Tuesday, August 6, 2019
Macbeth as Tragedy Essay Example for Free
Macbeth as Tragedy Essay Shakespeareââ¬â¢s Macbeth is often considered one of literatureââ¬â¢s greatest tragedies and is said to reveal much about human nature. Do you agree or disagree that the play conveys much about humanity or about the human experience? What, if anything, does the work suggest about human beings or society? Support your views with textual details and analysis. In your response, address how Macbethââ¬â¢s subject matter, themes, form, or other literary elements might (or might not) be characteristic of tragedy. How do tragic qualities of the play contribute (or not) to the storyââ¬â¢s larger message(s)? Macbeth has always been a play of interest in any age groups. I remember this play in my high school but then which school does not get involved with this play. I do agree with the statement that Macbeth reveals much about human nature. Macbeth reveals the dark side of human nature; ambition, hunger for control and power, it shows us the aftermath that it leaves behind. The play suggests the dark tendencies that lives within many of the human beings in our society; the need to succeed and annihilate their obstacles at any cost: human beings are opportunistic. Macbeth shows us how far a person will go to in order to realize their own ambitions; even to commit a killing. Free will exists in humanity and everyone has the potential for good and the commit evil deeds. The Macbeths lust for power and greed ends up in grim tragedy. Macbeth starts off as a hero; a brave warrior in the battlefield, standing behind his king and protecting his land. This is what makes Macbeth a tragic hero. Tragic hero: A main character who acts with courage but falls from high standing into catastrophic circumstances because of a weakness of character or serious misjudgment. (Clugston, 2010, page. 4. 4, para. 3). Lady Macbeth is willing to lose her soul in order to push her husbands faith to be king a reality and sooner; she asks the gods to remove all compassion and femininity and replace with cold and ruthless qualities; this symbolizes the darkness of human nature. The Macbeths had it all but failed to recognize it due to having their dark ambitions take over them; consuming them and this is the tragedy. The literary elements are the motifs, they are the hallucinations and violence; these motifs lead to tragedy end of the Macbeths.
Monday, August 5, 2019
Gender Economics in Turkey
Gender Economics in Turkey Elif Ãâ¡olak Informal Economy; Under Participation Trap; Added Worker Effect This paper will look at the gender issues by focusing more on female side. Women in Informal Economy Worldwide, womenââ¬â¢s involvement in the informal economy has increased since the early 1980s, as economic restructuring reduced job opportunities in the formal sector, increased the flexibility and casualness of labor markets, and increased the need for additional family income. There is a strong association between womenââ¬â¢s employment and production for exports with the liberalization of the economy in Turkey. The number of women engaged in informal activities grown dramatically with the increasing influence of economic liberalization and flexible working conditions. Womenââ¬â¢s work in exporting industries has been a center of major interest since the early 1980s women emerged as an important labor supply especially for the garment industry, but their integration into the production has remained informal and mostly made invisible through the utilization of familial relations in small-scale workshops. It also brings harsh working condition and low wages which allow the se sectors to become competitive. Unregistered economy refers to the legal economic activities which are not recorded officially to reduce production cost and aim tax evasion. Workplaces in unregistered economy are generally smaller in terms of scale; low wages are given to workers. There is an arbitrariness to recruit or fire workers. In rural area, TUÃâà °K considers a category of unpaid family worker as employed and the majority of women, who are not registered to any social security institution, work as unpaid family worker. If we consider non-agriculture area, women mostly work as a regular employee and casual employee in unregistered economy. Self employment means that their payments depend on the profit of directly produced goods. They can make decision over operational activities. We can consider traditional handicraft activities under this category. Women who get specific order for dressmaking or handicraft works. They can decide about the finishing time of work and their payments after work. Other home- based work includes the piecework for subcontractor or another mediator. From 2004 to 2013, 5,19% of women on average work at the home. http://www.birlesikmetal.org/kitap/kitap_03/2003-1.pdf http://www.tuik.gov.tr/PreHaberBultenleri.do?id=13590 They arrive the conclusion that women are not willingly accept these jobs but they are forced to accept. Due to gender-related point of view, women workers are more prone to be abused by their employers. They work for below official minimum wage and face with harsh conditions at work. They feel helpless and despair due to the behaviors of employers and treatment in the working place. Under Participation Trap To define what the under participation trap means, we should look at the different factors which create this trap in relation to each other. Firstly, we consider the women with low levels of education. Most of them are likely to work in the informal sector with low wages that are lesser than the payment given to domestic workers to do housework or childcare. Labor supply turns into be very low considering these issues. With the belief that girls will not have a chance to participate in labor market with high wages, families may want to invest lesser for the educations of girls. At this point, it creates a cycle, known as the under participation trap, that girls education contributes to keeping wages low so that it will keep labor supply low. (World Bank Report 2009, 21) If we look at segmentation of labor market, we can see that formal sectors have higher productivity than informal sector and offer slightly above minimum wages. Returns to both education and experience are higher in formal sector again. However, the choice of working in informal sectors occurs due to exclusion of low educated women in formal sectors. Very low wages in informal sector lead to low levels of labor supply. There are also very little transaction of low educated women from informal sector to formal sector. Women who work in informal economy face with the lack of social security problem which force them to quit job. There are employment possibilities which offer limited range of work in textile industry, domestic service or retail activities for low educated women. When we look at TUIK data for the reasons of being out of labor force among women, the most important reason is that majority of them are busy with household works along the day. However, when we turn our interest to men, there is no percentage given to household works. The retirement or being students become the important reason for being out of labor force for men. Women are considered as housewives who have more time to dedicate for care giving and house works. This perception also brings some disadvantages to women such as dependence to men, lack of social security, or low self esteem. In the patriarchal family setting, men also see their household activity as an easy job with more spare time at home. Poorly educated women face with the cultural as well as economic barriers which prevent them to participate in the labor market. Former barrier includes the womenââ¬â¢s role as care givers and family pressure. Latter barrier includes womenââ¬â¢s participation in informal sector with low salaries and long working hours. Mothering and childcare are also other important determinants for female labor force participation. Mothers do not want to leave their kids alone so they need to stay at home to take care of them. In addition to this, they cannot afford to hire someone as a babysitter. ââ¬Å"Participants mentioned they would need to pay at least 500 TL monthly to hire somebody to take care of their children. To afford this, they would need to find a job that would pay them more than 1,500 TL,â⬠¦, was beyond what they could earn given their skills and education level.â⬠(World Bank Report 2009, 20) Added Worker Effect Discouraged Worker Effect after Crisis Added worker effect means that if the unemployment of one spouse leads other spouse to increase his/her labor supply. We need to focus whether women have an incentive to participate in labor force when their husbands involuntarily lose their jobs. Due to the fact that my focus is on the crisis period, family members may also lose their hopes to find job which creates discouraged worker effect. The discouraged worker effects leads to hidden unemployment of the people who want to work but do not look for a job. Therefore, the actual unemployment rates can be underestimated with the dominance of this latter effect. (BaÃâ¦Ã
