Women, workplace militancy and political subjectivity in Britain, 1968-1985

This thesis examines the experiences and political subjectivity of women who engaged in workplace protest in Britain between 1968 and 1985. The study covers a period that has been identified with the ‘zenith’ of trade-union militancy in British labour history. The women’s liberation movement also emerged in this period, which produced a shift in public debates about gender roles and relations in the home and the workplace. Women’s trade union membership increased dramatically and trade unions increasingly committed themselves to supporting ‘women’s issues’. Industrial disputes involving working-class women have frequently been cited as evidence of women’s growing participation in the labour movement. However, the voices and experiences of female workers who engaged in workplace protest remain largely unexplored. This thesis addresses this space through an original analysis of the 1968 sewing-machinists’ strike at Ford, Dagenham; the 1976 equal pay strike at Trico, Brentford; the 1972 Sexton shoe factory occupation in Fakenham, Norfolk; the 1981 Lee Jeans factory occupation in Greenock, Inverclyde and the 1984-1985 sewing-machinists’ strike at Ford Dagenham. Drawing upon a combination of oral history and written sources, this study contributes a fresh understanding of the relationship between feminism, workplace activism and trade unionism during the years 1968-1985. In every dispute considered in this thesis, women’s behaviour was perceived by observers as novel, ‘historic’ or extraordinary. But the women did not think of themselves as extraordinary, and rather understood their behaviour as a legitimate and justified response to their everyday experiences of gender and class antagonism. The industrial disputes analysed in this thesis show that women’s workplace militancy was not simply a direct response to women’s heightened presence in trade unions. The women involved in these disputes were more likely to understand their experiences of workplace activism as an expression of the economic, social and subjective value of their work. Whilst they did not adopt a feminist identity or associate their action with the WLM, they spoke about themselves and their motivations in a manner that emphasised feminist values of equality, autonomy and self-worth.

A multi-component pheromone in the urine of dominant male tilapia (Oreochromis mossambicus) reduces aggression in rivals

Males often use scent to communicate their domi- nance, and to mediate aggressive and breeding behaviors. In teleost fish, however, the chemical composition of male pher- omones is poorly understood. Male Mozambique tilapia, Oreochromis mossambicus, use urine that signals social status and primes females to spawn. The urinary sex pheromone di- rected at females consists of 5β-pregnane-3α,17α,20β-triol 3- glucuronate and its 20α-epimer. The concentration of these is positively correlated with male social rank. This study tested whether dominant male urine reduces aggression in receiver males, and whether the pregnanetriol 3-glucuronates also re- duce male-male aggression. Males were allowed to fight their mirror image when exposed to either: i) water control or a chemical stimulus; ii) dominant male urine (DMU); iii) C18- solid phase (C18-SPE) DMU eluate; iv) C18-SPE DMU eluate plus filtrate; v) the two pregnanetriol 3-glucuronates (P3Gs); or vi) P3Gs plus DMU filtrate. Control males mounted an increas- ingly aggressive fight against their image over time. However, DMU significantly reduced this aggressive response. The two urinary P3Gs did not replicate the effect of whole DMU. Neither did the C18-SPE DMU eluate, containing the P3Gs, alone, nor the C18-SPE DMU filtrate to which the two P3Gs were added. Only exposure to reconstituted DMU (C18-SPE eluate plus filtrate) restored the aggression-reducing effect of whole DMU. Olfactory activity was present in the eluate and the polar filtrate in electro-olfactogram studies. We conclude that P3Gs alone have no reducing effect on aggression and that the urinary signal driving off male competition is likely to be a multi-component pheromone, with components present in both the polar and non-polar urine fractions.

Passive smoking in the workplace : selected issues /

"May 1986."

Gender and diversity in the workplace : Introduction to the special issue

Research on gender and diversity has taken longer than usual to develop in Portuguese academia. Different explanations can be provided for the apparent lack of interest in these matters. Comparative cultural studies have depicted Portuguese culture as scoring high on femininity (Hofstede, 1991). «Femininity pertains to societies in which social gender roles overlap» (p. 82) and it may have an influence on people’s attitudes towards ‘the other’ and the role of men and women in the organisation, and in shaping the individual’s behaviour and attitudes towards equality and diversity. On the other hand, Portuguese society likes to portray itself as a homogenous society (Cabral-Cardoso, 2002). Taken together, these factors may partly explain why gender and diversity issues have failed to make it to the top of research agendas in Portuguese academia. The limited number of papers included in this special issue and focusing on the Portuguese context still reflects that state of affairs.

Genetic information and the workplace /

"January 20, 1997."

