Interethnic relationships are increasingly common in society, yet interethnic couples also have a higher divorce rate compared to intraethnic couples. Given these facts, it is important that researchers identify factors that contribute to couples commitment in interethnic relationships, but to date, such research is rare. This thesis investigated the factors that contribute to the commitment of Chinese interethnic relationships. In order to do that, a qualitative study and a quantitative study were conducted. Johnson s commitment framework was found suitable in the qualitative study. Thus a cultural model that incorporated Johnson s personal commitment and a new construct couple cultural identity was established for the quantitative study to find whether love, satisfaction (i.e. dyadic adjustment) and couple cultural identity (i.e. acculturation to the partner and similarity of couple s individualism/collectivism) would predict personal commitment and whether each variable would account for unique variance in personal commitment of the participants. The quantitative study found significant relationships between love and personal commitment, satisfaction and personal commitment of Chinese interethnic couples. Also, couple cultural identity was important for women s personal commitment. These findings suggest that partners in interethnic relationships may define personal commitment in different ways with men emphasising love and satisfaction, and women emphasising love and acculturation to their partner.

Title: Managing an emerging region – A study of how MNCs manage uncertainty in a Southern African context Authors: Markus Axelsson & Andreas Olofsson Supervisor: Cecilia Pahlberg Research question: How are Swedish business-to-business MNCs reducing perceived uncertainty when operating in the Southern African Development Community? Purpose: Provide a deeper understanding of how Swedish MNCs from diverse industrial backgrounds are managing uncertainty when operating in the Southern African Development Community (SADC). This study further aims to add to an acknowledged theoretical gap in international business research by providing a contextual contribution towards the Southern African region to the field of internationalization management. Method: A qualitative research method including semi-structured interviews was used to gain in- depth understanding of how Swedish B2B MNCs manages uncertainty within SADC markets. For the analysis, a theoretical framework based on uncertainty management, knowledge and network theory was developed into a conceptual model, carried out when gathering empirical data. Conclusions: The findings suggest that gaining experiential knowledge was vital to reduce perceived uncertainty among Swedish B2B MNCs operating in SADC markets. Experiential knowledge was obtained through operations within the markets, which over time resulted in enhanced market commitments and thereafter increased experiential knowledge. Knowledge was further exclusively shared within networks, where gaining network insidership was essential. To gain network insidership in SADC markets, findings suggest that becoming localized in the market to gain legitimacy is beneficial and achieved over a longer period of time. Finally, findings indicate that South Africa could be used as a gateway into Southern Africa, where firms’ can gain valuable experiences, relationships and an understanding of business practices, which can reduce the perceived uncertainty towards other SADC markets.

Temos aktualumas: Darbuotojų lojalumo ir motyvacijos trūkumas yra viena didžiausių problemų su kuria susiduria organizacijos šiandien. Didžiausios Lietuvoje viešosios nuomonės ir rinkų tyrimų bendrovės „TNS Gallup“ duomenimis, Lietuvos darbuotojų lojalumas yra vienas iš žemiausių ne tik Baltijos šalyse, bet ir visoje Europoje: vos vienas iš devynių darbuotojų Lietuvoje jaučiasi motyvuotas darbe ir lojalus įmonei, kurioje dirba. Ypač sunku motyvuoti ir organizacijoje išlaikyti jaunimą, kai jų gyvenimo varomoji jėga yra nauji iššūkiai ir pokyčiai. Arba vyresnio amžiaus darbuotoją, kuris kritiškai žiūri į bet kokias naujoves ir sunkiai išgyvena, bet kokius pokyčius. Taigi, vienas svarbiausių šių dienų žmogiškųjų išteklių vadybos organizacijoje uždavinių - tokios motyvacijos sistemos sudarymas, kuri ne tik atitiktų skirtinguose karjeros etapuose esančių darbuotojų poreikius, bet ir skatintų jo lojalumą organizacijai. Darbo tikslas – įvertinti skirtinguose karjeros etapuose esančių darbuotojų motyvavimo ypatumus ir poveikį jų lojalumui. Siekiant iškelto tikslo yra nagrinėjami tokie uždaviniai: 1. Išskirti motyvavimo metodus ir priemones tinkančias motyvuoti darbuotojus įvairiuose jų karjeros etapuose. 2. Įvertinti motyvavimo metodų ir priemonių poveikį darbuotojų lojalumo organizacijai didinimui (užtikrinimui). 3. Sukurti skirtinguose karjeros etapuose esančių darbuotojų motyvacijos ir lojalumo tyrimo modelį. 4. Nustatyti veiksnius, įtakojančius darbuotojo motyvaciją esant... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / The theme relevance and necessity of its decision: The shortness of employee loyalty and motivation is one of the biggest problems facing organizations today. According to the data of Lithuania largest public opinion and market research Company TNS Gallup, Lithuanian staff loyalty is one of the lowest in the Baltic countries but also across Europe: less than one out of nine workers feel motivated at work and loyal to the company, which they belong to. In particular, it is difficult to motivate and retain young people in an organization when their life is driven by new challenges and changes. Or, older workers, who take a critical view on any new developments and make it difficult to survive any change. Therefore, one of the most important tasks for human resource management in nowadays organization is to create such a motivation system which not only meets workers' needs in the different career stages, but also to promote its loyalty to the organization. The object of search work - employee motivation and loyalty in the different stages of carrier. The goals of the work: 1. Distinguish reasoning methods and tools suited to motivate employees in various stages of their careers. 2. To evaluate different motivating methods and their impact of increasing workers' loyalty to the organization. 3. Compose empirical research model of motivation and loyalty in the different stages of carrier. 4. Identify the factors influencing employee motivation at different career stages and to... [to full text]