¸levent and Onaran 2003, 441) To analyze how women react to crisis period in Turkey, Cem BaÃâ¦Ã
¸levent and Ãâ"zlem Onaran looked at the Turkish Household Survey data from October rounds of 1988 and 1994 period. In 1994, crisis period, Turkish lira was depreciated by more than 50 per cent and by the end of the year, Turkish economy is contracted approximately 6 per cent. (BaÃâ¦Ã
¸levent and Onaran 2003, 441) They analyze difference between two years and compare outcomes according to the effect of economic crisis in 1994. They use the regression of female labor force participation (FLFP) on different groupsââ¬â¢ unemployment rates and the other factors. They look at the variables such as education, number of children, and age of women to understand the relationship between these variables and dependent variable FLFP. The number of children has a significant negative effect on the FLFP although it has no significant effect on male labor force participation. Only exception for the effect on MLFP is that i f childrenââ¬â¢s ages are between 6 and 14, then employment rate of husbands increased due to the expenses of school age children. If married women have fewer children, they have a tendency to participate in labor force. Their conclusion is derived from the fact that while there is no significant correlation between 1988 data for added worker effect and discouraged worker affect, they find statistically significant result for added worker affect of the married women in currency crisis in 1994 which had negative correlation with discouraged worker effect. In other words, it can be concluded that the added worker effects dominates the discouraged worker effect by looking at 1994 crisis. Their expectation, not analyzed in their research, is that added worker effect could be more dominant than discouraged worker effect for women due to the positive influence of female employment trends as well as getting more accustomed to working life. Ãâà °pek Ãâà °lkkaracan and Serkan DeÃâÃ
¸irmenci look at the years between 2004 and 2010. They also include single female into their analysis. They focus on the fact that added worker effect creates pressure on the labor market which has already contracted due to crisis. In addition to this, active labor market participants may give up looking and withdraw their labor force from labor market. They make emphasis on particular characteristics of the women such as their age, marital status, and education level. Household unemployment shock increases the participation of university graduates who are between 20 and 45 age group by up to 34 per cent while the percentage drops to 17% for high school graduates. (Ãâà °lkkaracan,and DeÃâÃ
¸irmenci 2013,1) The effect of migration from rural to urban areas shifts the agricultural labor power of women from unpaid family workers to unpaid household workers while men shifts from agricultural worker to industrial or service work ers in the urban areas. With the financial liberation, which started in 1980s, women have encountered with harsh working conditions, long working hours with low wages under poor labor market demand. Therefore, expected returns from female labor force participation are lower and structural constraint such as lack of child or elderly service weakens the added worker affects. (Ãâà °lkkaracan and DeÃâÃ
¸irmenci 2013, 31) They make a conclusion that added worker effect in Turkey appears as a coping strategy to deal with economic downturns but it again refers to smaller effects like 8-10 percent of working age female become labor force participant with job loss of their husbands. If we look at 2008 crisis, Turkey faced with productivity loss as well as economic instability which pave the way to unemployment. ââ¬Å"According to the Institute of LaborLaw (2009), the Turkish unemployment rate in January 2009 was 15.1 percent, which roughly corresponded to 3,600,000 individuals being out of jobs. Based on the data of the Turkish Institute of Statistics (TURKSTAT) (2009), the labor unions declared that the highest rate of unemployment since the foundation of the Turkish Republic was during the period of the 2007ââ¬â2008 economic crisis, when between 13.6ââ¬â16.3 percent of all workers lost their jobs (Tes-Ãâà °Ãâ¦Ã
¸ 2009, 30). Almost nine million of these people now work without being covered by any social security insurance.â⬠page98- unregisterd workerâ⬠¦. Policy Offers Lack of child care service for the pre-school age and elderly care services, which constitutes structural constraints, leads women to stay at home in order to provide the needs of these family members. The majority of women do not take more than secondary education so that they are offered by these poor employment opportunities. Without any public service, they have to use their labor power for domestic workload and if they start to work, they will face with harsh conditions without satisfactory payments in the workplace. In addition to this, women who are employed in the informal sector suffer from the poor access of maternity leave which affects the labor supply of women. We estimate the marginal effect of the unemployment shock on labor market transition probability for the overall sample as well as for different groups of women, and hence demonstrate that the effect varies widely depending on the particular characteristics of the womanââ¬âfor example, her education level, age, urban/rural residence, and marital and parental status. Creating job opportunities for first time job seekers Affordable child care Sustaining investments on education In 2012, a cash transfer program targeted to give social security coverage for the poor widowed women because these women without men are seen as impoverished and vulnerable group to maintain living of their household by themselves. Distinction across welfare regimes is important to understand how social welfare is produced and allocated between state, market, and family. We should also take the criticism about welfare regime into account that this ââ¬Å"welfare regimeâ⬠approach is ââ¬Å"gender blindâ⬠or in other words, there is gender bias toward women without men. (Ãâ"zar and Yakut-Ãâ¡akar 2013, 25) Women are not capable of continuing their working lives because they have drop-outs with marriages or child born. Care services cannot be affordable for those women so that they turn their home again. Women without men ( a male breadwinner) can less likely to find job in the formal sector due to lack of experience and considerable break between working time and staying at home. They will not face with job opportunities in the formal sector so that they need to accept uninsured and low-waged works in informal sector. Characteristics of unregistered jobs create unstable and volatile situation for women due to its duration and wage level. To maintain their daily livings, sometimes women take informal support from the relatives or neighborhoods but it turns out to be inadequate again.â⬠By providing support to only widowed women, that is, those women falling outside family involuntarily upon the death of the spouse, the welfare regime in Turkey continues to assume women within the boundaries of family and punishes those that fall outside these boundaries.â⬠32 spouse, the welfare regime in Turkey continues to assume women within the boundaries of family and punishes those that fall outside these boundaries REFERENCES BaÃâ¦Ã
¸levent, L. and Onaran, O. 2003. ââ¬Å"Are married women in Turkey more likely to become added or discouraged workers?â⬠Labour, 17, 439ââ¬â58. DeÃâÃ
¸irmenci, S., Ilkkaracan, I. (2013). Economic Crises and the Added Worker Effect in the Turkish Labor Market. Levy Economics Institute of Bard College, 774, 1-47. Kà ¼mbetoÃâÃ
¸lu, B., AkpÃâà ±nar, A. (2010). Unregistered Women Workers in the Globalized Economy: A Qualitative Study in Turkey. Feminist Formations,22(3), 96-123. Unfolding the invisibility of women without men in the case of Turkey Ãâ¦Ã
¾ahin, M. (2011). KayÃâà ±t DÃâà ±Ãâ¦Ã
¸Ãâà ± Ãâà °stihdam ve Esnek ÃÅ"retim Sà ¼recinde KadÃâà ±n EmeÃâÃ
¸inin Durumu: Tà ¼rkiyeââ¬â¢de Ev-Eksenli Ãâ¡alÃâà ±Ãâ¦Ã
¸ma, UzmanlÃâà ±k Tezi, T.C. BaÃâ¦Ã
¸bakanlÃâà ±k KadÃâà ±nÃâà ±n Statà ¼sà ¼ Genel Mà ¼dà ¼rlà ¼ÃâÃ
