The purpose of this research was to study the relationship between diversity climate perceptions and turnover intention among knowledge workers in the South African nuclear industry. The researcher hypothesised that race will moderate the above-mentioned relationship (Hypothesis 1), and organisational commitment will mediate the same relationship (Hypothesis 2). The research problem was a challenge seemingly facing South African businesses regarding Black knowledge worker retention. The research was a quantitative, cross-sectional study, and was a replication of a study conducted in the United States of America (USA). Data was collected by means of a questionnaire, which was e-mailed to subjects selected randomly from strata of Black and White knowledge workers. In total, 128 questionnaires were e-mailed to subjects, out of a population of 143. Multiple regression methods for testing moderator and mediator effects were used to test the hypotheses. The response rate was 56% (N=72). From the data collected, there was sufficient evidence in support of hypothesis 1. The null hypothesis was therefore rejected. Data collected did not support hypothesis 2 for the two race groups analysed together. However, when race was controlled for, mediation of the above-mentioned relationship was found among Whites. There was no evidence for mediation among Blacks. Copyright / Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) / unrestricted

I takt med att medellivslängden ökar och att andelen personer med utländsk bakgrund växer behöver organisationer ha kunskap om hur de ska hantera mångfald. Detta för att de ska kunna ta tillvara på alla mänskliga resurser samt för att möta framtidens arbetskraftsbehov. Piteå Kommuns socialtjänst står idag inför denna utmaning och har valt att aktivt satsa på mångfald. Syftet med denna studie var därmed att undersöka hur chefer och bemanningsassistenter beskriver begreppet mångfald, hur de praktiskt arbetar med mångfald idag samt undersöka vilka krav de upplever finns på dem i mångfaldsarbetet. Studien syfte var också att identifiera eventuella svårigheter som personer i ledande positioner upplever i bedrivandet av ett praktiskt mångfaldsarbete.   Studien är baserad på åtta semi-strukturerade intervjuer vilka har analyserats med hjälp av meningskoncentrering. I dessa framkom att det fanns en snäv bild av mångfaldsbegreppet i jämförelse med hur Piteå Kommun definierar begreppet samt hur begreppet beskrivs i tidigare forskning. Det framkom också att chefer och bemanningsassistenter i dagsläget inte bedriver något medvetet praktiskt mångfaldsarbete. De insatser som genomförs är snarare omedvetna då huvudsyftet med dessa insatser inte är att främja mångfald. Respondenterna upplever inte några direkt ställda krav från Piteå Kommun i bedrivandet av ett mångfaldsarbete men kan i vissa fall se praktiskt mångfaldsarbete som en skyldighet. I studien framkom också att personer i ledande positioner saknar tid, trygghet och kunskap i hur de praktiskt ska bedriva mångfaldsarbete i sina verksamheter. Vid vidare forskning hade det varit intressant med fler perspektiv på ämnet. Detta för att ge svar på om det finns en gemensam syn på begreppet samt hur personer på olika nivåer upplever mångfaldsarbetet.

South Africa’s unique history has produced an organisational climate where race groups forcibly separated in the past, have to now work together in harmony. Limited interaction between the ethnic groups creates a culturally uninformed society where trust between groups is lacking. The objective of this study was to confirm the levels of collectivism for the different race groups, and to determine the relationship between collectivism, propensity to trust and in group trust. A survey was administered to a Business Unit of a South African petrochemical company. 387 responses were obtained from a sufficiently diverse sample. The results confirmed that blacks and Indians are more collectivistic than whites and coloureds. Collectivistic groups had a lower propensity to trust and higher in group trust. This research creates awareness regarding the different aspects of culture and the behaviours these cultural differences drive. Trust development must be approached with a culturally informed view.

South Africa’s unique history has produced an organisational climate where race groups forcibly separated in the past, have to now work together in harmony. Limited interaction between the ethnic groups creates a culturally uninformed society where trust between groups is lacking. The objective of this study was to confirm the levels of collectivism for the different race groups, and to determine the relationship between collectivism, propensity to trust and in group trust. A survey was administered to a Business Unit of a South African petrochemical company. 387 responses were obtained from a sufficiently diverse sample. The results confirmed that blacks and Indians are more collectivistic than whites and coloureds. Collectivistic groups had a lower propensity to trust and higher in group trust. This research creates awareness regarding the different aspects of culture and the behaviours these cultural differences drive. Trust development must be approached with a culturally informed view.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2007. / Title from first page of PDF file. Includes bibliographical references (p. 114-129).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at El Paso, 2009. / Title from title screen. Vita. CD-ROM. Includes bibliographical references. Also available online.

