Thesis (M.Psych.Org.) - University of Queensland, 2007. / Cover title. Includes bibliography.

M.Phil. / People are living in a stressful world, which is characterised by materialism, narrow self-centeredness, lack of meaning and dearth commitment (1.1). This results in people loosing touch of their spiritual core. They are searching for meaning and purpose in their lives, both at home and at work. Furthermore, companies seem not to take into account that people are more than just mind and body, with unique and special gifts. Companies treat people as numbers and not as people (1.2). The purpose of this study was to create an understanding of the concept spirituality and secondly to understand how employees experience spiritual fulfilment in the workplace and if the employer addresses their spiritual needs (as per 1.3). The study consequently aimed to describe the key elements of the concept spirituality in the workplace (as per Chapter 2), in an attempt to identify and disclose the current experience of spiritual fulfilment in the workplace (described in Chapter 3) — which might aid us in increasing employee productivity. The research has been done from a Personal and Professional Leadership perspective (1.6). This perspective is based on the assumption that human beings have an ongoing commitment and accompaniment to growth and dev'elopment, through self-knowledge and self-awareness, finding a purpose, realising one's full potential and co-operation with and adding value to other people's lives. In endeavoring to address the study's problem, the researcher subsequently decided to make use of a hermeneutic phenomenological research strategy, and to conduct an extensive literature review, word and concept analysis as well as focus group and individual interviews in order to meet the research objectives. The result of the literature study has consequently been described in Chapter 2 in an attempt to: meet the research objective (1.4) of what can be seen as the spiritual needs of workers, as well as to establish the link between the productivity of the workers and their spiritual fulfilment.

There is currently a phenomenon of young people changing jobs in our country. This research looks at the reasons why mechanics leave the workshop environment to pursue a career as a technical advisor in the call centre. The technical advisors all make the transition at a particular stage in their lives and this will be looked at in terms of Super’s (1980) developmental theory, with a particular focus on the stage of establishment. The dissertation takes the reader on a journey through the lives of five technical advisors at a particular organisation, and compares and contrasts the two work environments and the quality of work life associated with both. The study will also focus on stress that they experience while making the transition from mechanic to technical advisor and how this impacts on their work and personal lives. The study was exploratory in nature and was investigated through the qualitative method of interviewing.

No abstract available / Psychology / M.A. (Psychology)

M.Com. (Business Management) / The question of quality in the workplace is considered within a framework where structural and process variables, leadership, personal filters and behavioural patterns are addressed. Viewpoints regarding quality of work by Rosow, Piskurich, Bennet, Fulmer, Callahan and Drucker, amongst others, were examined. Problems associated with the feasibility of measuring quality is briefly analysed in the light of viewpoints of writers such as Tuttle and Romanowski...

This study explored the experience of shame in nursing using an interpretive phenomenological approach as described by van Manen (1997). Shame is a concept that has been extensively theorised within the social sciences as important in the development of individual identity, self esteem and role performance but overlooked in nursing. The purpose of this research was twofold; to gain an understanding of how shame influences and shapes nursing identity and to produce knowledge and stimulate dialogue about what that means for nursing culture. Participants were asked to discuss significant interactions with colleagues. Significantly, all disclosed the experience of shame. Further, four major themes emerged from this study to deepen understanding of what appears to be a cultural experience. The experience of shame involves: self appraisal, professional identity in conflict, the experience of isolation and recrimination. Within each theme a number of sub themes were identified including feeling dumb, being incompetent, withdrawing and going quiet and seeking revenge. The study concluded that in relation to nursing, internalised shame is not readily recognised although negative emotions that are linked to it are clearly felt. When these emotions are left unprocessed or unidentified as shame, then they are likely to have negative consequences. But recognising this hidden shame and bringing it to conscious awareness can express and perhaps relieve shame. Further, shame's adaptive functions, to provide moral direction and teach respect, could be acknowledged or reclaimed. It is argued therefore that acknowledging and discussing shame openly in nursing, such as through future research, scholarships and education, will facilitate consciousness raising and the potential for cultural change.