¸Ã ¼, Ankara. TurkStat (Turkish Statistical Agency) (2012) Household labor force survey, Online. Available HTTP: http://www.tuik.gov.tr/VeriBilgi.do?alt_id=25> (accessed 23 May 2013). http://www.turkstat.gov.tr/PreHaberBultenleri.do?id=16005 World Bank Report 48508-TR (2009). ââ¬Å"Female Labor Force Participation in Turkey: Trends Determinants and Policy Frameworkâ⬠. Human Development Sector Unit Europe and Central Asia Region. World Bank State Planning Organization (2009). Female labour force participation in Turkey: Trends, determinants and policy framework. Report No: 48508-TR. Washington: The World Bank. DÃâà °SK BirleÃâ¦Ã
¸ik Metal Ãâà °Ãâ¦Ã
¸Ã §ileri SendikasÃâà ± EV-EKSENLÃâà ° Ãâ¡ALIÃâ¦Ã
¾ANLAR VE Ãâ"RGÃÅ"TLENMELERÃâà ° Bu kitapà §Ãâà ±k Ev-eksenli Ãâ¡alÃâà ±Ãâ¦Ã
¸an KadÃâà ±nlar Ãâ¡alÃâà ±Ãâ¦Ã
¸ma Grubuââ¬â¢nun katkÃâà ±sÃâà ±yla hazÃâà ±rlanmÃâà ±Ãâ¦Ã
¸tÃâà ±r. Ãâà °stanbul, Mart 2003 1
Sunday, August 4, 2019
Cloning :: essays research papers fc
Bioethics, which is the study of value judgments pertaining to human conduct in the area of biology and includes those related to the practice of medicine, has been an important aspect of all areas in the scientific field (Bernstein, Maurice, M.D.). It is one of the factors that says whether or not certain scientific research can go on, and if it can, under which rules and regulations it must abide by. One of the most recent and controversial issues facing our society today is the idea of cloning. On February 23, 1997, Ian Wilmut, a Scottish scientist, along with his colleagues at the Roslin Institute and PPL Therapeutics, announced to the world that they had cloned a lamb, which they named Dolly, after Dolly Parton, from an adult sheep (Mario, Christopher). à à à à à The two share the same nucleic DNA, but differ in terms of their mitochondrial DNA, which is vitally important for the regulation of the cell. The media and the press ignored this fact, and thus claimed that Dolly and her ââ¬Å"motherâ⬠were genetically identical, which sparked a fury of outcry all around the world. The technique of transferring a nucleus from a somatic cell into an egg cell of which the nucleus had been removed, called nuclear transplantation, is an extension of research that had been ongoing for over 40 years. à à à à à Up until now, scientists thought that adult cells could not be ââ¬Å"reprogrammedâ⬠to behave like a fertilized egg and create an embryo, but the evidence obtained by Dollyââ¬â¢s success prove otherwise. The issues of cloning have been around for a long time, starting with the publication of Joshua Lederbergââ¬â¢s 1966 article on cloning in the American Naturalist, and the publics interest has been perked by many sci-fi books, films, and movies including Aldous Huxleyââ¬â¢s 1932 novel ââ¬Å"Brave New World,â⬠1973ââ¬â¢s ââ¬Å"Sleeper,â⬠the 1978 film ââ¬Å"The Boys from Brazil,â⬠and most recently, the movie ââ¬Å"Multiplicityâ⬠(Mario, Christopher). The ethical, legal, and moral issues aroused by cloning have been raised by previous projects, and are now simply emerging again, with its focus on three major points: the shift from sexual reproduction with that of asexual replication of existing genes; the ability to predetermine the genes of a child; and the ability to create many genetically identical children (Report/Recommendations of the NBAC). à à à à à The public responded to Dolly with a mixture of fear and excitement, questioning the benefits and the disasters that could happen in the future if research was to continue. From a poll taken by Maurice Bernstein, M.D., the results showed that 72% of the votes said that cloning Cloning :: essays research papers fc Bioethics, which is the study of value judgments pertaining to human conduct in the area of biology and includes those related to the practice of medicine, has been an important aspect of all areas in the scientific field (Bernstein, Maurice, M.D.). It is one of the factors that says whether or not certain scientific research can go on, and if it can, under which rules and regulations it must abide by. One of the most recent and controversial issues facing our society today is the idea of cloning. On February 23, 1997, Ian Wilmut, a Scottish scientist, along with his colleagues at the Roslin Institute and PPL Therapeutics, announced to the world that they had cloned a lamb, which they named Dolly, after Dolly Parton, from an adult sheep (Mario, Christopher). à à à à à The two share the same nucleic DNA, but differ in terms of their mitochondrial DNA, which is vitally important for the regulation of the cell. The media and the press ignored this fact, and thus claimed that Dolly and her ââ¬Å"motherâ⬠were genetically identical, which sparked a fury of outcry all around the world. The technique of transferring a nucleus from a somatic cell into an egg cell of which the nucleus had been removed, called nuclear transplantation, is an extension of research that had been ongoing for over 40 years. à à à à à Up until now, scientists thought that adult cells could not be ââ¬Å"reprogrammedâ⬠to behave like a fertilized egg and create an embryo, but the evidence obtained by Dollyââ¬â¢s success prove otherwise. The issues of cloning have been around for a long time, starting with the publication of Joshua Lederbergââ¬â¢s 1966 article on cloning in the American Naturalist, and the publics interest has been perked by many sci-fi books, films, and movies including Aldous Huxleyââ¬â¢s 1932 novel ââ¬Å"Brave New World,â⬠1973ââ¬â¢s ââ¬Å"Sleeper,â⬠the 1978 film ââ¬Å"The Boys from Brazil,â⬠and most recently, the movie ââ¬Å"Multiplicityâ⬠(Mario, Christopher). The ethical, legal, and moral issues aroused by cloning have been raised by previous projects, and are now simply emerging again, with its focus on three major points: the shift from sexual reproduction with that of asexual replication of existing genes; the ability to predetermine the genes of a child; and the ability to create many genetically identical children (Report/Recommendations of the NBAC). à à à à à The public responded to Dolly with a mixture of fear and excitement, questioning the benefits and the disasters that could happen in the future if research was to continue. From a poll taken by Maurice Bernstein, M.D., the results showed that 72% of the votes said that cloning
Comparing Perception in Blade Runner, Memento, Three Kings and American Beauty :: Movie Film Essays
Comparing Perception in Blade Runner, Memento, Three Kings and American Beauty Throughout this course, we have seen a number of films that are quite different. These films are diverse in their subject matter ranging from the drama of American Beauty, the political and action based nature of Three Kings, the science fictional social statements on technology presented by Blade Runner, to the fragmented and contemporary techniques of experimental Memento. However, I would argue that all of the above mentioned have been linked by an unsuspecting thread, and I am going to demonstrate what that thread is here. These films have been tied together by a theme, of which I have written in past analyses of some of these films, and I choose to bring that theme forward again. I do so because I believe that this particular notion is at the bottom and the most imperative in all of these stories. The notion, which I am referring to, is that the world is what we make of it; that bad things, and good things alike, happen to us, but our ultimate view of the world as a good or bad place is determined by our choice to perceive it as one or the other. Blade Runner portrays this ideology in the main representation of the replicants. When Deckard first meets Rachel, he says to Tyrell "She's a replicant, isn't she?" Tyrell responds by pointing out that "Rachel is an experiment. Nothing more." This makes us aware that Rachel is a replicant with memories and emotional response and is not aware of her true identity as a replicant but believes herself to be human. Her memories are implanted memories of Tyrell's niece. So Rachel believes her reality to be different from that of what Tyrell and Deckard know to be reality. Whether their reality is truer than Rachel's reality is a point of debate. This relative reality changes for Deckard as he becomes emotionally attached to Rachel and then romantically involved with her. Towards the end, Deckard does not see Rachel as a replicant any longer, even after she learns the truth. More generally, however, Blade Runner presents a world of deterioration. It is a time when most of humanity has left the earth in order to colonize other planets, and all natural life is virtually extinct. It is a world plagued by acid rain, genetically engineered plants, animals, and replicants of course.
