Thesis (M. Soc. Sc.)--University of Hong Kong, 2003.

Thesis (M. Soc. Sc.)--University of Hong Kong, 2003. / Also available in print.

One person - one vote; on Election Day in a representative democracy, everyone with the right to vote is equal. However, this occurs in Sweden once every four years. Between those occasions, we cannot be certain that political influence is equal until this has been tested. In this thesis, I will investigate whether Swedish democracy is responding to blue- and white-collar families equally. Do they have equal influence over public policy? And what consequences do the result have for some theories of democracy? With quantitative research, by replicating large parts of the research done by Martin Gilens and his research team, this thesis will be able to test if political influence is equal between these two groups. This allows us to test some of the theories and earlier research conclusions of Swedish democracy. No one, that I am aware of, has published something regarding this type of research in Sweden before. Gilens & Page’s (2014) research found that in the United States, economic elites and interest groups had substantial influence on public policy whereas average citizens had little or none - confirming economic elite domination and biased pluralism theories. By analysing 182 policy proposals, I find no clear proof, but strong indications that white- collar families have more influence on policy-making than blue-collar families. Future research would most likely be able to draw more confident conclusions if there was a greater data sample. If these indications are correct, then this has implications for some theories of American and Swedish democracy.

Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka om tjänstemän och arbetare skiljer sig åt i självskattad arbetstillfredsställelse samt att studera om arbetstillfredsställelse kan prediceras utifrån prediktorerna kön, ålder, anställningstid och facklig tillhörighet. Studien utfördes på ett statligt universitet i södra Sverige. Samplet bestod av 80 anställda från fyra avdelningar, ekonomiavdelningen, personalavdelningen, IT-avdelningen och lokal- och serviceavdelningen. Av dessa var 26 arbetare och 54 tjänstemän, baserat på facklig tillhörighet. Studiens mätinstrument bestod av en enkät baserad på Sigvard Rubenowitz test om psykosocial arbetsmiljökartläggning (PAK). Testet mäter arbetstillfredsställelse utifrån subskalorna egenkontroll, stimulans från arbetet, arbetsgemenskap, arbetsledningsklimat och arbetsbelastning. Statistisk prövning med med  t-test och multipel regressionsanalys visade en signifikant skillnad mellan arbetare och tjänstemän där tjänstemän upplevde högre egenkontroll, mer stimulans från arbetet och högre arbetsbelastning. Anställningstid var en signifikant prediktor för arbetsbelastning och ålder visade sig vara en signifikant prediktor för arbetsledningsklimat och stimulans från arbetet. / The purpose of this study was to examine if blue- and white collar workers differ in self-rated job-satifaction  and  also to find out if job-satisfacaction can be predicted by gender, age, period of employment and union affiliation. The study was performed at a state university in southern Sweden. The sample consisted of 80 employees from four different departments, the accounting department, the department of human reosurces, the IT department and the service department. Of these were 26 blue collar-workers and 54 white collar-workers based on union affiliation. The questionnaire was about psychosocial work environment (PAK) and is based on the test of Sigvard Rubenowitz. The test measures job-satisfaction by five different scales, self-control, work management, working community, work incentive and work load. Statistical analysis with t-test and multiple regression analysis revealed a significant difference between blue collar workers and white collar workers where white collar-workers felt more work incentive, more self-control and felt a higher work load. The result also revealed that period of employment was a significant predictor for work load and age was a significant predictor for work management and work incentive.

