Thesis (M.S.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1967. / Vita. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references.

Syftet med denna komparativa studie är att få en ökad förståelse för hur ett arbetslag ska utformas och organiseras för att fungera på bästa sätt. Jag vill belysa vilka utvecklingsmöjligheter förskolans personal finner i sin organisation av arbetslaget gällande fördelning av ansvarsområden och arbetsuppgifter, en jämförelse mellan ett arbetslag i en förskola i Norge respektive Sverige. Då förskoleverksamheterna i Sverige och Norge skiljer sig gällande fördelning av arbetsuppgifter och ansvarsområden är det intressant att urskilja vilka utvecklingsmöjligheter som framkommer i respektive organisation. Jag valde att anta en kvalitativ ansats och genomförde totalt sju intervjuer med både förskollärare, barnskötare och förskolechefer på en förskola i Norge respektive Sverige. I min studie har en och samma utvecklingsmöjlighet framkommit i båda arbetslag, bättre förutsättningar för att kunna utnyttja sin fulla kompetens. Jag har funnit att ett arbetslag bör organiseras så att varje individ får möjligheten att utnyttja sin kompetens, genom att synliggöra och utnyttja varandras kompetenser stärks varje individ men också arbetslaget som helhet. / The main aim of this study is to gain a deeper understanding of how a preschool team should be organized to work in the best possible way. A comparative study between a preschool in Norway and in Sweden. The distribution of tasks and responsibilities are different between the countries, to explore improvements the preschool staff´s conceptions of their own organization will be focused. The distribution of tasks and responsibilities are different but the conceptions of improvements may be the same. The empiricial data has been obtained from seven interviews. The participants were preschool teachers, child minders and preschool heads in a Swedish preschool and in a Norwegian preschool. In my study one improvement emerged in both teams, better requirements to make use of their competencies. The conclusion of this study is that a preschool team should be organized in a way that makes it possible to make use of everyone’s competencies.

Syftet med denna fallstudie är att få en bild av vad specialpedagogens roll i förskolan innehåller och innebär. Studiens ansats är kvalitativ och som empirisk datainsamlingsmetod används kvalitativa intervjuer samt observationer. Studiens analysbegrepp är det specialpedagogiska dilemmaperspektivet samt den sociokulturella teorin. Rapporten beskriver specialpedagogens roll på två olika förskolor. Den beskriver också de förväntningar som finns på specialpedagogen samt specialpedagogens syn på sin egen roll. Studien visar att specialpedagogens uppdrag kan se väldigt olika ut, beroende på flera olika faktorer - bland annat anställningsform och organisation. / The purpose of this case study is to describe the role of the special education needs coordinator (SENCO) in preschools. The study's approach is qualitative. The method used is qualitative interviews and observations. The study's analysis concepts are the special education dilemma perspective and the sociocultural theory. The study aims to describe the role of the SENCOs in two different preschools. It is also aiming to describe the expectations upon the SENCOs and what the SENCOs thinks about their own role. The study shows that the assignments of the SENCO can look very different depending on several factors- including employment status and organization.

Introduction: The major symptoms of fibromyalgia have been shown to severely impact everyday activities. As a consequence, many women have problems remaining in a work role. Not being able to fulfil valued roles influences quality of life. Moreover, consequences in terms of high costs in compensation for reduced work ability are also of importance for society. Today, the number of young women diagnosed with fibromyalgia is increasing. Objectives: The general aim of this thesis was to increase and deepen knowledge of the life situation of women with fibromyalgia; to examine how to manage a work role when in constant pain, and especially the situation for newly-diagnosed women. Subjects and Methods: 278 women with longstanding pain were included. The thesis includes five different studies, two of them with a focus on the work situation, two with focus on young, newly-diagnosed women’s life situation, and one investigating time-use and activity patterns in working and non-working women with fibromyalgia. Methods used are a postal questionnaire, instruments commonly used in fibromyalgia, a diary, and interviews. Results: Despite limitations in physical capacity, 48% of the women are working, full-time or part-time. However, most job loss is associated with the fibromyalgia symptoms, and the women report that the symptoms influence their daily activities during most of their waking time. There is a rapid increase in sickness absence in the newly-diagnosed women, and the young women in particular do not return to the labour market during the first year after receiving their diagnosis. The non-working women have a more demanding family situation, and are also less satisfied with their present situation than working women. Conclusion: When individual adjustments of the work situation are made and the women participate to a level that matches their ability, they are able to continue in a work role. In evaluating the women’s work capacity, the total life situation of the women should be considered. / On the day of the public defence of the doctoral thesis, the status of article III and IV was Submitted.