Saturday, August 3, 2019
parkinsons disease Essay -- essays research papers
Parkinsonââ¬â¢s Disease and the protective mechanism of the antioxidant Vitamin E Description and Risks à à à à à Parkinsonââ¬â¢s disease (PD) is a progressive movement disorder marked by tremors, rigidity, slow movements (bradykinesia), and postural instability. It is a chronic, progressive neurodegenerative disease caused by decreased production of dopamine, a neurotransmitter. Dopamine is responsible for most of the bodyââ¬â¢s smooth muscle movements. As a result, motor control in Parkinsonââ¬â¢s patients is disrupted, causing anything from uncontrollable tremors to muscular stiffness to slow-as-molasses movements. (2) PD affects about 500,000 people in the United States, both men and women, with as many as 50,000 new cases each year. The disease usually begins in a personââ¬â¢s late 50ââ¬â¢s and 60ââ¬â¢s; it causes a progressive decline in movement control, affecting the ability to control initiation, speed, and the smoothness of motion. The symptoms of PD are seen in up to 15% of those between the ages of 65-74, and almost 30% of those were between the ages of 75-84. (3) Genetic Risks à à à à à Scientist identified two gene abnormalities present in PD patients whose families have a rate of the disease, indicating at least some evidence that the disease is inherited. Both abnormalities cause the body to produce an altered version of alpha synuclein, the protein that shows up in dense masses in the brains of Parkinsonââ¬â¢s patients. (3). But in another study in the Journal of the American Medical Association suggested heredity is a significant influence on how fast the disease will onset. Researchers identified 172 twin pairs in which at least one twin had PD. If the condition was hereditary, the rate of both twins having the disease would be lower among fraternal twins, who share some, but not all of the same genes unlike identical twins who share them all. In individuals who were diagnosed after age 50, the rate of twins who both had the disease was similar among fraternal and identical twins. In those diagnosed at 50 or younger, however, the rate wa s significantly lower in fraternal twins than in identical twins (2). Researchers also think that PD has environmental risks such as increase exposure to toxic chemicals such as pesticides, herbicides, or heavy metals. For example, some studies of people liv... ...one, L., Bagala, A., Napoli, I.D., Caracciolo, M. & Quattnone, A. (2001) Plasma levels of Vitamin E in Parkinsonââ¬â¢s disease. Archives of Gerontology and Geriatrics 33:7-12. 6. Miklya, I., Knoll, B. & Knoll, J. (2003) A pharmacological analysis elucidating why, in contrast to (-)- deprenyl (selegiline), alpha-tocopherol was ineffective in the DATATOP Study. Life Sciences 72:2641-2648 à à à à à 10.à à à à à Parashevas, G.P., Kapaki, E., Petropoulou, O., Anagnostouli, M., Vagenas, V. & Papageorgiou, L. (2003) Plasma levels of Antioxidant Vitamins C and E are decreased in vascular Parkinsonism. Journal or Neurological Sciences. 215:51-55. 11.à à à à à Roghani, M. & Behzadi, G., (2001) Neuroprotective effect of vitamin E on the early model of Parkinsonââ¬â¢s disease in rat: behavioral and histochemical evidence. Brain Research 892:211-217. 12.à à à à à Vatassery, G.T., Demaster, E.G., Lai, James C.K., Smith, W.E. & Quach, H.T. (2003) Iron uncouples oxidative phosphorylation in brain mitochondria isolated from vitamin E-deficient rats. Biochemical et Biophysical Acta 1688:265-273. .
Friday, August 2, 2019
Management Influences on Turnover Intention of Software Developers Essay
Introduction The Information Technology (IT) Age has created many opportunities for employment in the IT and IT services industry.à IT professionals are in demand all over the world.à Organizations worldwide invest money that go not only into salaries but for further training of IT professionals they hire. However, around the world, the demand, supply, selection, recruitment and particularly retention of IT professionals has threatened organizations that use, manage or deal in IT or IT services for the past few years (Parà © and Tremblay 2000; Ermel and Bohl 1997; Morello 1998; Guptill et al. 1999). This is why the departure of an IT professional from a company usually comes with disastrous effects to the organization.à When an IT professional resigns, the organization suffers loss of business process knowledge and acquired technical skills (Dorà © 2004). Since late 1996, the turnover for IT professionals has jumped from 15% to 20% annually, with only 8 of 10 IT positions being filled with qualified candidates (McNee et al. 1998).à With the annual turnover rate estimated at 20% or more (Alexander 1999; Kosseff 1999), job-hopping of IT professionals has been one of the biggest problems among managers and human resources (HR) experts (Parà © and Tremblay 2000). IT professionals seem to have a tendency to change their jobs faster than other employees when they feel dissatisfied with their current employer (Hacker 2003).à The estimated cost of replacing IT professionals range from 1.5 to 2.5 times of their annual salaries for the companies they resigned from (Kosseff 1999).à On the other hand, the cost of losing a qualified IT professional is actually 3 to 6 times more expensive than the cost of losing a manager (Kochanski and Ledford 2001). IT professionals, as also mentioned previously in this study, also tend to change jobs more quickly than other employees when they feel dissatisfied with in their current employment (Hacker 2003).à However, rational models of voluntary turnover cannot be used to explain the high turnover rates for IT professionals (Rouse 2001) since many IT professionals remain dissatisfied with their jobs even though they enjoy high financial rewards yet their creativity and expertise do not receive high respect from their peers, supervisors and companies as a whole (Fisher 2000). Furthermore, another explanation why IT professionals may resign more quickly when dissatisfied with their current employment is that ââ¬Å"much of IT work is project oriented, the technical employeeââ¬â¢s loyalty may be more to the project, and not necessarily to the employerâ⬠(Hacker, 2003, p. 15). These trends place intense pressure on both IT executives and HR managers.à High IT professional turnover translates to a threat not only to an organizationââ¬â¢s IT department but to the business as a whole. Most importantly, high IT turnover poses a threat to the growth, competitive positioning and strength of the global economy (Parà © and Tremblay 2000). A dissertation by Dr. Timothy Lee Dorà © (2004) studied the relationships between job characteristics, job satisfaction and turnover intention among software developers.à These two factors ââ¬â job characteristics and job satisfaction ââ¬â are deemed to play crucial roles in understanding turnover intention not only among software developers but IT professionals as a whole. The current study aims to investigate the management influences on employee retention of IT professionals, focusing on job characteristics and job satisfaction, and their impact on turnover and retention. à à à à à à à à à à à 1.1.1à à à Scope and Limitations of the Study This research will study the impact of job characteristics and job satisfaction on the turnover intention of IT professionals.à Although this paper intends to replicate some of Dorà ©Ã¢â¬â¢s findings, the study will not be limited to software developers only as this sector only constitutes a small sample of IT professionals as a whole. Specifically, the research study will focus on the turnover intention of IT professionals in___________. In studying the relationships between job characteristics, job satisfaction and turnover intention, this study is limited to the use of the following theoretical models and theories to support its conclusions: For the discussion on job characteristics, the research study will make use of the Job Characteristics Model developed by JR Hackman and GR Oldham (1975/1980) and the analysis on Model Employers by Minda Zetlin (2001). For the discussion on job satisfaction, as well as motivation, the paper will use the Motivator-Hygiene Theory by F. Herzberg (1968/2003) and the Synergistic Model by T.M. Amabile (1997). For the discussion on turnover, the study will use the Voluntary Turnover Model by R.M. Steers and R.T. Mowday (1987); the Rational Turnover Model by P.D. Rouse (2001); the Instinctual or ââ¬Å"Unfoldingâ⬠Model of Turnover by T.W. Lee, T.R. Mitchell, L. Wise and S. Fireman (1996); and the Conceptual Model for Investigating Turnover in IT, developed by J.B. Thatcher, L.P. Stepna and R.J. Boyle (2002-03) These models will be discussed in detail later in this chapter, as well as in Chapter 2 on Review of Related Literature. Chapter 2 Review of Related Literature This chapter will analyze the various literature which are related to this research paper. It will discuss the works of other analysts and researchers on theories/models that will be used to support this study, as well as pertinent literature on IT professionalsââ¬â¢ turnover intentions. The chapter begins with a general discussion on motivational theories, cutlure, and leadership which are all critical factors that affect an employeeââ¬â¢s intent to leave. The discussion them dovetails into a more specific presentation of the framework used in the current study. This chapter will also include a definition of terms incorporated into the discussion of related literature. 