The aim of the current study was to assess whether providing visual feedback on the written compositions of children with ADHD was an effective method to improve communicative clarity. Participants were twenty children, aged 7 to 9 years with ADHD. Children composed instructions on how to build a figure so that a confederate could reproduce the image based only on the child’s instructions. Participants in the experimental group received feedback on their compositions in the form of the reconstructed figure and were able to then compare the figures side by side on-screen and edit their instructions. Participants who received visual feedback outperformed participants in the no feedback group on the clarity of compositions at post-test, and at a six-week delayed post-test, and were able to apply their learning to transfer tasks. This research makes valuable contributions to understanding the factors that contribute to successful early writing for children with ADHD.

The aim of the current study was to assess whether providing visual feedback on the written compositions of children with ADHD was an effective method to improve communicative clarity. Participants were twenty children, aged 7 to 9 years with ADHD. Children composed instructions on how to build a figure so that a confederate could reproduce the image based only on the child’s instructions. Participants in the experimental group received feedback on their compositions in the form of the reconstructed figure and were able to then compare the figures side by side on-screen and edit their instructions. Participants who received visual feedback outperformed participants in the no feedback group on the clarity of compositions at post-test, and at a six-week delayed post-test, and were able to apply their learning to transfer tasks. This research makes valuable contributions to understanding the factors that contribute to successful early writing for children with ADHD.

This dissertation examines the total returns to the employment relationship from a variety of perspectives. In the first chapter, I examine different forms of training and study its influence on individual turnover. My second chapter examines the impact of mandatory volunteer/work experience in high school on the employment and wage decisions of youths. In my final chapter, I examine flexible work hours as a moderator in the relationship between workplace strategy and organizational performance. The first chapter highlights the importance of the type of training provided to the employee in order to avoid voluntary turnover. I compare the impact of institutional training compared to course training on voluntary turnover. Estimates indicate that employees who receive course training are more likely to leave the firm for another job, while employees who receive institutional training are more likely to stay with the firm. The results indicate that different types of training have differential impacts on the employee’s turnover decision. The second chapter utilizes a provincial policy reform that requires either working at a paid job or volunteering as a mandatory high school graduation requirement and examines its impact on employment outcomes. I propose that this reform causes a change in the perceptions of work by individuals which may lead them to sacrifice income for an altruistic purpose. In addition, the low quality of jobs found working or volunteering in high school may result in a distaste for work and hence provide motivation for enrolling in post-secondary education. The empirical results support this argument as the reform resulted in an increased likelihood of high school graduates to pursue post-secondary education, while those who entered the labour force had a lower probability of employment and lower wages. The final chapter examines the generalizeable conditions under which flexible work schedules are beneficial to firm performance. I find that flextime is not a best practice that is applicable across all firm environments. Instead, flextime only increases profitability when implemented within a workforce strategy focused on employees. Conversely, flextime when implemented with a cost-reduction strategy has detrimental effects on firm profits.

This dissertation examines the total returns to the employment relationship from a variety of perspectives. In the first chapter, I examine different forms of training and study its influence on individual turnover. My second chapter examines the impact of mandatory volunteer/work experience in high school on the employment and wage decisions of youths. In my final chapter, I examine flexible work hours as a moderator in the relationship between workplace strategy and organizational performance. The first chapter highlights the importance of the type of training provided to the employee in order to avoid voluntary turnover. I compare the impact of institutional training compared to course training on voluntary turnover. Estimates indicate that employees who receive course training are more likely to leave the firm for another job, while employees who receive institutional training are more likely to stay with the firm. The results indicate that different types of training have differential impacts on the employee’s turnover decision. The second chapter utilizes a provincial policy reform that requires either working at a paid job or volunteering as a mandatory high school graduation requirement and examines its impact on employment outcomes. I propose that this reform causes a change in the perceptions of work by individuals which may lead them to sacrifice income for an altruistic purpose. In addition, the low quality of jobs found working or volunteering in high school may result in a distaste for work and hence provide motivation for enrolling in post-secondary education. The empirical results support this argument as the reform resulted in an increased likelihood of high school graduates to pursue post-secondary education, while those who entered the labour force had a lower probability of employment and lower wages. The final chapter examines the generalizeable conditions under which flexible work schedules are beneficial to firm performance. I find that flextime is not a best practice that is applicable across all firm environments. Instead, flextime only increases profitability when implemented within a workforce strategy focused on employees. Conversely, flextime when implemented with a cost-reduction strategy has detrimental effects on firm profits.