The European Parliament (EP) and the Council of Europe (CoE) are two internationally renowned organisations sharing a common goal of progressing human rights action and social cohesion within their respective member states. At the point of data collection (early 2007) both organisations were undergoing a period of significant change. Various Southern and Eastern European nations had been given their first opportunity to participate in the official European bodies thus increasing the member states of the EP to 25 and the CoE to 46. Access to the large secretariats of these organisations provided a unique opportunity to explore the organizational and individual implications of European Enlargement amongst employees from the widest possible range of European nations. With a firm grounding in the Diversity Management literature, this research also examines how the public discourse from official representatives of the EP and CoE on the topic of European Enlargement relates to individual and collective experiences within the organisation's own workforce. The impact of European Enlargement on day-to-day workplace experiences of employees within the secretariats was explored through two studies that were sequentially linked. The first study involved semi-structured interviews with key Human Resource personnel in each organisation (n = 20). The interview data was subjected to thematic analysis and the emergent themes were used to form the basis of the questions for the second study, which consisted of 22 focus groups (n = 88). Thematic analysis was again used to analyse the data, and a matrix analysis indicated that there were differences in experiences according to employees' gender, European region of origin and level within the organizational hierarchy. There were also differences between the two organizations. A third study involved the analysis of press articles on the topic of European Enlargement written by representatives of each organization; these were selected from the same time period as the interview and focus group data collection phases. The underlying assumptions and values about European Enlargement were explored through a critical discourse analysis of these texts. Discourses identified included: a) a discourse of power and subordination in which the position of the supranational organisations is assumed to be a part of the 'natural' order; b) a discourse of difference which betrays the assumption that 'west-is-best' and that inclusion is commensurate with dissolving rather than valuing difference and c) a discourse of paternalism in which the CoE and the EU are conceptualized as 'families', with Member States positioned as offspring who need to be kept under control by their authoritarian fathers, the institutional authorities. A comparison of the way in which the discourses identified were reflected in the organizational experiences related in studies 1 and 2 revealed that there was a high degree of overlap between the external discourse and internal experiences, though some notable differences were also identified. It is clear that the findings have major organizational and individual implications. Firstly, a division in women's equality agenda is indicated; whilst Western women press for more equality initiatives and Eastern women argue for fewer, the competing needs of these two groups are not going to be simultaneously met. Secondly, competition is created between men, with Eastern men aspiring to reach the envious position enjoyed by Western men. Furthermore, the backlash against gender equality initiatives, previously seen in the UK and other western nations in the 1980s, is given a new, Eastern European voice. It is also apparent that the content of an organizations publicly available discourse may well impact on employees' experiences within that organization. This leads to the conclusion that organizations have a responsibility to explore the assumptions and values that they are consciously and unconsciously promoting, not only for the benefit of the wider public but for the wellbeing of their own employees.

Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka och jämföra en kvinnodominerad och en mansdominerad organisations explicita attityder gentemot mångfald på arbetsplatsen. Till studien användes Workplace Diversity Survey för att mäta enskilda personers attityder, deras resultat sammanställdes till ett gemensamt medelvärde och utgjorde organisationens attityd gentemot mångfald. Datan samlades in genom att skicka ut enkäten via e-mail och ge ut den i samband med en workshop. Resultatet analyserades i SPSS med ett Mann Whitney U test för att se om det fanns en signifikant skillnad. Resultatet visade inte på någon signifikant skillnad mellan organisationerna. Diskussionen fokuserade på faktorer som kan ha inverkat på resultatet samt potentiella problem med mätverktyget och studien. / This study aimed to investigate and compare two organisations explicit attitudes towards diversity in the workplace, one female dominated and one male dominated. Workplace Diversity Survey was used to measure the attitude of individuals in a sample. The assembled results represented each organisation`s attitude towards diversity. The data was collected by administering the survey via e-mail and handing them out at a workshop. The result was analyzed in SPSS with an Mann Whitney U test to see if there were a significant difference. The findings indicated that there were no significant difference between these organisations attitudes. Potential factors that may have influenced the result is brought up in the discussion, as well as problems with the study and the instrument that were used.

Thesis (M.B.A.) - Carleton University, 2002. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 114-120). Also available in electronic format on the Internet.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Miami University, Dept. of Psychology, 2004. / Title from second page of PDF document. Includes bibliographical references (p. 43-54).