. The total TMC 'healthy hospital' score was 49%. Conclusion: The EAT survey is a reliable instrument for measuring the physical activity and nutrition support environment of hospital worksites. The study results showed a large variability among the TMC hospitals in the existing physical activity and nutrition support environment. This study proposes cost effective policy changes that can increase environmental support to healthy eating and active living among TMC hospital employees.^

The Effect of Wrist Rests and Forearm Support during Keyboard and Mouse Use

Supporting the forearm on the work surface during keyboard operation may increase comfort, decrease muscular load of the neck and shoulders, and decrease the time spent in ulnar deviation. Wrist rests are used widely in the workplace and are more commonly being incorporated in keyboard design. The aim of this study was to examine the effect of wrist rest use on wrist posture during forearm Support. A laboratory based, experimental study was conducted (subjects n = 15) to examine muscle activity and wrist Postures during keyboard and mouse tasks in each of' two conditions; wrist rest and no wrist rest. There were no significant differences for right wrist flexion/extension between use of a wrist rest and no wrist rest for keyboard or mouse use. Left wrist extension was significantly higher without a wrist rest than with a wrist rest during keyboard use (df = 14; t = 2.95; p = 0.01; d = 0.38). No differences with respect to use of a wrist rest were found for the left or right hand for ulnar deviation For keyboard or mouse use. There were no differences in muscle activity between the test conditions for keyboard use. Relevance to industry Wrist rests are used widely in the workplace and are more commonly being incorporated in keyboard design. Use of a wrist rest in conjunction with forearm support when using a conventional desk does not appear to have any impact on wrist posture or muscle activity during keyboard use. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Effective assertive behavior in the workplace: Responding to unfair criticism

A social rules perspective was employed to identify the elements of socially appropriate responses to unfair criticism in the workplace. Women generally endorsed for themselves response strategies based on stronger obligation and softer rights components, while men endorsed responses based on stronger personal rights expression and weaker obligation components. In support of the utility of a social rules approach to operationalizing context-specific expectations, behavioral responses based on gender and status-specific rules were evaluated as more effective on task, relationship, and self-respect dimensions than were rights-only, rights-plus-empathy, or submissive strategies. Results are discussed in terms of the development of a context-specific model of interpersonal competence and implications for interpersonal skills and assertion training.

Consumer-identified barriers and strategies for optimizing technology use in the workplace

Purpose. This article explores the experiences of 26 assistive technology (AT) users having a range of physical impairments as they optimized their use of technology in the workplace. Method. A qualitative research design was employed using in-depth, open-ended interviews and observations of AT users in the workplace. Results. Participants identified many factors that limited their use of technology such as discomfort and pain, limited knowledge of the technology's features, and the complexity of the technology. The amount of time required for training, limited work time available for mastery, cost of training and limitations of the training provided, resulted in an over-reliance on trial and error and informal support networks and a sense of isolation. AT users enhanced their use of technology by addressing the ergonomics of the workstation and customizing the technology to address individual needs and strategies. Other key strategies included tailored training and learning support as well as opportunities to practice using the technology and explore its features away from work demands. Conclusions. This research identified structures important for effective AT use in the workplace which need to be put in place to ensure that AT users are able to master and optimize their use of technology.

To learn from one's mistakes: The role of impulsivity in positive workplace behaviours

Recentiy a neuropsychological model of learning has been proposed Qackson, 2002) which argues that Responsibility provides a cognitive re-expression of Impulsivit)' in the prediction of functional and dysfunctional behaviour. Jackson argues that primitive, instinctive impulses lead to antisocial behaviours and socio-cognitive regulators such as Responsibility leads to the re-expression of Impulsivity in terms of pro-social behaviours. Study 1 tests and supports the measurement properties of the assessment methodology associated with the model. Study 2 provides evidence in favour of the instinctive basis of Impulsivity and the conscious basis of Responsibility, which reinforces the underlying neuropsychological basis of the model. Study 3 uses structural equation modelling to determine if Responsibility mediates Impulsivity in the prediction of a latent variable representing work performance, work commitment and team performance, but does not mediate Impulsivit}' in the prediction of a latent variable representing sexual proclivity, workplace deviancy, gambling and beer consumption. Results provide strong support for Jackson's model and suggest that Impulsivity and Responsibility are fundamental to both functional and dysfunctional learning