The world of work in South Africa has and is still changing. These changes include the introduction of the Employment Equity Act, Broad Based Black Economic Empowerment and the advancement in technologies. In addition, South Africa is now a globalised country and this means that it is faced with the challenge of keeping up with the trends of doing business and working in line with other globalised countries. The effect of tllis in the teaching environment may be linked to the high demands and changes placed on teachers. They have to increase the standard of education and change old ways of teaching. With these rapid changes and demands teachers may feel that they are not competent enough and have limited resources to achieve what it is expected of them by the Government. Consequently, this causes a feeling of job insecurity amongst teachers, especially when they feel that what the government is demanding of them do not compare to the resources available. Job insecurity has an influence on the individual as well as the organisation. On the individual's side, it results in reduced levels of psychological well-being characterised by incidents such as anxiety, social dysfunction, irritation and strain-related psychosomatic complaints. With regard to the organisation, some individuals psychologically withdraw from the job or the whole organisation when they experience a feeling of job insecurity. In addition, there is an increase in absenteeism. Although a feeling of job insecurity is a reality in thc South African world of work, only limited numbers of programmes are implemented to address the problem. To overcome a feeling of job insecurity, employees need to be resilient. When faced with challenges, stressful events and changes individuals cope and adapt in varied ways and show varying degrees of resilience. Furthermore, there is a lack of research on the relationship between job insecurity, general health and resilience of teachers in South Africa. The objective of this study was to determine whether a relationship exist between job insecurity, general health and resilience. The cross-sectional research design was used with a survey technique to collect data from an available random sample of teachers in the Sedibeng West District. The measuring battery consisted of four questionnaires namely; a Job Insecurity Questionnaire (JIQ), 28-item version of the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ), Resilience Scale (RS) and a Biographical Questionnaire. A positive correlation was obtained between job insecurity and psychological distress, suggesting that increased levels of job insecurity are associated with increased levels of psychological distress. Negative correlations were found between job insecurity and resilience as well as resilience and general health, suggesting that individuals who have high levels of resilience also have low levels on job insecurity and psychological distress respectively. A statistically significant difference was found on job insecurity with regard to cultural groups and the employment contract of teachers. Conclusions were drawn from the findings and recommendations were made for the Department of Education and future research. / The world of work in South Africa has and is still changing. These changes include the introduction of the Employment Equity Act, Broad Based Black Economic Empowerment and the advancement in technologies. In addition, South Africa is now a globalised country and this means that it is faced with the challenge of keeping up with the trends of doing business and working in line with other globalised countries. The effect of this in the teaching environment may be linked to the high demands and changes placed on teachers. They have to increase the standard of education and change old ways of teaching. With these rapid changes and demands teachers may feel that they are not competent enough and have limited resources to achieve what it is expected of them by the Government. Consequently, this causes a feeling of job insecurity amongst teachers, especially when they feel that what the government is demanding of them do not compare to the resources available. Job insecurity has an influence on the individual as well as the organisation. On the individual's side, it results in reduced levels of psychological well-being characterised by incidents such as anxiety, social dysfunction, irritation and strain-related psychosomatic complaints. With regard to the organisation, some individuals psychologically withdraw from the job or the whole organisation when they experience a feeling of job insecurity. In addition, there is an increase in absenteeism. Although a feeling of job insecurity is a reality in the South African world of work, only limited numbers of programmes are implemented to address the problem. To overcome a feeling of job insecurity, employees need to be resilient. When faced with challenges, stressful events and changes individuals cope and adapt in varied ways and show varying degrees of resilience. Furthermore, there is a lack of research on the relationship between job insecurity, general health and resilience of teachers in South Africa. The objective of this study was to determine whether a relationship exist between job insecurity, general health and resilience. The cross-sectional research design was used with a survey technique to collect data from an available random sample of teachers in the Sedibeng West District. The measuring battery consisted of four questionnaires namely; a Job Insecurity Questionnaire (JIQ), 28-item version of the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ), Resilience Scale (RS) and a Biographical Questionnaire. A positive correlation was obtained between job insecurity and psychological distress, suggesting that increased levels of job insecurity are associated with increased levels of psychological distress. Negative correlations were found between job insecurity and resilience as well as resilience and general health, suggesting that individuals who have high levels of resilience also have low levels on job insecurity and psychological distress respectively. A statistically significant difference was found on job insecurity with regard to cultural groups and the employment contract of teachers. Conclusions were drawn from the findings and recommendations were made for the Department of Education and future research. / Thesis (M.A. (Industrial Psychology))--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2008.