In the new world economy the hey differentiator of competitive advantage is an organisation's human resources. Increasingly, employees have to cope with multiple demands arising from various roles. often with limited resources and no guarantee of job security. In monitoring and improving employee effectiveness in coping with multiple new demands. stimulating their growth and enhancing their well-being as well as organisational performance, burnout and engagement are specific research areas. 'The objectives of this study were to investigate the relationships between burnout, engagement, job demands. job resources and organisational commitment of management staff at a platinum mine in the North-West Province, and to determine which variables best predict burnout, engagement and organisational commitment. A cross-sectional survey design was used. The study population consisted of management staff at a platinum mine in the North West Province (N = 202). The Job Demands-Resources Scale, Utrecht Work Engagement Scale: Maslach Burnout Inventory - General Survey. a Health Questionnaire, and an Organisational Commitment scale were administered. Descriptive statistics, product-moment correlation coefficients and multiple regression analyses were used to analyse the data. The results indicated that burnout correlated significantly with job demands, job resources. engagement, health and organisational commitment. Engagement. correlated significantly with job resources. health, and organisational commitment. Exhaustion was best predicted by workload. job insecurity and lack of resources whilst cynicism was predicted by poor organisational support and advancement opportunities. Engagement was best predicted by organisational support. and organisational commitment was predicted by both burnout and engagement. Ill health was predicted by exhaustion. Recommendations were made for future research. / Thesis (M.Com. (Industrial Psychology))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2006.

Understanding how committed employees are within an organization is a valuable tool for managing and fostering a successful work environment. A continued appreciation of employee commitment is especially beneficial following organizational change as it has been shown that change inevitably impacts commitment levels to some degree. This study investigated organizational commitment within a subpopulation of the newly restructured Parks Canada Agency using an established survey instrument. The findings revealed that an employee's tenure and work location currently influences commitment levels among the sample that was surveyed. This study also found that commitment to the Parks Canada mandate significantly differs from the expressed commitment to the current state of the organization. An effort to improve the moderate levels of organizational commitment would be a valuable strategy for enhancing the employer-employee relationship and contributing to the positive effects of the organizational change.

In response to increasing global competition, companies are continuously under pressure to undergo dramatic changes. Organisations have flattened their structures to replace their traditional hierarchical management structures with empowered work teams. These are teams that have full responsibility of what they do and handle things traditionally handled by management in the past. In order to achieve this, the management challenge is to create working conditions in which individuals in these teams voluntary choose to commit, collaborate and act towards accomplishment of organizational goals (Duvall, 1999). Today's highly competitive environment, technological improvement, complex customer needs, corporate restructuring and continuous search for innovative ways to take organizations to new heights, affect companies throughout the world. To survive in today's difficult economic conditions, organizations demands more from employees. This study conceptualizes empowerment, dividing empowerment into three categories: structural empowerment, leadership empowerment and motivational empowerment. The study narrows to examine psychological empowerment specifically, an aspect of motivational empowerment. The theory of Spreitzer (1995) of four cognitions and the three principles of Menon (2001) is combined to conceptualize psychological empowerment. Job satisfaction is also discussed with emphasis on intrinsic and extrinsic satisfaction. Organisational commitment is examined from the three-component theory of Allen and Meyer (1991). The objective of this study is to determine the relationship between psychological empowerment, job satisfaction and organisational commitment in a chemical industry. A correlation design was used to determine the relationship between the constructs. Data from a sample of 61 (N=61) employees were used. A correlation design is used to determine the relationship between psychological empowerment, job satisfaction and organisational commitment. Data were gathered and explored in terms of descriptive statistics. Cronbach alpha coefients and factor analysis are calculated to give an indication of the validity and reliability of the measuring instruments. Pearson product moment correlation coefficients and canonical correlations were used to obtain the empirical results. A regression analysis and multiple stepwise regression analysis was carried out to determine the extent to which psychological empowerment predict job satisfaction and organisational commitment. The results of the empirical study indicated practically significant differences between psychological empowerment as a total and two variables: Intrinsic job satisfaction and affective commitment. It was found that psychological empowerment could be used to predict job satisfaction to a certain degree, but could not predict organizational commitment as a total. However, there are indications that it could be used to predict affective commitment. / Thesis (M.A. (Industrial Psychology))--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2004.