Denna studies Syfte var att beskriva hur omvårdnadspersonal och sjuksköterskor på två särskilda boenden i en kommun i Mellansverige uppfattar sin egen och varandras yrkesroll, däribland uppfattningen av sjuksköterskors ledarskap. Detta syfte har speglats utifrån designen kvalitativ ansats där resultatet är övergripande beskrivande och Metoden för studien var halvstrukturerade, ämnesfokuserade intervjuer som analyserats genom kvalitativ innehållsanalys. Resultatet som framkommer i studien var att rollerna är svåra att definiera, de generella beskrivningarna är att sjuksköterskans ansvar ligger i det sjuka och förebygga ohälsa samt att omvårdnadspersonalens huvudansvar vilar i den basala omvårdnaden men båda yrkesgrupperna anser sig dela det preventiva arbetet, omvårdnadsteknik är omvårdnadspersonalens arbetsuppgift - men anses valbar och förväntningarna på respektive yrkesgrupp skiljer sig. Varken sjuksköterska eller omvårdnadspersonal anser att sjuksköterskan har några specifika uppgifter som ledare utöver att de ska fungera som handledare och stå för kompetenshöjning på avdelningen, däremot framkommer åsikter om att det finns en naturlig ledarroll inom den medicinska vården vid specifika situationer. Slutsatser i studien var att sjuksköterskorna uppvisar bredare kunskap om arbetsuppgifterna inom yrkesrollerna än vad omvårdnadspersonalen gör, förväntningarna på varandras ansvarsområden skiljer sig och båda grupperna verkar ovetandes om ansvaret sjuksköterskor har i ledanderollen. / The aim of this study was to describe how health care assistants and registered nurses perceive their own and each other’s work roles and also how they perceived registered nurses role as a leader. A qualitative descriptive design was used. The used method was semi-structured, topic-focused interviews that were analyzed through qualitative content analysis. The result of the study shows that it was difficult to define respectively work role, the general description is that the registered nurses responsibility lies within the area of diseases and prevention of illness. The health care assistant’s main responsibility is in the area of basic nursing care and also technical care, but both occupational groups considered preventive work as a shared responsibility and the expectations on respectively occupational group differ. Neither the registered nurses nor the healthcare assistants considered registered nurses as a leader, except in the role of a mentor and the responsibility to increase competence within the healthcare assistants group when needed. But it was found that registered nurse have a natural role as a leader regarding the medical care in specific situations. The conclusions of the study was that the registered nurses has a broader knowledge of the work tasks within the work role of the two professions compared to the health care assistants, the expectations of each other’s responsibilities differ and both groups seem unaware of the leading role that is incorporated in registered nurses responsibility.

The work of industrial/organisational (I/O) psychologists presents an interesting context for studying meaning and engagement (as eudaimonic components of happiness). (I/O) psychologists spend more than 88% of their working day with people, and they are primary role models for happiness and change in the workplace. Information about the manifestation of their meaning and work engagement is therefore needed. The aim of this study was to determine how (I/O) psychologists experience the meaning of their work and to investigate the relationships between their experiences of work-role fit, meaning of work, psychological meaningfulness, and work engagement. The research method consisted out of a literature review and empirical study. A survey design with a convenience sample (n = 106) was taken from a sample of registered (I/O) psychologists. A biographical questionnaire, the Work-role Fit Scale (WRFS), Work-life Questionnaire (WLQ), Psychological Meaningfulness Scale (PMS), Work Engagement Scale (WES) and a self-developed survey measuring the actual and desired time spent on six broad categories of work were administered. The statistical analysis was carried out by means of SPSS (2009). Exploratory factor analyses showed one factor models for work-role fit, psychological meaningfulness and work engagement. A two factor model for the meaning of work (a job/calling and career orientation) was found. Cronbach alpha coefficients ranging from 0,80 to 0,93 were obtained. The results showed that a discrepancy exists between the actual time and desired time spent on the six broad categories of work (see Benjamin & Louw-Potgieter, 2008). Furthermore, the results showed that half the 1/0 psychologists view their work as callings. Whereas only 16% view their work as a career and 6,6% as a job. Regression analyses indicated that work-role fit predicts psychological meaningfulness and work engagement. The job/calling orientation predicted both psychological meaningfulness and work engagement. Work-role fit predicted the job/calling orientation. Psychological meaningfulness did not mediate the relationship between work-role fit and work engagement. Work-role fit mediated the relationship between the meaning of work and psychological meaningfulness. Work-role fit partially mediated the relationship between a calling orientation and work engagement / Thesis (M.Comm. (Industrial Psychology)--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2010.