In order to stay competitive in an economic landscape characterised by constant turmoil and change, organisations in the chemical industry are engaging in various adaptive strategies like mergers, acquisitions and diversification. Adaptation strategies may vary but they all have similar results in common, one of which is the exposure of employees to feelings of uncertainty and job insecurity. Identifying factors that enable employees to effectively deal with job insecurity is becoming an increasingly important topic for research. The primary objectives of this research were to investigate the relationship between job insecurity, general health and organisational citizenship behaviour of employees in a chemical industry, as well as to determine whether self-efficacy mediates the relationship between job insecurity and general health on the one hand and between job insecurity and organisational citizenship behaviour on the other hand. The research method consists of a literature review and an empirical study. A cross-sectional survey design was used to collect the data. An availability sample (N = 205) was taken from employees in a chemical industry. The Job Insecurity Questionnaire (JIQ), General Health Questionnaire (GHQ), Organisational Citizenship Behaviour Scale (OCB), General Perceived Self-Efficacy Scale (GPSES) and a biographical questionnaire were administered. The statistical analysis was carried out with the SPSS program. Principal component factor analysis confirmed a two factor structure for job insecurity consisting of affective job insecurity and cognitive job insecurity. Factor analysis resulted in three factors for general health, namely psychosomatic symptoms, severe depression and social dysfunction. The two factors of the OCB were confIrmed and were labeled altruism and compliance. The unidimensional structure of the GPSES could also be confirmed and was labeled self-efficacy. All scales indicated acceptable reliability with Cronbach alpha coefficients varying from 0,70 to 0,89. Spearman product-moment correlations indicated a statistically positive correlation (practically significant, medium effect) between cognitive job insecurity and affective job insecurity. Results further indicated that an increase in psychosomatic symptoms will lead to an increase in severe depression and social dysfunction, while an increase in severe depression will be associated with an increase in social dysfunction. It was found that when altruism increased, self-efficacy will also increase. The hypothesised mediating effect of self-efficacy was only partially demonstrated for the relationship between affective job insecurity and general health, as demonstrated by severe depression. Self-efficacy was further shown to mediate the relationship between cognitive job insecurity and altruism. The relationship between cognitive job insecurity and affective job insecurity as dependent variables and compliance as an independent variable were partially mediated by self-efficacy. MANOVA analysis indicated that female employees experienced higher levels of cognitive job insecurity than male employees. White employees and employees with a degree exhibited more organisational citizenship behaviour, as demonstrated by compliance. Results further indicated that African employees and employees with a qualification of up to Grade 11 experienced higher levels of severe depression. Recommendations for future research were made, as well as recommendations to the participating organisation. / Thesis (M.A. (Industrial Psychology))--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2008.

Thesis (Ph.D. (Industrial Psychology))--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2005.

Due to constant changes and demands from external forces markets, today's employees are subjected to continuous change in the workplace in order for organisations to stay competitive. Changes include restructuring, downsizing, technological changes and so forth, which result in employees feeling less secure in their jobs compared to employees a few decades ago. This insecurity is a reality in the lives of employees and leads to a whole range of emotions and reactions toward these changes. The primary objectives of this research is to determine the nature of the relationship between job insecurity and affective organisational commitment, and also the nature of the relationship between job insecurity and the general health of employees in a specific petro-chemical organisation (N = 229). The final objective is to determine if work locus of control plays a mediating role in the above mentioned relationships. A cross-sectional survey design was employed. Constructs were measured using the following: the Job Insecurity Questionnaire (JIQ), the Organisational Commitment Questionnaire (OCQ) [where only the affective subscale was interpreted], the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ), the Work Locus of Control Scale (WLCS) as well as a biographical questionnaire. Results indicated that a practically significant relationship of medium effect exists between job insecurity (both dimensions) and work locus of control, and also a practically significant negative relationship between job insecurity (cognitive subscale) and affective organizational commitment and between affective organisational commitment with work locus of control. No other practically significant relationships were found, although the relationship between the variables did prove to be statistically significant. Regression analysis confirmed that work locus of control fully mediate the relationship between affective job insecurity and affective organisational commitment and also between affective job insecurity with general health, whilst partial mediation by work locus of control was found between cognitive job insecurity and affective organisational commitment and cognitive job insecurity and general health. Conclusions and recommendations were made. / Thesis (M.A. (Industrial Psychology))--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2007.