The purpose of this program of research was to investigate ethical leadership as an antecedent, mediator, and outcome of variables of pragmatic importance to the workplace. Three interrelated studies examined the ethical imperative of the employment relationship using three independent datasets. Ethical leadership, as explained by social cognitive theory, was the central concept modeled in each study. Sample sizes of approximately 1,500 military members of the Canadian military were randomly selected for each study to participate in single-source, cross-sectional surveys conducted in a field setting. Correlation and Multiple Regression analyses were used to test relationships at the individual level of analysis. Key results and measures were replicated utilizing confirmatory factor analytic techniques. These studies contribute to ethical leadership research in three ways. First, findings indicated that a follower’s rank was positively associated with perceptions of ethical leadership of the immediate supervisor. Second, perceptions of ethical leadership were moderated by the type and level of follower ethical predispositions in boundary-spanning positions. Third, ethical leadership functioned as a partial mediator transmitting the effect of follower rank onto the workplace outcomes of follower affective commitment, organizational fairness climate, and career satisfaction. Implications for theory and practice are discussed. As a whole results suggest that organizations can effectively address the ethical imperative of the employment relationship through the clear lens of the individual being led – the ubiquitous follower.

The purpose of this program of research was to investigate ethical leadership as an antecedent, mediator, and outcome of variables of pragmatic importance to the workplace. Three interrelated studies examined the ethical imperative of the employment relationship using three independent datasets. Ethical leadership, as explained by social cognitive theory, was the central concept modeled in each study. Sample sizes of approximately 1,500 military members of the Canadian military were randomly selected for each study to participate in single-source, cross-sectional surveys conducted in a field setting. Correlation and Multiple Regression analyses were used to test relationships at the individual level of analysis. Key results and measures were replicated utilizing confirmatory factor analytic techniques. These studies contribute to ethical leadership research in three ways. First, findings indicated that a follower’s rank was positively associated with perceptions of ethical leadership of the immediate supervisor. Second, perceptions of ethical leadership were moderated by the type and level of follower ethical predispositions in boundary-spanning positions. Third, ethical leadership functioned as a partial mediator transmitting the effect of follower rank onto the workplace outcomes of follower affective commitment, organizational fairness climate, and career satisfaction. Implications for theory and practice are discussed. As a whole results suggest that organizations can effectively address the ethical imperative of the employment relationship through the clear lens of the individual being led – the ubiquitous follower.

Considering the increasing levels of unemployment and underemployment, and the limited evidence concerning the impact of underemployment on health, my study examines the relations between subjective, objective, and time-related underemployment and employees’ health-related quality of life, as manifested through self-rated health, activity limitations and work-related stress. The study compares an expanded model of work-health relations that, along with the factors addressed by control-demand, and social capital theories, includes characteristics of the physical work environment, and employees’ economic class. In addition to the commonly examined factors related to employment and health (control-demand and social capital), my study explores the impact of the work environment (hazards, discomfort and physical demands) and economic class to determine the specific effects of underemployment on an employee’s health-related quality of life. My main argument is that underemployment, in conjunction with lower economic class, higher exposure to a harmful work environment, lack of control over work, and lower social capital, contributes to increased work-related stress and diminishes health-related quality of life. The study applies a mixed methodological approach based on data from the Canadian Work and Lifelong Learning Survey and the US General Social Survey, and qualitative analysis of interviews from the Ontario Survey on Education-Job Requirements Matching. Evidence based on cross-sectional and qualitative data analysis provides consistent findings and confirms the main assumption that high levels of underemployment have a significant effect on employees’ health-related quality of life. The study shows that employees’ economic class, characteristics of work environment and control over work carry the highest associations with health-related quality of life, while underemployment has a significant additive association with health-related quality of life, most importantly with work-related stress.