The work of industrial/organisational (I/O) psychologists presents an interesting context for studying meaning and engagement (as eudaimonic components of happiness). (I/O) psychologists spend more than 88% of their working day with people, and they are primary role models for happiness and change in the workplace. Information about the manifestation of their meaning and work engagement is therefore needed. The aim of this study was to determine how (I/O) psychologists experience the meaning of their work and to investigate the relationships between their experiences of work-role fit, meaning of work, psychological meaningfulness, and work engagement. The research method consisted out of a literature review and empirical study. A survey design with a convenience sample (n = 106) was taken from a sample of registered (I/O) psychologists. A biographical questionnaire, the Work-role Fit Scale (WRFS), Work-life Questionnaire (WLQ), Psychological Meaningfulness Scale (PMS), Work Engagement Scale (WES) and a self-developed survey measuring the actual and desired time spent on six broad categories of work were administered. The statistical analysis was carried out by means of SPSS (2009). Exploratory factor analyses showed one factor models for work-role fit, psychological meaningfulness and work engagement. A two factor model for the meaning of work (a job/calling and career orientation) was found. Cronbach alpha coefficients ranging from 0,80 to 0,93 were obtained. The results showed that a discrepancy exists between the actual time and desired time spent on the six broad categories of work (see Benjamin & Louw-Potgieter, 2008). Furthermore, the results showed that half the 1/0 psychologists view their work as callings. Whereas only 16% view their work as a career and 6,6% as a job. Regression analyses indicated that work-role fit predicts psychological meaningfulness and work engagement. The job/calling orientation predicted both psychological meaningfulness and work engagement. Work-role fit predicted the job/calling orientation. Psychological meaningfulness did not mediate the relationship between work-role fit and work engagement. Work-role fit mediated the relationship between the meaning of work and psychological meaningfulness. Work-role fit partially mediated the relationship between a calling orientation and work engagement / Thesis (M.Comm. (Industrial Psychology)--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2010.

The global trend towards an ageing population presents challenges for health-care professionals, including registered nurses (RNs). In Taiwan, health care policies relating to the aged and to gerontological nursing are still in the early stages of development. Integral to this development is the evolving definition of the clinical role of RNs who make a major contribution to aged care. Using data from in-depth interviews of 29 RNs working across eight nursing homes, this grounded theory study examines the factors that shape the care work of RNs in long-term aged care in Taiwan. The objectives of this study were to: * examine the work-experience perceptions of RNs employed in nursing homes in Taiwan * explore the factors that influence the delivery of nursing care to the aged by RNs * explain the events that constitute nursing practices in aged care provision that have an effect on the roles of RNs, and * develop a theoretical proposition that can guide future nursing practice in aged care. Grounded theory and symbolic interactionism are the complementary methodologies selected to underpin this study. The perspective of grounded theory allows for a critical investigation of the social processes that are integral in shaping the perspectives of RNs who work in Taiwanese nursing homes. The application of the theory of symbolic interactionism facilitates an exploration of the roles of RNs in this context and of the different meanings for individuals in the various situations they confront. Organizational factors and interactions that shape the role of RNs in the working environment of aged care are highlighted in the interaction between the data and the theory. The core category that emerged from the study was searching for an identity. This core process reflects ambivalence in the perceptions of RNs in describing and explaining the nursing role in Taiwanese nursing homes. Five categories that bring some greater understanding of this ambivalence are: coming to know, doing anything and everything, negotiating the work role, dealing with the system, and learning by being there. The specific intention of this study was to extend our understanding of nursing work and the delivery of care to older people in nursing homes in Taiwan. The findings of this study will contribute to the development of an educational framework that may be applied to improve nursing practices in nursing homes. These findings also have the potential to make a positive contribution to aged health care policy-making in Taiwan.

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This study examined the role of people’s changing work roles and choice of work position for job satisfaction, turnover intention and general health after organizational change. Participants were 131 government agency managers undergoing a change of the management structure whereupon manager positions were cut down and everyone had to re-apply for the positions they wanted. Questionnaire data was collected before the organizational change and afterwards, when 43 of the participants were no longer managers. Four groups were formed from a combination of getting first choice of position or not and transferring down or not. A repeated measures ANOVA showed that the combination of not getting first choice of position and downward transfer resulted in significantly larger decrease in job satisfaction, larger increase in turnover intention and bigger decrease in general health than all other combinations. Practical implications for human resources management are discussed.