The subject of this research is the investigation officials from eight different regions. With convenience sampling, data are collected through questionnaire survey. Individual variable is set as independent variable, and the quality of work life, work pressure and job satisfaction are set as dependent variables. Differences and correlation are explored within each variable. Next, the quality of work life is set as mediator variable to investigate the mediator effect and the paths of relations on the dependent variables of work pressure and job satisfaction. The total number of 231 copies of effective questionnaires is collected. The return rate is 68.69%. Data are analyzed with descriptive statistics analysis, reliability analysis, factor analysis, t-test, One-way ANOVA, Pearson¡¦s product-moment correlation and canonical correlation analysis. The research reaches several significant conclusions: 1. The officials hold positive opinions toward their working quality. Result also shows that factors of marital status, age, years of working, and job position may cause obvious differences. 2. The officials¡¦ general work pressure reveals the fact of acceptable pressure. The region of service, job position and job duty are the factors that cause different levels of work pressure. 3. The officials¡¦ job satisfaction shows that officials are generally pleased with their works. Differences can be found in marital status, age, years of working and education level. 4. The officials¡¦ quality of work life and work pressure are partially related. 5. The officials¡¦ quality of work life and job satisfaction are partially related. 6. The officials¡¦ work pressure and job satisfaction have partial correlation. 7. The officials¡¦ quality of work life has partial effect on work pressure and job satisfaction. With practical investigation and relevant literature review, this research also advances suggestions for the Bureau of Investigation and its supervising department, officials, and other researchers as the reference for future implementation of management.

Abstract With respect to the combining program of ROC Military Academy, Naval Academy, Air Force Academy, the ROCMA has been conducting organization transformation and personnel downsizing since 2005; however, due to the time constraint, the rashly conducting of those works mentioned above has caused sense of instability and pressures to most of the school staff and faculty members. Besides, it may also affect the work quality and living contentment of the school staff and faculty members. This research, The Effect of Organization Transformation to the Work Quality and Living Contentment of the Organization Members, is focused on the school staff and faculty members of the ROCMA. It discusses the correlation between the organization transformation, the quality of work and the contentment of living, in order to provide the policy making element the references in making the follow up organization transformation policies avoiding the loss on the quality of work and the focus of living; therefore, the transformation policies could be implemented along with the improving of organization performance and the achieving of mission objectives. Through the focus group interview and questionnaires design, the following results are found, and they could be applied to the plan and personnel sections as references: The research is focus on ROCMA staff and faculty members besides general officers. 400 surveys were sent out, and 362 of them are valid, so the valid survey return rate is 90.5%. The results are: 1) The variables of organization transformation and work quality are positively correlated. 2) The variables of organization transformation and the contentment of living are positively correlated. 3) The quality of work and the contentment of living are significantly correlated; in which, the quality of work is positively correlated with the contentment of living in the aspects of work autonomy, work significance and work versatility; in the aspects of work feedback and work developing, however, the correlation is not significant. The contentment of living is positively correlated with the work quality in the aspects of organization rules, group relationship, job security and work reorganization; in the aspects of work environment and welfare though, the correlation is not significant. The suggestions according to this research are as follows: the simplicity of transformation process and the management theory should be combined for the research object during the transformation period in order to increase the efficiency, minimize redundant works, and avoid lobbying for jobs so that every jobs can be took by suitable person; finally, the way to reach the perfection and increase transformation efficiency with all the organization members¡¦ expectation is to correct exactly all the problems found during transformation period. Key words: Organization Transformation, Organization Transformation Awareness, the Quality of Work, the Contentment of Living.