L'objectif principal de ce mémoire est d'évaluer le rôle modérateur de trois traits de personnalité, soit l'estime de soi, le sentiment de cohésion, ainsi que le centre de contrôle interne sur la relation entre les conditions de l'organisation du travail et la consommation d'alcool à risque, ainsi que la consommation de médicaments psychotropes des travailleurs canadiens. Les données sur lesquelles nous nous sommes basés proviennent de l'Enquête Nationale sur la Santé de la Population (ENSP) de Statistique Canada. Celle-ci a été conduite à des intervalles de deux ans, de l’année 1994 jusqu'à l’année 2003, et comprend ainsi cinq cycles longitudinaux. Les analyses multiniveaux que nous avons effectuées nous ont permises d’identifier cinq variables des conditions de l'organisation du travail qui s’associent de manière significative à la consommation d'alcool à risque, soit l’utilisation des compétences qui augmente de 7% le risque de faire partie du groupe de consommation d’alcool à risque par un travailleur, les demandes psychologiques qui augmentent ce risque de 69%, et les travailleurs confrontés à un horaire de travail irrégulier qui consomment 61% plus d’alcool à risque que les travailleurs qui ont un horaire de travail régulier. Inversement, l’insécurité d’emploi réduit de 12% le risque de faire partie du groupe de consommation d’alcool à risque, et les travailleurs bénéficiant d’un soutien social au travail courent 5% moins de risque de consommation d’alcool à risque. Pour ce qui est des médicaments psychotropes, nos analyses multiniveaux nous ont permises d’identifier deux variables des conditions de l’organisation du travail qui y sont associées de manière significative. Il s’agit de l’utilisation des compétences qui augmente de 8% le risque de faire partie du groupe de consommation de médicaments psychotropes, alors que le nombre d’heures travaillées diminue de 1% ce risque. En ce qui concerne les traits de personnalité, l’estime de soi augmente de 17% le risque de consommation d’alcool à risque, alors que le sentiment de cohésion diminue de 1% ce risque. L’estime de soi joue un rôle modérateur faible entre les conditions de l’organisation du travail et la consommation d’alcool à risque, puisque celle-ci diminue de 3% l’effet pathogène des demandes physiques imposées sur les travailleurs sur leur consommation d’alcool à risque. Pour ce qui est des médicaments psychotropes, nos résultats indiquent que l’estime de soi diminue de 4% le risque de consommation de médicaments psychotropes, le centre de contrôle interne diminue de 9% ce risque, et le sentiment de cohésion quant à lui, diminue ce risque de 3%. D’ailleurs, aucun trait de personnalité ne joue un rôle modérateur entre les conditions de l’organisation du travail et la consommation de médicaments psychotropes. / The main objective of this master's thesis is to determine the moderator effect of personality traits (self esteem, sens of cohesion, sens of control) on the relationship between work organization conditions, and risky alcohol consumption, as well as psychotropic medication consumption by canadian workers. In order to conduct our project, we relied on data that came from five cycles of the National Population Health Survey (NPHS). This survery was conducted at a two year interval, spanning from the year 1994 until 2003, and includes five longitudinal cycles. The multilevel analyis we performed, allowed us to identify five work organization conditions that increase the risk of risky alcohol consumption.Skill utilisation increases by 7% the risk of being part of a risky alcohol consumption group, while psychological demands increase risky alcohol consumption by 69%, and workers confronted to an irregular work schedule consume 61% more risky alcohol. However, job insecurity decerases by 12% the risk of being part of a risky alcohol consumption group, and workers that enjoy social support at work have a 5% lesser risk of being part of a risky alcohol consumption group. As for psychotropic medications consumption, our multilevel analysis allowed us to identify two work organization conditions that are associated in a significant manner to the psychotropic medication consumption. Skill utilisation at work increases by 8% the risk of being part of a pscyhotropic medication consumption group, while the number of hours worked decreases by 1% the risk of being part of a psychotropic medication consumption group. As for personnality traits, our results indicate that self esteem increases by 17% the risk of risky alcohol consumption, while sense of cohesion decreases by 1% this risk. In addition, self esteem plays a moderator role by diminuishing by 3% the pathologic impact of physical demands at work on risky alcohol consumption. Concerning psychotropic medications consumption, our results indicate that self esteem diminuishes by 4% the risk of psychotropic medications consumption, sense of control diminuishes by 9% the risk of psychotropic medications consumption, and sense of cohesion diminuishes by 3% this risk. In addition, none of the personnality traits plays a moderator role between work’s organization’s conditions and psychotropic medications consumption.

This dissertation is divided into three main components that each relate to the socioeconomic wellbeing of Aboriginal peoples in the Canadian labour market. Specifically, using data from the master file of the Canadian census for the years 1996, 2001 and 2006, the first section examines the wage differential for various Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal groups, including a comparison of those living on-and-off-reserves. The study finds that, while a sizeable wage gap between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal persons still exists, this disparity has narrowed over the three census periods for those living off-reserve. The Aboriginal-non-Aboriginal wage differential is largest among the on-reserve population and this gap has remained relatively constant over the three census periods considered in the study. The second study in the dissertation uses data from the master file of the Canadian Labour Force Survey for 2008 and 2009 to estimate the probability that an individual is a labour force participant, and, conditional on labour force participation, the probability that a respondent is unemployed, comparing several Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal groups. The results reveal that Aboriginal men and women have lower rates of labour force participation and higher rates or unemployment in both periods as compared to their non-Aboriginal counterparts. Aboriginal peoples were also disproportionately burdened by a slowdown in economic activity as measured by a change in the probability of unemployment moving from 2008 to 2009, as compared to non-Aboriginal people, who experienced a smaller increase in the probability of unemployment moving from a period of positive to negative economic growth. Finally, the third study examines the probability of high school dropout comparing Aboriginal peoples living on-and-off-reserve using data from the master file of the Aboriginal Peoples Survey for 2001. The findings reveal dramatically higher rates of dropout among Aboriginal people living on-reserve as compared to those living off-reserve. Limitations of all three studies as well as some possible directions of future research related to similar issues concerning Canada’s Aboriginal population are discussed in the concluding chapter of the dissertation.

In the globalized garment industry (GGI) most clothing is involved in complex networks that exploit both people and the environment. This system is unsustainable yet supported by Canadian consumers, who have become disconnected from their clothing’s production and disposal processes as a result of the development of increasingly complex social and technological systems since the Industrial Revolution. Canadians currently learn about the industry from public portrayals in which the dominant messages are designed by corporations promoting consumption. Nevertheless, growing numbers of consumers are realizing that this system is unsustainable and attempting to take action. This study uses methods based on institutional ethnography to explore the challenges faced by Canadians trying to engage in ethical consumption. Promoting sustainability is seen as requiring broad structural change, which can be supported by individual Canadians seeking to learn about the industry and working with its global stakeholders to build the civil commons.