The pace of changes in South African education institutions has profound effects on the teachers. Due to internal and external influences teaching is a much more demanding occupation than in the past, with significant consequences for the teacher. All the changes in the education system cause stress. Possible outcomes impacting on the teacher are burnout, work disengagement, job dissatisfaction and organisational commitment. The objective of this research was to investigate the relationship between occupational stress, burnout, job satisfaction, work engagement and organisational commitment of educators on senior level in the Sedibeng West District - Vanderbijlpark. The research method was by means of two separate studies, each consisting of a brief literature overview and an empirical study. A cross-sectional survey design was used. A stratified random sample of educators on senior level in the Sedibeng West District - Vanderbijlpark (N = 140) was used. Six questionnaires were administered, namely, the Maslach Burnout Inventory- General Survey (MBI-GS), the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES), the ASSET Organisational Stress Screening Tool, the Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire (MSQ), the Organisational Commitment Questionnaire and a Biographical questionnaire. Statistical analysis was carried out with the help of the SAS-program and Amos. Limitations of the research are discussed, followed by ecommendations for the teaching profession and future research. / Thesis (M.A. (Industrial Psychology))--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2004.

Organisations have been under enormous pressure due to the changes that they are constantly faced with. Most organisations have at some stage been involved in restructuring, laying-off of employees, and outsourcing of non-core business activities with the aim of coping with the change process. When organisations go through these changes, they still need to support their employees. They must ensure that the employees' roles are clarified, and that they feel secure in their jobs in order to improve their commitment to the organisation. The objective of this study was to determine the relationship between perceived organisational support, role clarity, job insecurity and organisational commitment. Employees from a business unit in a petrochemical organisation were targeted for this research. The study population included employees from managerial, non-managerial and specialist categories. A cross-sectional design was used to achieve the research objectives. Measures of Perceived Organisational Support (POSQ), Role Clarity (RCQ), Job Insecurity (JIQ), Affective Organisational Commitment (OCQ) and a biographical questionnaire were administered for the study. The statistical analysis was carried out with the help of the SPSS program as well as the AMOS program. Pearson product-moment correlations indicated that when perceived organisational support increases, affective organisational commitment and role clarity will also increase. When perceived organisational support increases, role conflict and job insecurity will Vll decrease. Affective organisational commitment as well as role clarity is predicted by perceived organisational support. MANOYA analysis indicated that male employees experience higher levels of role conflict than their female counterparts. It seems that employees in first line management and professional categories experience significantly higher levels of perceived role conflict than employees in lower level positions. Employees in non-management positions experience significantly higher levels of affective job insecurity than employees in senior management positions. Employees in senior management positions experience significantly lower levels of cognitive job insecurity than employees in non-management positions. Recommendations were made for future research. / Thesis (M.A. (Industrial Psychology))--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2008.

The importance of good relationship among parties in the construction industry has been accepted as one of the central issues of an organisation's success. The growing acceptance to the Relational Contracting approaches that representing partnering, supply chain alliances and other types of collaborative working relationships shows how construction organisations are moving forward from the traditional adversarial culture to a more harmonious working environment. However the application of the Relational Contracting Norms in the context of national culture has received relatively little attention in the literature. This study attempts to fill this void by investigating how good relationships develop within construction projects in Malaysia. It also investigates the adaptability of the relational contracting norms in different cultural setting and explores whether similar relational contracting norms emerge in different projects before developing a relationship development model that is applicable to the academic and practitioners. By using qualitative approach, the main data was collected from 36 semi-structured in-depth interviews across four case studies. The results were validated by 20 follow-up interviews with selected respondents, two stages of expert interviews and cross-case analysis. This study found that good relationships within construction projects in the Malaysian construction industry developed from the interplay of twelve structural and relational dimensions that went through three stages of relationship development process in project setting. It highlights the significant importance of the value and emotion-related dimensions in developing good relationships. A relationship development model was produced based on these twelve dimensions (special contract directive, power, performance, trust, commitment, loyalty, personal relationships, emotions, values, social interaction, work inter-dependency and political connection). The research contributes to construction management literature by supporting the Transaction Cost Economics Theory and extends the Relational Contracting Theory. It proposes seven new dimensions that are incorporated in the newly proposed relationship development model. Although the study was conducted in a specific national culture, it is argued that the model is applicable to other context on the basis that spiritual, emotional and human components of the work experience could be learned by other cultures.

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