2.1à à à à à à Relationships between Job Characteristics, Job Satisfaction, and Turnover Intention In 2004, Timothy Lee Dorà © submitted a dissertation titled ââ¬Å"The Relationships Between Job Characteristics, Job Satisfaction, and Turnover Intention Among Software Developersâ⬠.à à According to Dorà ©, the factors leading to the turnover intention of software developers have been poorly understood.à His study was designed to further understand the relationships between job characteristics, job satisfaction, and turnover intention among software developers.à His study involved the use of 326 web surveys that contained questions relating to job characteristics, job satisfaction, turnover intention and demographic information. The results of Dorà ©Ã¢â¬â¢s study showed that several factors can influence turnover intention, most significantly, job characteristics that may be influenced by management, such as training, autonomy, feedback, number of developers, task significance, and skill variety (Dorà © 2004).à In his study, Dorà © made use of two research questions and sixteen hypotheses to understand the job characteristics variables which contribute to the various dimensions of job satisfaction, and which of these job satisfaction dimensions, in turn, contribute to turnover intention. Dorà © made use of indirect effect tests, to determine if certain job characteristics could be linked to turnover intention through the job satisfaction scales he provided.à The results of his study indicated that ten of the indirect effects were statistically significant.à All ten of the statistically significant indirect effects were associated with only three of the seven job satisfaction scales: internal work motivation, general job satisfaction, and satisfaction with pay. The largest indirect effect, according to Dorà ©, was the effect of autonomy on turnover intention through general job satisfaction: higher levels of autonomy lead to lower levels of turnover intention by increasing general job satisfaction.à à The next largest indirect effect was the effect of organizational training on turnover intention through general job satisfaction: organizational training decreased turnover intention through an increase in general job satisfaction.à The next three highest indirect effects in Dorà ©Ã¢â¬â¢s findings were also between a job characteristic (feedback, skill, variety, and number of developers) and turnover intention through general job satisfaction (Dorà ©, 2004, p. 130). 2.2à à à à à à Measuring Turnover Intentions Among IT Professionals Guy Parà © and Michel Tremblay, in contrast to Dorà ©Ã¢â¬â¢s study, completed a research covering the turnover intention of not just software developers but IT professionals as a whole.à Their study, ââ¬Å"The Measurement and Antecedents of Turnover Intentions among IT Professionalsâ⬠(2000), submitted to Cirano research center, aimed to present and test an integrated model of turnover intentions that address the unique nature of the IT profession (Parà © and Tremblay, 2000, p. 3).à The authors identified a multidimensional set of HR practices that will most likely increase retention among IT employees.à à They emphasized citizenship behaviors as well as two distinct types of organizational commitment as key antecedents of turnover intentions. The study involved the sending of questionnaires to 394 Quebec members of the Canadian Information Processing Society.à à The study addressed four research questions: 1) What are the essential HR practices necessary to create an effective plan for retaining IT professionals? 2) What is the impact of compensation and negotiation conditions on the turnover intentions of IT personnel? 3) What is the effect of employee demographic characteristics on the turnover intentions of IT personnel? 4) Do organizational commitment and citizenship behaviors mediate the effects of HR practices, compensation and negotiation conditions as well as demographic characteristics on the turnover intentions of IT personnel? (Parà © and Tremblay, 2000, p. 4) Parà © and Tremblay provide that IT employees who are highly committed to their organization are less likely to leave than those who are relatively uncommitted.à They attach three distinct dimensions to organizational commitment: affective, continuance and normative commitment (Meyer and Allen 1997). 1)à à à à à à à Affective commitment ââ¬â means an employeeââ¬â¢s personal attachment and identification to the organization.à This results in a strong belief in an acceptance of the organizationââ¬â¢s goals and values.à ââ¬Å"Employees with a strong affective commitment continue employment with the organization because they want to do soâ⬠(Parà © and Tremblay, 2000, p. 5) 2) à à à à à à Continuance commitment ââ¬â is a tendency to engage in consistent lines of activity based on the individualââ¬â¢s recognition of the ââ¬Å"costsâ⬠associated with discontinuing the activity.à à ââ¬Å"Employees whose primary link to the organization is based on continuance commitment remain because they need to do so.â⬠(Parà © and Tremblay, 2000, p. 5) 3)à à à à à à à Normative commitment ââ¬â provides that employees exhibit behaviors solely because they believe it is the right and moral thing to do. ââ¬Å"Employees with a high level of normative commitment feel that they ought to remain with the organization.â⬠(Parà © and Tremblay, 2000, p. 5) In their findings, Parà © and Tremblay provide that affective commitment and continuance commitment are negatively related to turnover intentions (Parà © and Tremblay, 2000, p. 6).à In addition to these two distinct types of commitment affecting turnover intention, their studies also points to the factor they call Organizational Citizenship Behavior or OCB. OCB is considered as a key element in organizational effectiveness.à OCB is defined as ââ¬Å"an employeeââ¬â¢s willingness to go above and beyond the prescribed roles which they have been assignedâ⬠(Parà © and Tremblay, 2000, p. 6, quoting from Organ 1990). Based on Parà © and Tremblayââ¬â¢s findings, the stronger the citizenship behavior of an IT employee, the more likely they are to stay in their company.à The IT professionalââ¬â¢s affective commitment, or attachment to his or her organization, also decreases turnover intention. 2.3à à à à à à Job Characteristics Model Hackman and Oldhamââ¬â¢s Job Characteristics Model, as earlier introduced in Chapter 1 of this research study, predicts what aspects of jobs reflect the level of job enrichment for employees, and how these relate to employeesââ¬â¢ individual differences and to the work outcomes required. The model includes five core job characteristics that can be applied to any job: skill variety, task identity, task significance, task autonomy and feedback. Skill variety is defined as ââ¬Å"the number of different skills required in the jobâ⬠(Hackman and Oldham 1980; Pilon 1998). Task identity means ââ¬Å"the completeness of the tasks done in the jobâ⬠(Hackman and Oldham 1980; Pilon 1998). Task significance on the other hand is defined as ââ¬Å"the importance of the job to the served population.â⬠(Mohamed 2004). Autonomy means ââ¬Å"the vertical expansion of responsibility, the amount of decision-making and independence allowed for employees.â⬠(Mohamed 2004). And lastly, feedback means ââ¬Å"the extent that the job itself provides information about employeesââ¬â¢ performanceâ⬠(Huber 2000). These characteristics ââ¬â skill variety, task identity, task significance, autonomy, and feedback ââ¬â are combined into a single predictive index which is called the Motivating Potential Score (Hackman and Oldham 1980). Figure 1. Job Characteristics Model Source: A.H. Mohamed (2004) à à à à à à à à à à à The five core job characteristics enumerated in the previous paragraph are in continuous interaction with individual differences that evoke three critical psychological states in an employee.