Organisations are faced with challenges and opportunities due to the constantly changing world of work. These changes lead to organisational members to compete or survive in the dynamic world of work. Job Insecurity, Psychological Empowerment, Work Engagement as well as the employee's well-being are affected by these changes. The South African education environment has been changing since the beginning of the new political dispensation in 1994. The changes include the social, economic, technological and organisational environment. The unsuccessful implementation of the outcome based education and subsequent review has placed Educators under considerable pressure. The changes are being exacerbated by the unprecedented world economic down turn which has created further uncertainty in employment and has resulted in increased levels of Job Insecurity and employee disengagement. Employee engagement and job satisfaction become the key aspects that may contribute to high performance levels and the retention of motivated employees during this period of uncertainty. The schools that would engage their staff members are likely to retain their Educators whilst unengaged Educators will feel more insecure and are likely to look for other jobs elsewhere. The objective of this study was to establish the relationship between Job Insecurity, Psychological Empowerment, Work Engagement and General Health of Educators in the Sedibeng West District. A cross sectional survey design was used to collect data from an available sample of Educators in the specified district. A Job Insecurity Questionnaire (JIQ), Psychological Empowerment Questionnaire (PEQ), Work Engagement Scale (UWES) and General Health questionnaire (GHQ) as well as a Biographical Questionnaire were administered in this regard. Results indicated a statistically significant and negative relationship between Job Insecurity and Psychological Empowerment as measured by Influence and Attitude. Higher levels of Job Insecurity are therefore associated with lower levels of perceived Psychological Empowerment (as measured by Influence and Attitude). A statistically significant negative correlation was obtained between Job Insecurity and Work Engagement. Job Insecurity was found to be statistically significant associated with three dimensions of General Health (Somatic Symptoms, Social Dysfunction and Severe Depression). A practically significant correlation of medium effect was obtained between Influence and Work Engagement as measured by the UWES. Influence also showed statistically significant negative correlations with Somatic Symptoms, Social Dysfunction and Severe Depression. The Attitude factor obtained a practically significant correlation of large effect with Work Engagement and furthermore statistically negatively correlates with the three GHQ factors, being Somatic Symptoms, Social Dysfunction and Severe Depression. A practically significant negative correlation of medium effect was obtained between Work Engagement and Social Dysfunction. Somatic Symptoms and Severe Depression showed a statistically significant correlation with Work Engagement. Regression analysis indicated that Job Insecurity and Psychological Empowerment as measured by Attitude have a significant predictive value towards Work Engagement and General Health as measured by Somatic Symptoms, Social Dysfunction and Severe Depression. Based on the findings, limitations of the research followed by recommendations for the Department of Education and for future research were made. / Thesis (M.A. (Industrial Psychology))--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2009

The current economic situation has reconfirmed the importance of researching job insecurity and the impact it has on the individual as well as the organisation. An individual outcome which is normally negatively affected is general health. Engagement, although an experience on individual level, is an organisational outcome affected by job insecurity. With the introduction of positive psychology, emotions in the workplace created new research grounds. It seems that hope and happiness have a positive influence on negative consequences, which can assist managers in finding a competitive advantage in their human capital. The objectives of this study were to investigate the relationship between job insecurity, general health, work engagement, hope and happiness of employees (N = 286) of a co-operation in the North-West Province by using a cross-sectional survey design. The measuring instruments used were Job Insecurity Scale (JIS), General Health Questionnaire (GHQ), Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES), Hope Scale (HS), Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWL), and a biographical questionnaire. The measuring instruments were translated into Afrikaans which is the language mostly used by the target population. Four articles explained the study through a brief literature review and empirical study in each. Factor analyses were done to determine construct validity, and Cronbach's alphas and inter-item correlation coefficients assessed the internal consistency of the instruments. Descriptive statistics was used to analyse the data and Pearson product moment correlation coefficient as well as regressions, MANOVA and ANOVA was done to determine relationships between variables. Hierarchical regression was performed to test for moderation and mediation. JIS, GHQ, HS and SWLS confirmed their structural models and proved good internal consistencies. Gender, cultural group and qualification were found to have statistically significant influence on job insecurity. Females regarded the importance of job features and importance of changes to total job higher than their male colleagues. The cultural group 'other' indicated higher levels of job insecurity with regard to likelihood to loose a job feature. This fear was also experienced by participants with a qualification Grade 7 and lower as well as likelihood to changes in total job. No correlation was found between job insecurity and general health, but job insecurity did show correlations with engagement and hope. Hope and happiness were also positively correlated and hope was found to predict happiness. Hope did not moderate the job insecurity general health relationship, but did moderate the relationship between job insecurity and engagement. Hope explained 7% of the variance in general health and 14% of the variance in engagement. Happiness moderated the effect of job insecurity on general health but not of job insecurity on engagement. Happiness also showed a main effect of 13% on general health and predicted 10% of the variance in engagement. When tested, a partial mediation of happiness on the relationship between job insecurity and engagement was found. Recommendations for the organisation and future research were made. / Thesis (Ph.D. (Industrial Psychology))--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2010.

