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Meaningful Work (meaningful + work)
Selected AbstractsProducing and Consuming Chemicals: The Moral Economy of the American LawnECONOMIC GEOGRAPHY, Issue 4 2003Paul Robbins Abstract: The burgeoning application of fertilizers and pesticides to residential lawns, which has begun to offset the gains made in reducing the use of chemicals in agriculture, represents a serious environmental hazard in the United States and elsewhere. Increased use and purchase occur specifically among a sector of consumers who explicitly and disproportionately acknowledge the risks associated with chemical deposition, moreover, and who express concern about the quality of water and human health. What drives the production of monocultural lawns in a period when environmental consciousness has encouraged "green" household action (e.g., recycling)? And why does the production of chemical externalities occur among individuals who claim to be concerned about community, family, and environment? In this article, we explore the interactions that condition and characterize the growth of intensive residential yard management in the United States. We argue that the peculiar growth and expansion of the moral economy of the lawn is the product of a threefold process in which (1) the lawn-chemical industry has implemented new and innovative styles of marketing that (2) help to produce an association of community, family, and environmental health with intensive turf-grass aesthetics and (3) reflect an increasing local demand by consumers for authentic experiences of community, family, and connection to the nonhuman biological world through meaningful work. [source] CLAIMING PLACE: THE PRODUCTION OF YOUNG MEN'S STREET MEETING PLACES IN ACCRA, GHANAGEOGRAFISKA ANNALER SERIES B: HUMAN GEOGRAPHY, Issue 3 2008Thilde Langevang ABSTRACT This article discusses the social significance of the street to young men through a case study of their street meeting places, ,the bases' in Accra, Ghana. Drawing on field research in a suburb of Accra, the paper explores how such meeting places are produced, claimed and defended. The aim is to contribute to discussions of the relationship between the marginalization of young men in Africa, the appropriation of street space and the production of youth identities. The article illuminates how bases are produced in an urban landscape characterized by rapid change, in which young men are excluded from meaningful work and influence, and tend to be represented as a problem. Describing how these meeting places are interpreted both from the outside and from within, the article illustrates the heterogeneous character of such places and the multiple meanings ascribed to them. While hordes of young men hanging out on the street tend to be viewed by the surrounding world as either potentially dangerous or as a sign of marginalization and immobility, the paper stresses that for the young men themselves, these places are also full of motion and serve to orient their lives socially and materially. [source] The relationship between work empowerment and work stress perceived by nurses at long-term care facilities in Taipei cityJOURNAL OF CLINICAL NURSING, Issue 22 2008I-Chuan Li Aim., To explore the relationships between work empowerment, including both structural and psychological empowerment and work stress among nurses at long-term care facilities in Taiwan. Design., Cross-sectional design with a descriptive correlation. Methods., Work empowerment includes both psychological and structural empowerment; 178 nurses participated in the study. Results., The results of this study showed that the average age of the subjects was 35·5 years and that 56·2% of subjects had less than two years work experience in the facility. The results indicated that there was a moderate level of psychological empowerment (mean 59·9, SD 8·1) and structural empowerment (mean 59·2, SD 11·1). A moderate level of work stress was also found with an average score of 72·3 (SD 14·4). Both psychological empowerment and structural empowerment were found to be significantly associated with total work stress (r = ,0·4, r = ,0·5, p < 0·001, respectively). The variables of age (standardised , = ,0·1), resources (standardised , = ,1·6), meaningful work (standardised , = ,0·4) and impact (standardised , = ,1·3) were significant predictors of work stress (R2 = 0·32, F = 17·3, p<0·001). Conclusion., Both psychological empowerment and structural empowerment were found to be significantly associated with work stress among nurses in this study. The four significant predictors of job satisfaction were age, resources, meaningful work and impact. Relevance to clinical practice., The managers of the facilities should provide available resources for nurses to accomplish work and to involve nurses in the development goals of the facilities to enhance their influence in the making of important changes within the organisation to decrease their work stress. [source] Transformative Education: Chronicling a Pedagogy for Social ChangeANTHROPOLOGY & EDUCATION QUARTERLY, Issue 1 2008Miguel Guajardo This article chronicles the work of the Llano Grande Center for Research and Development, an educational nonprofit organization in South Texas, by following the narrative of one of its students and two of the authors, who are also founders of Llano Grande. Through the use of ethnography, visuals, and storytelling, they present an emerging theory of practice and a hybrid methodology that has contributed to the development of the work, the school, and the community. An activist agenda informed by practice and supported with theory is woven through the text in biographical form. The text also documents the cornerstones of the work: building strong relationships; work originating from self, place, and community; and engaging in meaningful work. When integrated into a seamless practice, this combination of guiding principles yields a certain power that youth and adults alike begin to negotiate within and between their peers, teachers, and community for change. This sense of self, efficacy, and power then informs much of their work as adults.,[Latino epistemology and education, activist ethnography, Llano Grande Center, storytelling, community as text, pedagogy of hope] [source] Managers' Active Support when Implementing Teams: The Impact on Employee Well-BeingAPPLIED PSYCHOLOGY: HEALTH AND WELL-BEING, Issue 3 2009Karina Nielsen Research has shown that a variety of organisational change interventions can be effective but the powerful positive results of an intervention do not always generalise to other similar settings. Problems with implementation and a difficult intervention context have been shown to undermine the effectiveness of promising interventions. The impact that middle managers have on the change process and intervention outcomes has not been widely researched. This longitudinal intervention study was carried out in the elderly care sector in a large Danish local government organisation (N = 188), where poor social support, and lack of role clarity and meaningful work had been identified as significant problems. To tackle these problems, teamwork was implemented, with teams having some degree of self-management. It examined whether middle managers' active support for the intervention mediated its impact on working conditions, well-being and job satisfaction. Structural equation modelling showed that middle managers' active involvement in implementing the change partially mediated the relationship between working conditions at time 1 and time 2. Working conditions at time 2 were in turn related to time 2 job satisfaction and well-being. These results suggest that the degree to which employees perceive their middle managers to play an active role in implementing change is related to intervention outcomes. [source] Does U.S. federal policy support employment and recovery for people with psychiatric disabilities?,BEHAVIORAL SCIENCES & THE LAW, Issue 6 2002Bonnie O'Day Ph.D. Evidence suggests that a high percentage of people with a psychiatric disability can recover,find meaningful work, develop positive relationships, and participate fully in their communities. Evidence also suggests that work is an essential component of recovery. However, few people with a serious psychiatric disability are actually employed and most of those who are employed work only part-time at barely minimum wages. To assess the impact of federal programs such as Social Security Disability Insurance, vocational rehabilitation, medical insurance, and psychiatric services upon employment, we conducted a qualitative study of 16 employed and 16 unemployed individuals with psychiatric disabilities. All of our participants had disabilities severe enough to qualify them for Social Security Disability benefits. They told us that current federal policies and practices encouraged employment and integration of only a few participants, in a particular stage of their recovery, and placed significant barriers in the employment path of others. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] | |||||||||||||