à These three states are: 1) when the job is structured by skill variety, task identity and task significance this could lead employees to experience meaningfulness in their work. 2) The second state, task autonomy, which leads to feelings of responsibility for the outcomes of work. 3) The third and last state is feedback, which leads employees towards knowledge of the results of their work (Douthit 2000; Huber 2000). à à à à à à à à à à à These three critical psychological states lead to a set of affective and personal outcomes:à high internal work motivation, high growth satisfaction, high general satisfaction, high work effectiveness, and low rate of absenteeism (Mohamed 2004; Donovan and Radosevich 1998). à à à à à à à à à à à These affective and personal outcomes are the results of en employeeââ¬â¢s job characteristics.à They are defined as follows: High internal work motivation ââ¬â this is the degree to which an employee is willing to work and to consider the organizational objectives as part of his or her own goals (Mohamed 2004). High growth satisfaction ââ¬â this is the achievement of the employee in overcoming challenges, succeeding and growing (Steers and Black 1994) High general satisfaction ââ¬â this the feeling derived from the overall satisfaction with the work itself. ââ¬Å"This type of satisfaction is reflected mainly in decreased rates of absenteeism among employeesâ⬠(Steers and Black 1994; Omachonu et al 1999). High work effectiveness ââ¬â this refers to both the quality and quantity aspects of work performance (Hackman and Oldham 1980). Low rate of absenteeism. The Job Characteristics Model, also includes three attributes that are identified as Moderators: knowledge and skills, context job satisfaction, and employee growth-need strength.à These attributes indicate which employee will respond positively to the Motivating Potential Score of their job and its outcomes (Hackman and Oldham 1980). An employeeââ¬â¢s knowledge and skills are dependent on their educational qualifications which in turn will reflect their perceptions toward their work outcomes (Sabiston and Laschinger 1995).à On the other hand, an employeeââ¬â¢s perception of his or her context job satisfaction involves factors like pay, supervision, colleagues, and job security.à All these affect the employeeââ¬â¢s outcomes as well (Mohamed 2004).à à Lastly, growth-need strength is the degree in which an employee seeks opportunities in his or her job for self-direction, learning and personal accomplishment.à These elements in turn affect the employeeââ¬â¢s level of work internal motivation (Mohamed 2004). An example of a study which made effective use of Hackman and Oldhamââ¬â¢s Job Characteristics Model is the one conducted by A.H. Mohamed (2004) called ââ¬Å"Using the job characteristics model to compare patient care assignment methods of nursesâ⬠for the Faculty of Nursing, University of Alexandria in Egypt.à à The population used were the nurses in the Alexandria Main University Hospital.à Mohamed made use of a Job Diagnostic Survey (also developed by Hackman and Oldham) to determine nursesââ¬â¢ perceptions towards the components of the Job Characteristics Model in relation to their performance in utilizing the case and functional methods of patient care assignment (Mohamed 2004). In his study, Mohamed concludes that the jobs of intensive care unit nurses result in different expectations based also on the different categories of nurses, based on skills and challenges inherent in the work they perform (Mohamed 2004). Generally speaking thus, studies like Mohamed shows that an employeeââ¬â¢s personal and affective outcomes are a result of the employeeââ¬â¢s job characteristics. 2.4à à à à à à Model Employers However, management also plays a crucial role in the retention and conversely turnover of IT professionals.à à Since IT professionals still enjoy a wide selection of employers to choose from, employers constantly compete to attract the best IT professionals by becoming ââ¬Å"model employersâ⬠.à In her 2001 article for Computer World, called ââ¬Å"Model employersâ⬠, Minda Zetlin outlines the strategies that make certain companies ââ¬Å"model employersâ⬠. By compiling its eight annual list of 100 Best Places to Work in IT, Computer World roughly sums up the model employers as offering not just top compensation, but also ââ¬Å"opportunities for career growth, investment in training, diversity in the work place, work flexibility, and, ideally, a comfortable and fun place to spend their daytime hoursâ⬠(Zetlin 2001).à Zetlin in her article outlines three common themes behind the success of these model IT employers: IT is central to the best employersââ¬â¢ success According to Zetlin, excellence in IT is a top corporate strategy.à à Prioritizing IT should not be limited to companies that strictly provide IT or IT services.à Companies such as Avon, for instance, which ranks 4th in Computer Worldââ¬â¢s list of 100 best employers, may be perceived to operate on a relationship-based environment.à à Yet to process its more than 60 million custom orders every year, the company relies heavily on IT to process its complex supply chain.à The fact that is it is actually a very transactional business, dependent on technology, makes IT one of its priorities (Zetlin 2001). Management takes an active interest in employersââ¬â¢ careers from the day they arrive This includes having development plan for employees as soon as they join the organization.à Employees meet with their managers on a periodic basis for a formal review to assess their development plan and to evaluate its progress.à à Orientation programs at the start of the employment are also part of this strategy.à Apart from orientation, Harley-Davidson, Inc. (ranked as No. 11) also provides for a yearly self-assessment for its employees against the established competencies for their jobs, with their supervisors doing the same (Zetlin 2001).à Such focus on career development per employee makes the employee feel that management takes an active interest in aligning its objectives with the employeeââ¬â¢s personal goals. Model employers also provide for continuous interest on their employeesââ¬â¢ careers throughout their employment with the company.à Knowledge mentoring programs and career mentoring programs, used by the State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co. (ranked No. 13), for instance, allow employees to learn more skills and career guidance from their more experience colleagues, and help management to identify employees to fill leaderships positions in the short and long term (Zetlin 2001).à State Farmââ¬â¢s mentoring program is in fact so successful that it has extended the program to employees who havenââ¬â¢t even arrived yet ââ¬â such as assigning mentors to college students who plan to join State Farm after they graduate. There are no walls between business and IT Unlike other organizations, model employers ensure that IT people and business people work side by side.à There is no division or competition.à à IT professionals are given a better understanding that what they do helps the business succeed.à This understanding leads to career satisfaction for IT professionals.à Technology people know exactly how they contribute to the revenues of their business and how important they are in the business plan.à One advantage here is that a close relationship between IT and business allows people to switch between the two fields (Zetlin 2001).à Another strategies such as cross-functional work teams gives career development not just to IT professionals but to business people in the organization as well.à à There are continuously different career tracks available.à An IT professional may opt to advance by taking on management roles within technology, or they may shift to business management positions (Zetlin 2001). 2.5à à à à à à Voluntary Intention Model à à à à à à à à à à à R.M. Steers and R.T. Mowday, in their study ââ¬Å"Employee turnover and post-decision accommodation processesâ⬠(1981) analyzed turnover as rooted in voluntary intention.à Steers and Mowday viewed the interaction of intention to leave, and alternative job opportunities (ease of movement) as direct antecedents to turnover (Steers and Mowday 1981; Rouse 2001). à à à à à à à à à à à As earlier discussed in Chapter 1 of this study, the direction of the process in Steersââ¬â¢ and Mowdayââ¬â¢s Voluntary Intention Model starts with Job Expectations, then Affective Responses, then Turnover Intention, then finally,à Actual Turnover (see Section 1.2.1.1 of this paper).à However, these four elements were actually grouped together by Steers and Mowday under three steps. As can be seen in the Figure 3: Each step in Figure 3 contains two constructs.à The second construct (Job Attitudes) of Step 1 becomes the first construct of Step 2.à The second construct (Intent To Leave) of Step 2 becomes the first construct of Step 3. Step 1 of the Voluntary Intention Model involves the manner in which job expectations influence an employeeââ¬â¢s attitudes regarding his or her job.à Attitudes are composed of job satisfaction, organizational commitment, and job involvement.