<p> The goal of my dissertation is to characterize the contribution of industrial food animal production to between-farm transmission of zoonotic influenza A viruses and transmission of these viruses from industrial food animals to humans. The intention of this research is to improve the capacity of public health policies in the United States to prevent the emergence of pandemic influenza viruses.</p><p> Preventing and controlling outbreaks within animal populations and avoiding human infection with zoonotic influenza A viruses can reduce the risk of emergence of pandemic influenza viruses in human populations. Industrial food animal production, which dominates the market in the United States and much of the developed world &ndash; and increasingly, the developing world as well &ndash; has long been considered biosecure. However, emerging research indicates that these industrial systems are vulnerable to disease incursions and suggests that they may play a central role in driving the emergence of zoonotic diseases. The implications of these industrial systems for human influenza risk, particularly the emergence of novel zoonotic influenza A viruses, remains largely unaddressed in the current literature and in health policy strategies in the United States. </p><p> Chapter 1 of this dissertation outlines my research goals and provides background on my central research themes and topics. Chapter 2 documents the limits of biosecurity within industrial systems, highlighting risks to food animal workers. Chapter 3 details a cross-sectional serology study of a cohort of industrial poultry workers and community members (n=99) in the Delmarva Peninsula, a tri-state area of intense poultry production in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. No evidence of infection with avian influenza viruses is observed in this population.</p><p> Chapter 4 contains a quantitative modeling study to estimates risk of between-farm transmission of avian influenza viruses among industrial poultry farms. This study concluded that company affiliation was a significant source of exposure risk from vehicular transmission. Chapter 5 is a policy analysis of the limitations of current pandemic preparedness policy in the United States to adequately incorporate primary prevention. The central results of this dissertation, their significance to public health and opportunities for further research are highlighted in Chapter 6.</p>

<p> Healthcare spending has risen astronomically over the recent past. Some of the blame has been placed upon an inefficient healthcare system. Whether true or not, we are in the midst of burdensome financial trend in healthcare that cannot continue. Thus, private payers, government payers and taxpayers alike, are looking at ways to reduce such spending. At the same time, healthcare providers wish to remain profitable enough to continue delivering care, well into the future. One proposed answer to the conditions plaguing an inefficient and expensive health system is the new focus on collaborative care models for healthcare delivery. This paper examines collaboration, particularly the joint venture between hospitals and healthcare providers. This paper also assesses the financial viability of such organizations, and recommends areas for further exploration in collaborative design.</p>

<p> In the United States, since 1980, excess weight reached epidemic levels and labeled a public health crisis. Obesity rates correlated with chronic disease drive health care expenditures, absenteeism, worker compensation claims, co-morbidities, mortality rates, and more. </p><p> Many organizations offer employee wellness programs but are difficult to measure benefits and determine the most effective strategies. Wellness program effectiveness was seldom linked to organizational variables. Research questions were: (1) What organizational variable effects, such as organizational size, engagement in policies that encourage participation, and median income of the school district, determined by zip code income census data, have on school employee health outcomes, perceived health and wellness participation rates; and (2) Will the employee's residence effect health outcomes, perceived health and wellness participation rates, determined by employee's residence zip code and median income zip code census data. </p><p> Research generally focused on one organizational variable or health outcome in a variety of organizations, whereas this study examined multiple organizational variables and health outcomes within many school districts. The hypotheses were: (1) Mid-sized districts have better employee health outcomes, perceived health and participation rates than larger-sized districts; (2) Districts with better developed wellness policies using best practices have a positive effect on employee health outcomes, perceived health and participation rates; and (3) Organizational effects on employee health outcomes, perceived and participation rates vary by where the employees' resides and works, as it links to median income zip code census data, with employees residing and working in lower/medium income areas having the worst health outcomes, perceived health and participation rates, and best results with the highest income. </p><p> This longitudinal study had several layers of organizational effects on employee wellness in Southern California School Districts. The program impacted almost 10,000 employees, self-selecting a variety wellness options, such as wellness challenges, health screenings, coaching, incentives, and staff development workshops. Data collected yearly included: (a) objective health measurements, such as body mass index and systolic/diastolic blood pressure; (b) self-reported perceived health measurements, such as health, stress, energy, confidence, self-esteem, and body image; and (c) the type of interventions. The data was archival and collected from 2005 to 2012.</p>

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Pacific Graduate School of Psychology, 1991. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 52-12, Section: B, page: 6648. Chairperson: Nancy G. Bliwise.