Validity and reliability of the Cyber-aggression Questionnaire for Adolescents (CYBA)

Cybercrime is a growing and worrisome problem, particularly when it involves minors. Cyber-aggression among adolescents in particular can result in negative legal and psychological consequences for people involved. Therefore, it is important to have instruments to detect these incidents early and understand the problem to propose effective measures for prevention and treatment. This paper aims to design a new self-report, the Cyber-Aggression Questionnaire for Adolescents (CYBA), to evaluate the extent to which the respondent conducts aggressions through a mobile phone or the internet and analyse the factorial and criterion validity and reliability of their scores in a sample of adolescents from Asturias, Spain. The CYBA was administered to 3,148 youth aged between 12 and 18 years old along with three self-reports to measure aggression at school, impulsivity, and empathy. Regarding factorial validity, the model that best represents the structure of the CYBA consists of three factors (Impersonation, Visual-sexual Cyber-aggression, and Verbal Cyber-aggression and Exclusion) and four additional indicators of Visual Cyber-aggression-Teasing/Happy Slapping. Regarding criterion validity, the score on the CYBA correlates positively with aggression at school and impulsivity and negatively with empathy. That is the way cyber-aggression correlates with these three variables, according to previous empirical evidence. The reliability of the scores on each item and factor of the CYBA are adequate. Therefore, the CYBA offers a valid and reliable measure of cyber-aggression in adolescents.

Employee workplace rights.

"OSHA 3021-08R."

The interaction of economic and pedagogical ideals in the context of workplace learning in Germany: a framework for empirical research – inspired by business ethics

As an effect of marketisation, the importance of workplace learning in Germany has increased. The article follows up on the long-standing discourse around the question of how economic and pedagogical ideals interact in this context. In order to develop a theoretical framework for empirical research, three major positions of the discipline of business ethics are introduced. Business ethics in more abstract ways deals with the very same question, namely how do ideas such as profit orientation interact with other norms and values? The new perspectives show that the discourse has been hitherto based on a specific understanding of economy. In order to derive an empirical answer to the research question, the question is re-formulated as follows: Which values are inherent in the decisions taken? Consequently, it suggests using the concept of ‘rationalities of justification’ for empirical research. The article shows how this concept can be applied by conducting a test run. (DIPF/Orig.)

Invisible, therefore isolated: comparative effects of team virtuality with task virtuality on workplace isolation and work outcomes

The new standards of technological and flexible arrangements have made virtual work prevalent for almost everyone in all levels of an organization. Whether in a virtual or traditional setting, current working conditions allow anyone to collaborate, work and interact with others through electronic means of communication, thereby creating a lack of face-to-face contact. Even though the dynamics of virtuality have been widely elaborated at the team level, there are still many unknowns about the impacts of virtuality experienced at an individual level. This paper aims to shed light on the relationship between workplace social isolation, job satisfaction, perceived performance and turnover intention comparing individual responses to team virtuality and task virtuality. Our findings propose that there are statistically significant relations between individual task virtuality, workplace social isolation, satisfaction, perceived performance and turnover intention in organizations. The results also reveal that task virtuality is a better predictor than team virtuality in estimating workplace social isolation and turnover intention.

Environmental enrichment reduces aggression of pearl cichlid, Geophagus brasiliensis, during resident-intruder interactions

Em lutas entre peixes residentes e intrusos, residentes geralmente vencem, provavelmente porque valorizam o território mais do que os intrusos. Nós aventamos a hipótese de que ambientes enriquecidos aumentam o valor da área em disputa, levando os residentes a defenderem mais violentamente ambientes enriquecidos de recursos do que ambientes empobrecidos, pois possuiriam mais motivação para mantê-lo. No entanto, no presente estudo, ao testarmos as interações entre intrusos e residentes em acarás, Geophagus brasiliensis, observamos que o enriquecimento ambiental reduz a agressividade e pode levar a cohabitação entre os peixes, sem luta. Adicionalmente, em nossos experimentos, o efeito da residência prévia ocorreu independente da condição de enriquecimento. A diminuição das interações entre os peixes e, consequentemente, a diminuição do nível de agressividade é aqui atribuída aos efeitos da diminuição da visibilidade entre os peixes devido ao aumento de complexidade do ambiente.

From the workplace to the classroom:examining the impact of self-leadership learning strategies on higher educational attainment and success

Self-leadership is a concept from the organisational and management literature broadly combining processes of self-goal setting, self-regulation and self-motivation. Research has typically focused on the impact of self-leadership on work performance outcomes, with little attention to potential benefits for learning and development. In this paper, we employ a longitudinal design to examine the association of a number of processes of self-leadership with higher educational attainment in a sample of business students (N = 150). Self-reported use of strategies related to behavioural, cognitive and motivational aspects of self-leadership were measured in the first semester of the academic year, and correlated with end-of year grade point average. We found that in particular, self-goal setting, pro-active goal-related behaviour, behaviour regulation and direction, motivational awareness, and optimism were all significant predictors of educational attainment. We discuss implications for educational research and for teachers and tutors in practice.