à Job expectations in turn are influenced by three stimuli. The first stimuli focuses on individual characteristics such as occupation, age, tenure, family concerns, and personality form (Steers and Mowday 1981; Rouse 2001). The second stimuli involves information obtained during the recruitment process and at various assessments points throughout the employeeââ¬â¢s career (Steers and Mowday 1981; Rouse 2001). For instance, studies have shown that job expectation levels are often high when the employee first accepts a new job (Porter and Steers 1973). At these particular periods, expectations are developed from both the employee and employerââ¬â¢s ends. In other words, a sort of unwritten social contract is deemed to be adopted by the two parties (Prouse 2001). Lastly, the third stimuli affecting job expectations are alternative job opportunities.à Studies have shown that the more alternatives there are confronting an employee, then the more negative the employeeââ¬â¢s attitudes becomes concerning his or her current job (Pfeffer and Lawler 1979). Step 2 in the Voluntary Intention Model involves the Affective Responses that are elicited from Step 1.à These responses include the construct of job satisfaction, and how those responses influence the employeeââ¬â¢s desire to leave the organization.à Factors that affect the employeeââ¬â¢s decision to leave include non-work factors such as family, hobbies, religion and political influences (Cohen 1995). Steers and Mowday also identified the potential of employees to alter their actual job, in terms of pay, working hours, environment, etc., and thus change their attitudes regarding their jobs (Prouse 2001). Chapter 3 Methodology The aim of the research is to examine the relationships between job characteristic, job satisfaction and turnover intention among IT professionals in ______________.à The proposition is that job satisfaction and job characteristics as management influences have indirect impact to the levels of turnover intention among IT professionals.à The literature review indicates that there are different factors affecting IT professionalsââ¬â¢ turnover intention.à This research is going to study the turnover intention of IT professionals in _____________. 3.1à à à à à à Research Questions The study will answer the following two research questions: Which job characteristic variable(s) causes the job satisfaction among IT professionals in ____________? What job satisfaction variable(s) cause the turnover intention among IT professionals in ____________? à à à à à à à à à à à In answering these two primary questions, the thesis will make use of the following framework: à Hypotheses Research Question 1 à à à à à à à à à à à ââ¬Å"Which job characteristic variable(s) causes the job satisfaction among IT professionals in _______________?â⬠à à à à à à à à à à à The first research question will analyze the standardized effect of job characteristics to job satisfiers.à à The null hypotheses tested were: Job Characteristics à Job Satisfactions H1: The level of IT training does not affect the various measures of job satisfaction. H2: The level of user contact does not affect the various measures of job satisfaction. à à à à à H3: The job-required skills do not affect the various measures of job satisfaction. à à à à à H4: The level of task significance does not affect job satisfaction. à à à à à H5: The amount of workload does not affect job satisfaction. à à à à à H6: The amount of feedback does not affect job satisfaction. Research Question 2 à à à à à à à à à à à ââ¬Å"What job satisfaction variable(s) cause the turnover intention among IT professionals in ________________?â⬠à à à à à à à à à à à The first research question will analyze the standardized effect of the job satisfaction scales to turnover intention.à à The null hypotheses tested were: à à à à à à à à à à à Job Satisfactions à Turnover Intention à à à à à H7: The level of internal work motivation does not affect turnover intention. à à à à à H8: The level of job security satisfaction does not affect turnover intention. à à à à à H9: The level of social job satisfaction does not affect turnover intention. à à à à à H10: The level of job growth satisfaction does not affect turnover intention. à à à à à H11: The level of satisfaction with pay does not affect turnover intention. à à à à à H12: The level of satisfaction with supervision does not affect turnover intention. Research Procedures à à à à à à à à à à à 3.3.1à à à Data Collection à à à à à à à à à à à Research is a process of studying and analyzing situational factors of a specific problem or issue in order to determine solutions of it (Cavana, Delahaye and Sekaran 2001). According to Cavana, Delahaye and Sekaran (2001), there are three research paradigms: positivist, interpretivist and critical research. à à à à à à à à à à à As the research hypotheses of this study try to explore the relationships between job characteristic, job satisfaction and turnover intention among the IT professionals in __________________, the positivist approach will be adopted and it will provide the framework upon which the methodology of this study can be used. à à à à à à à à à à à In this study, the research problem requires primary data to specifically address the twelve hypotheses. An Internet questionnaire will be used as it is the most effective and appropriate data collection method. ââ¬Å"Questionnaireâ⬠is defined as a ââ¬Å"pre-formulated written set of questions to which respondents recorded their answers within closely defined alternativesâ⬠(Cavana, Delahaye and Sekaran, 2001). A well-designed questionnaire provides accurate and useable data for analysis in order to make a conclusion of accepting / rejecting a research hypothesis.à à A copy of the questionnaire to be used is attached as Appendix A of this study. à à à à à à à à à à à After gathering the data from questionnaires, the analysis of the data (including frequency distribution, correlation analysis and regression analysis) will be performed by a quantitative data analysis tool called SPSS (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences). SPSS predictive analytics advances in usability and data access, drawing reliable conclusions from the collected quantitative data (SPSS, Inc. 2002). In depth quantitative analysis of the data will be undertaken. Frequency Distribution, Correlation Analysis, and Regression Analysis will be used to analyze the collected data. à à à à à à à à à à à The population of this research is the _________ professionals in the country. The research is expected to have a 10% response rate (i.e. ____ questionnaires).à A reminder email will be sent to the students to ensure reaching the planned response rate. Participants are not inconvenienced or exposed unnecessarily to potential harm by recruiting more than is required. The research conducted by Dorà © in 2004 (which this paper intends to compare itself to) only received 326 responses which is less than 0.1% of the population. à à à à à à à à à à à An invitation emailà will be sent to the administration managers of the participating institutions. Then the manager will forward the invitation email to all qualified IT professionals and invite them to fill in the Internet anonymous questionnaire within 10 business days. A reminder email will be sent by the manager on the 6th business day. The invitation email only contains a consent form à and a URL to the Internet anonymous questionnaire. Participation is entirely voluntary. The participant can withdraw at any time and there will be no disadvantage if the participant decides not to complete the survey.à At no time will any individual be identified in any reports resulting from this study. A copy of the consent form is attached with this application. Variables à à à à à à à à à à à The variables which will used in this study can be categorized into two categories: job characteristics and job satisfaction.à The factors within each category are discussed as follows: à à à à à à à à à à à The following job characteristics for IT professionals were selected for this study, based also on previous usage in similar studies as indicated in the literature review: IT Training User Contact Job-required Skills Task Significance Workload Feedback à à à à à On the other hand, the job satisfaction scales include the following: Internal Work Motivation Job Security Satisfaction Social Job Satisfaction Job Growth Satisfaction Satisfaction with Pay Satisfaction with Supervision Data Analysis à à à à à à à à à à à The study will make use of descriptive and inferential analysis were used throughout the study.à à Descriptive statistics (percentages, means, standard deviations, frequencies, and item means) were computed using the SPSS (SPSS, Inc., 2002).à This general-purpose analysis program will be used to characterize the sample in terms of demographic characteristics pertaining to gender, income, education, age, years as an IT professional, years in the current organization, and years in the current position.