Thesis (M.F.A.)--West Virginia University, 2010. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains v, 253 p. Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 25).

published_or_final_version / Mental Health / Master / Master of Social Sciences

Programme evaluation research examined the criminological and socio-legal issues of a Claimant Fraud Investigation Program (CFIP) operating inside the workers' compensation system. Qualitative and quantitative methods were used to evaluate the programmes' choice of deterrence as an instrumental mechanism for achieving compliance. Key aspects of the programme were analysed from both criminological and socio-legal standpoints. Justice and liberty tensions were examined in reference to the programmes' deterrence mechanisms and the perceptions of fourteen participants' were thematically analysed. The study develops an analytically useful concept of light blue-collar crime that could be applied to other organisations and scenarios. The study concluded the programme is not effective and has more of a symbolic than instrumental value. It conducts itself ethically, however, there are problems with its' choice of deterrence and the study indicates there is a low probability for a deterrent effect. Recommendations are made for other actors and institutions to play non-deterrence based roles intended to achieve compliance.

This thesis highlights the importance of workers’ perceptions of and attitudes to sexual harassment. Past researchers have found that a variety of individual factors (age, gender, gender role, and past experiences of sexual harassment), and organisational factors (gender ratio, sexual harassment policies and the role of employers), correlate with the incidence of sexually harassing behaviours. Two studies presented in this thesis extend this research and were designed to investigate how these factors relate to workers’ attitudes towards and perceptions of sexual harassment. Study one investigated 176 workers from a large, white-collar organisation. Study two sampled 75 workers from a smaller, blue-collar organisation. By comparing two different workplaces the effect of the organisational climate was investigated. Individuals from Study two experienced more sexual harassment, were more tolerant of sexual harassment and perceived less behaviour as sexual harassment compared with individuals from Study one. The organisational context was found to affect the way in which organisational and individual factors related to workers' attitudes to and their experiences of sexual harassment. However, the factors that influenced workers’ perceptions of sexual harassment were stable across both studies. Although workers’ attitudes to and their perceptions of sexual harassment were significantly correlated, they were influenced by different factors. Overall, workers’ perceptions of sexual harassment were influenced by their attitudes, the behavioural context, and the gender of the victim and perpetrator. In contrast, attitudes to sexual harassment appeared to be more strongly influenced by individual factors, such as age, gender, gender role, past experiences of sexual harassment, and perceptions of management’s tolerance of sexual harassment. The broader implications of these findings are discussed and recommendations for future research are suggested.

<p>Många faktorer påverkar självkänslan, såsom uppskattning och beröm. Finns det skillnad mellan arbetare och tjänstemän hur den egna självkänslan upplevs på arbetet? M. Rosenbergs (1965) self-esteem scale användes som globalt begrepp för att undersöka skillnader i självkänsla. Nittiofyra arbetare och tjänstemän deltog i enkätstudien. En signifikant skillnad fanns mellan arbetarna och tjänstemännen. Det var på betydelsefulla områden. Det visade sig att arbetet var viktigare för tjänstemännen än för arbetaren. Olikheter fanns mellan mäns och kvinnors självkänsla indelat i ålderskategorier. De starkaste prediktorerna för självkänslan var uppskattning och återkoppling. Således kan sägas: om företagsledningen bidrar till att höja de anställdas självkänsla ökar förutsättningarna för större vinst. Äldre män visade sig ha den svagaste självkänslan. Detta vore intressant att forska vidare om.</p>

Många faktorer påverkar självkänslan, såsom uppskattning och beröm. Finns det skillnad mellan arbetare och tjänstemän hur den egna självkänslan upplevs på arbetet? M. Rosenbergs (1965) self-esteem scale användes som globalt begrepp för att undersöka skillnader i självkänsla. Nittiofyra arbetare och tjänstemän deltog i enkätstudien. En signifikant skillnad fanns mellan arbetarna och tjänstemännen. Det var på betydelsefulla områden. Det visade sig att arbetet var viktigare för tjänstemännen än för arbetaren. Olikheter fanns mellan mäns och kvinnors självkänsla indelat i ålderskategorier. De starkaste prediktorerna för självkänslan var uppskattning och återkoppling. Således kan sägas: om företagsledningen bidrar till att höja de anställdas självkänsla ökar förutsättningarna för större vinst. Äldre män visade sig ha den svagaste självkänslan. Detta vore intressant att forska vidare om.