Research on the quality of work life, job satisfaction and intention to quit of emotional labor ¢w based on the examples of the receptionists of Chunghwa Telecom. Abstract With change of industrial structure and structure of labor force, service sector has become the major trend of the economical society in lieu of agriculture and industry, and play quite an important role in the global economic. The service quality has always been a competitive tool emphasized by the organizations among the service sectors. Therefore, the primary service personnel turn to be the key factor deciding whether the service quality is good or not. Rafaeli & Sutton (1989) thought that customers viewed a whole and overall impression on those organizations out of the emotions expressed by the employees. When emotions are turned from private behaviors to commercialization, the organizations also start to think how to make use of a variety of managerial methods to let the emotional labors performance their best at work. Since relative research on emotional labor is not mature theoretically, and the job behavior, characteristic, outcomes etc. of the performers of such fields are not that clear relatively, this research tends to proceed an empirical research on the job behavior and feeling of the emotional labors (the receptionists) of the service sector (Chunghwa Telecom), in order to flesh out the relative empirical explores on such field, and wish to provide appropriate advices through the explored outcomes of this research; moreover, these can be important references to management proposal of the emotional labor human resources while the companies are being transformed (privately owned by the people). This research used the questionnaire, and adapted the descriptive statistical analysis, validity analysis, factor analysis, t-test on independent samples, one-way ANOVA, Pearson¡¦s relative and regressive analysis to explore the relationship among the quality of work life, the job satisfaction and intention to quit of the receptionists, and further took the job satisfaction as the moderating factor to explore its moderating effect to the relationship between the job satisfaction and intention to quit. The important findings are as follows: 1.The receptionists identify themselves least with the ideas that the quality of work life is based on the components of the company system and growth of esteem. 2.The receptionists are discontented most with that external satisfaction is based on the components of job satisfaction. 3.The receptionists tend to quit generally. 4.The receptionists tend to be of middle and old aged from the view of distribution of overall age. 5.There are significant positive correlations and positive influences on the quality of work life and job satisfaction of the receptionists; especially, the relation and ability of the components of superiors¡¦ attitude to predict external satisfaction are the highest; moreover, the relation and ability of the components of job nature to predict internal satisfaction and general satisfaction are the highest. 6.There are significant negative relative and negative influences on the job satisfaction and intention to quit of the receptionists; especially, the relation and ability of the components of external satisfaction to predict the intention to quit are the highest. 7.There are significant negative relative and negative influences on the quality of work life and intention to quit of the receptionists; especially, the relation and ability of the components of company system to predict the intention to quit are the highest. 8.Only partial moderating effect exists between the relationships of job satisfaction versus quality of work life and intention to quit. Key words: emotional labor, quality of work life, job satisfaction, intention to quit

This study is to explore the staffs of Kaohsiung city government for: (1) The relationships among job stress, quality of work life, humor leadership, and worksite health promotion; (2) The moderating effect of humor leadership toward job stress and quality of work life; (3) The moderating effect of worksite health promotion toward job stress and quality of work life; (4) The differences of sample characters on job stress, quality of work life, humor leadership, and worksite health promotion. The questionnaire survey was conducted in the study. Based on the data from Department of Budget, Accounting and Statistics of Kaohsiung city government, the budgeted staffs in 2009 are 10,840 persons who were located into 11 institute¡¦s catagories. According to the staffs numbers, we measured by ratio sampling (8%-10%), and associated with convenient sampling. Total 1005 questionnaires were distributed to the government staffs and 71 public schools staffs, and the valid questionnaires were 800 copies with return rate of 79.6%. This study adopted exploratory factor analysis (EFA), confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), reliability analysis, descriptive statistics, independent-sample t-test, one-way ANOVA, Structural Equation Modeling (SEM), correlation analysis and multiple regression. The findings are: (1) The government staffs have more stress on outside-giving, and they were mostly satisfied with leadership style of their supervisors; (2) Extrinsic effort and Overcommitment negatively and significantly affect quality of work life; Self-esteem and job promotion positively and significantly affect quality of work life; (3) Extrinsic effort and overcommitment negatively and significantly affect the balance of job/life; Self-esteem and job promotion positively and significantly affect quality of work life; (4) Humor leadership is a moderator toward extrinsic effort, self-esteem, overcommitment and quality of work life; (5) Health life, comfortable environment, friendly worksite are partial moderators toward self-esteem, job promotion, overcommitment and job characteristics; (6) Part of personal characters have significant differences in job stress, quality of work life, humor leadership, and worksite health promotion. This study aims to the relationship between job stress and quality of work life from the staffs of Kaohsiung city government, and could confirm humor leadership and worksite health promotion to be a moderator partially affecting job stress and quality of work life. The results could be the reference to provide Kaohsiung city government and related institutes to work on the strategy for reducing job stress and increasing quality of work life.