Digital-based interventions for teams in the workplace

This research project investigated a digital workplace intervention based on team coaching and social network visualisation. The investigation was carried out through four studies. Study 1 was a systematic literature review with a realist synthesis approach about workplace digital interventions at multiple levels, highlighting the need for more research about group-level digital workplace interventions. Study 2 was a qualitative needs assessment exercise that verified the fit between the targeted organisations and the selected intervention. Following the tailored implementation of the intervention, Study 3 analysed recipients’ positive perceptions of intervention characteristics, with usability and integrity being appreciated the most, and acceptability being appreciated the least. While the intervention was considered usable and recipients felt valued during sessions, training did not fully meet their expectations. Also, recipients’ perceptions did not change from second to fourth session, suggesting they remained stably satisfied with the intervention over time. Finally, Study 4 tested two relevant Context-Mechanism-Outcome (CMO) configurations and suggested that teams implementing action plans developed during training might need less support from immediate managers to coordinate collective efforts and accomplish collective performance. Moreover, peer support towards training transfer was confirmed as a relevant contextual factor contributing to intervention effectiveness. Overall, this multifaceted and complex research project offers a nuanced examination of team-level digital interventions within the contemporary workplace, unveiling valuable insights and opportunities for further refinement and application.

Il modern workplace al centro dell’evoluzione aziendale: sviluppo di una piattaforma digitale per la gestione efficace di processi e attività.

La presente tesi mostra l’evoluzione del workplace e la sua trasformazione da semplice postazione di lavoro a modern workplace o workplace 4.0, inteso come luogo che va oltre il mero spazio fisico. Dopo avere indagato il nuovo contesto lavorativo e definito i relativi modelli di lavoro a distanza, si è mirato ad esporre i benefici - per i lavoratori, per le aziende e per l’ambiente - e gli svantaggi di tali modelli con particolare riferimento alla reperibilità/connessione costante e quindi al carico di lavoro degli smart worker. In seguito, si sono analizzati sia la struttura aziendale, l’organigramma, il modello di business del gruppo societario di consulenza Lipari People (presso il quale la scrivente ha svolto il tirocinio curriculare) ed in particolare i workplaces della sede di Milano, di cui si sono indagate le caratteristiche di differenziazione, riconfigurabilità, abitabilità ed intelligence; sia la gestione organizzativa smart adottata dall’azienda durante la pandemia da Covid-19 ed in particolare la relativa piattaforma digitale SmaO, progettata da un team del gruppo Lipari con la collaborazione della scrivente laureanda, per la gestione di processi e attività. Inoltre, nell’ottica di migliorare la gestione organizzativa dei workplaces di Lipari People è stata condotta un’indagine, sul modello Forbes e Great Place to Work, che ha raccolto i giudizi dei dipendenti. Da tale indagine, come vedremo, si è evinto che è consigliabile per l’azienda da un lato differenziare maggiormente gli spazi per andare incontro alle diverse esigenze lavorative emerse e per favorire la concentrazione delle risorse umane e dall’altro adottare strategie per migliorare la qualità dei rapporti tra colleghi, anche in modalità ibrida. La tesi si conclude con alcune proposte di miglioramento, nate da una riflessione in merito alla strategia di branding, alla sostenibilità ambientale e al wellness aziendale, che l’azienda Lipari People potrebbe adottare per un futuro upgrade di SmaO.

What Is Expected From A Facial Trauma Caused By Violence?

The aim of this retrospective study was to compare the peculiarities of maxillofacial injuries caused by interpersonal violence with other etiologic factors. Medical records of 3,724 patients with maxillofacial injuries in São Paulo state (Brazil) were retrospectively analyzed. The data were submitted to statistical analysis (simple descriptive statistics and Chi-squared test) using SPSS 18.0 software. Data of 612 patients with facial injuries caused by violence were analyzed. The majority of the patients were male (81%; n = 496), with a mean age of 31.28 years (standard deviation of 13.33 years). These patients were more affected by mandibular and nose fractures, when compared with all other patients (P < 0.01), although fewer injuries were recorded in other body parts (χ(2) = 17.54; P < 0.01); Victims of interpersonal violence exhibited more injuries when the neurocranium was analyzed in isolation (χ(2) = 6.85; P < 0.01). Facial trauma due to interpersonal violence seem to be related to a higher rate of facial fractures and lacerations when compared to all patients with facial injuries. Prominent areas of the face and neurocranium were more affected by injuries.

Uso de redes neurais artificiais na identificação de vocalização de suínos

Animal welfare has been an important research topic in animal production mainly in its ways of assessment. Vocalization is found to be an interesting tool for evaluating welfare as it provides data in a non-invasive way as well as it allows easy automation of process. The present research had as objective the implementation of an algorithm based on artificial neural network that had the potential of identifying vocalization related to welfare pattern indicatives. The research was done in two parts, the first was the development of the algorithm, and the second its validation with data from the field. Previous records allowed the development of the algorithm from behaviors observed in sows housed in farrowing cages. Matlab® software was used for implementing the network. It was selected a retropropagation gradient algorithm for training the network with the following stop criteria: maximum of 5,000 interactions or error quadratic addition smaller than 0.1. Validation was done with sows and piglets housed in commercial farm. Among the usual behaviors the ones that deserved enhancement were: the feed dispute at farrowing and the eventual risk of involuntary aggression between the piglets or between those and the sow. The algorithm was able to identify through the noise intensity the inherent risk situation of piglets welfare reduction.