à SPSS will likewise used to analyze the correlation among job characteristics, the correlation between job satisfaction scales, the correlation between job satisfaction and job characteristics, and the correlation between job characteristics, job satisfaction, and turnover intention. à à à à à à à à à à à The primary inferential technique that will be used is bivariate correlation.à SPSS will à also be used to analyze the regression analysis for the data.à A 0.01 level of significance was adopted for testing significance.à The standardized effects of all the job characteristics for each job satisfier will also be computed.à The same method will be used to analyze the standardized effect of all the job satisfaction scales to turnover intention.à From these standardized effect analyses, the prediction of turnover intention by job satisfaction scales will be computed. à The job satisfaction scales which had a 0.60 level were considered significant to turnover intention.à The reliability coefficients ranging between 0.60 and 0.70 are deemed adequate for research purposes (Aiken, 2000, p.88).à For purposes of this study, the job satisfiers and job characteristics which have indirect effects of 0.60 above significance to turnover intention will be used.à The standardized effect of the significant job characteristic will be multiplied to the standardized effect of the particular job satisfier. à à à à à à à à à à à Each of the twelve hypotheses of this study will be tested in essentially six multiple regression analyses ââ¬â one for each job satisfier as the constant, independent variable and its relation to each dependent variable represented by the job characteristics.à Otherwise stated, each job satisfier will represent a criterion variable and the six job characteristics will be considered predictors in each of the six regression analyses. References Alexander, S. M. (1999, November 1). The tricks for retaining talent. Crainââ¬â¢s Cleveland Business, T2-T3. Amabile, T. M. (1997). Motivating creativity in organizations: On doing what you love and loving what you do. California Management Review, 40, 39-58. Cavana, R. Y., Delahaye, B. L., and U. Sekaran. (2001). Applied Business Research: Qualitative and Quantitative Methods, John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd., Milton. Cohen, A. (1995). An examination of the relationships between work commitment and nonwork domains. Human Relations, 48, 239-263. Donovan, J.J., and D.J. Radosevich, (1998). The moderating role of goal commitment on the goal difficultyââ¬âperformance relationship: a meta-analytic review and critical re-analysis. Journal of applied psychology, 1998, 83:308ââ¬â15. Dorà ©, Timothy Lee. (2004).à The Relationships Between Job Characteristics, Job Satisfaction, and Turnover Intention Among Software Developers. Graduate School of Argosy University-Orange County. Douthit, M.W., (2000). Job satisfaction returns to human and social capital. Journal of behavioral and applied management, 2000, 1(1):67. Fisher, A. (2000, December 18). Inspiring the burned-out computer programmer. Fortune, 334. Guptill, B. Stewart, B. Maroccio, L., Potter, K. and C. Claps (1999). 1998 IT Spending and Staffing Survey Results. Gartner Group Strategic Analysis Report, April 1st. Hacker, C.A. (2003, Spring). Turnover: A silent profit killer. Information Systems Management, 14-18. Hackman JR, and GR Oldham, (1980). Work design. Reading, Massachusetts, Addisonââ¬âWesley, 1980:114ââ¬â21. Herzberg, F. (1968). Work and the nature of man. Cleveland: World. Herzberg, F. (2003, January). One more time: How do you motivate employees? Harvard Business Review, 87-96. Kochanski, J., and G. Ledford. (2001). ââ¬ËHow to keep meââ¬â¢Ã¢â¬âRetaining technical professionals. Research Technology Management, 44(3), 31-38. Kosseff, J. (1999, September 6). Info-tech firms increase efforts to keep workers. Crainââ¬â¢s Detroit Business, p. 21. McNee, B. Morello T. Zidar, E. and C. Smith (1998). IT Staff Retention and Recruitment: Addressing a Critical Problem for the IS Organization. Gartner Group Strategic Analysis Report, September 28. Meyer, J.P., and N.J. Allen, (1997). Commitment in the Workplace, Sage Publications. Mohamed, A.H. (2004, May) Using the job characteristics model to compare patient care assignment methods of nurses, Vol. 10, No. 3, May 2004, p. 389-405.à Department of Nursing Administration, Faculty of Nursing, University of Alexandria, Alexandria, Egypt. Morello, D.T. (1998). IT retention and recruitment: What has a year brought? Gartner Group Monthly Research Review, September 01. Omachonu V.K., Swift, J.A., Ross, J.E., eds. Principles of total quality, 3rd ed. Florida, St. Lucie Press, 1999:335. Organ D.W., (1990). The motivational Basis of Organizational Citizenship Behavior à » In B.M. Parà ©, G. and Tremblay, M. (2000).à The Measurement and Antecedents of Turnover Intentions among IT Professionals.à Scientific Series.à Ciprano.à September 2000. Pfeffer, J., & Lawler, J. (1979). The effects of jb alternatives, extrinsic rewards, and commitment on satisfaction with the organization: A field example of the insufficient justification paradigm . Berkeley: University of California. Pilon BA. Outcomes and surprises of work redesigning: how other leaders are coping with changes. Nursing Management, 1998, 29(8):44ââ¬â5. Porter, L. W., and R.M. Steers. (1973). Organizational, work and personal factors in employee turnover and absenteeism. Psychological Bulletin, 80, 151-176. Rouse, P. D. (2001). Voluntary turnover related to information technology professionals: A review of rational and instinctual models. International Journal of Organizational Analysis, 9, 281-290. Sabiston J.A., and H.K. Laschinger (1995). Staff nurse work empowerment and perceived autonomy. Journal of nursing administration, 1995, 25(9):42ââ¬â50. SPSS, Inc. (2002).à Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (Version 11.5) [Computer software].à Chicago, IL: SPSS, Inc. Steers, R. M., and R.T. Mowday. (1981). Employee turnover and post-decision accommodation processes. In L. Cummings & B. Staw (Eds.), Research in Organizational Behavior (Vol. 3, pp. 235-281). Steers, R.M., and J.C. Black. Organizational behavior, 5th ed. New York, Harper Collins, 1994:95ââ¬â101. Thatcher, J.B., Stepna, L.P. and R.J. Boyle (2002-03).à Turnover of information technology workers: Examining empirically the influence of attitudes, job characteristics, and external markets.à Journal of Management Information Systems, 19, 231-261. Zetlin, M. (2001, June 4). Model employers. Computerworld, 40-45.
Thursday, August 1, 2019
Multi-generational plan
It is widely known that the clash between the baby boomers and the generation Xers goes way back especially in the work place. As a result certain jobs could get compromised because of these clashing attitudes. It was well known though that both these generations could actually present ideas that could help the business running. The main problem about these two generations is the fact that they seldom go along with each other. But who are the baby boomers and the generation Xers? The baby boomers were widely known to be the people born between 1946 to 1964 while the generation Xers were people born between 1965 to 1980. Baby boomers were known to have plenty of opinions when it comes to political issues and they usually believe in longer time for work while the generation Xers witnessed or lived the technological boom of the world and are more skeptic than any other generations (ââ¬Å"Workplace generation gap: Understand differences among colleagues,â⬠). The long term goal then is on how these two generations could come together for the benefit of the company or business. The main key to make these generations come together is to eliminate the tension between the two by helping each other understand the usual personality or outlook that each generation has. There could be a program that would lead to the understanding of the two generations. Although, those organizing these programs should be on alert on what they ought to do especially when this kind of program could easily lead to prejudice. A good suggestion of this program is to put the two generations in each others shoes. A group dynamic could be done and these activities/projects should reflect a certain aspect where both generations could be useful. Then the next step here is to render respect for each of the generations. The respect should come out genuine. If respect were done for the sake of respect then these people might not have really understood the plight of each generation. References: Workplace generation gap: Understand differences among colleagues. (July 6, 2005).à à Retrieved August 1, 2007, from http://www.cnn.com/HEALTH/library/WL/00045.html à Ã
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