Contracting Revisited: Determinants and Consequences of Contracting Out for Public Education Services

The determinants and consequences of contracting are examined in more than 1,000 Texas school districts for 1997–2008. The results largely replicate prior research by O'Toole and Meier, showing that contracting is negatively related to spending on school districts’ core instructional functions and that the relationship between contracting and bureaucracy is reciprocal. The present findings, based on data from a longer period, indicate that contracting is positively related to school district performance. This article also finds support for an extended model of contracting determinants involving two environmental shocks: negative budget shocks and enrollment shocks.     

Acute stagnant air syndrome

In the spring of 1979, two water company employees were found dead at the bottom of a water-filled underground meter vault. A month-long investigation disclosed that the atmosphere of the vault had progressively been deteriorated by the growth of primitive plants present in the water and also on the walls and ceiling of the vault. When entering manholes, employees must adhere strictly to all safety rules, such as the testing of the air before entry, ventilation of the air spaces, and the presence of a standby rescue worker. The diagnosis of acute stagnant air syndrome for this type of accident is introduced herein, to alert industrial concerns and the medical professions about the existence of this occupational hazard confronting individuals who work in confined and poorly ventilated manholes.     

Importance of examination of the clothed victim. Fingerprint identification of assailant from skin fragment on knifing victim's clothing

During the examination of the outer garments of a stabbing victim, a small piece of skin from the assailant's finger was discovered on the shirt. This evidence provided the decisive link leading to the speedy arrest and conviction of the murderer. The danger of excessive utilization of the services at autopsy of mortuary attendants is stressed.     

Gendered Networking: Gender,Environment, and Managerial Networking

This article examines how gender influences top managers’ networking activities and what situational factors intensify or ameliorate such gender effects. Focusing on female top managers’ efforts to engage in external networking activities, the authors conceptualize how and why female managers might develop different networking patterns and how such relationships could be redirected by several contingent factors specific to the context of U.S. local school districts. Using three sets of surveys on managerial behavior and management styles supplemented with six years of information related to organizational contexts, the authors find that, in general, gender differences lead to corresponding differences in the extent of involvement in managerial networking. Such effects are moderated by situational factors that impede or facilitate the number of available strategic managerial choices that allow managers to cope with them. The findings emphasize the need to consider the strengths and weaknesses of gender conjointly in assessing networking behaviors.     

Exploring capabilities of international technology transfer intermediaries between emerging and developed countries

The Journal of Technology Transfer - We report which capabilities are essential to a successful demand-driven inter-organizational international technology transfer (ITT) when a business deal...     

Co-Occurring Internalizing and Externalizing Behavioral Problems: The Mediating Effect of Negative Self-Concept

While a large body of research consistently finds that internalizing and externalizing problems are closely related and commonly co-occur, the literature is mixed regarding the unique and shared risk processes in the development of both domains of problems. The present study examined the nature and timing of relationships between internalizing and externalizing problems as well as the mediating effects of negative self-concept on both. Using a developmental cascade model as a guiding framework, we conducted a cross-lagged panel modeling on a sample of 2,844 Korean fourth graders (54% boys and 46% girls) followed over 4 years. Findings suggest that internalizing and externalizing problems were reciprocally reinforcing, each leading to increases in the other indirectly through the mediating influence of negative self-concept. Negative self-concept exacerbates the development of both internalizing and externalizing problems, which in turn further undermines one's self-concept. Although there were significant gender differences in the stability of internalizing and externalizing problems, the developmental pathways between negative self-concept and both internalizing and externalizing problems held for both boys and girls. Implications for future research and intervention are discussed.     

Domestic Violence and Risk Factors among Korean Immigrant Women in the United States

Domestic Violence is a serious problem among Korean immigrant women in the United States. However, little is known about the incidence of domestic violence as well as risk factors predicting violence experienced in intimate relationships. The purpose of this study is to describe domestic violence among Korean immigrant women, including type and frequency of violence and predictive factors of domestic violence experienced by Korean immigrant women. One hundred and thirty-six Korean women completed questionnaires developed in this study. Results indicate that domestic violence is a major family problem for Korean immigrant women. Implications are discussed in terms of the need of social services for Korean immigrant women.     

Does Organizational Image Matter? Image,Identification, and Employee Behaviors in Public and Nonprofit Organizations

Organizational image, identity, and identification are powerful concepts in terms of understanding members’ behaviors and beliefs. In particular, the term “image” has frequently been used to describe the overall impression of the organization, but most scholars have only focused on organizational image as it is perceived by external audiences. However, organizational image as perceived by members within an organization is critical for determining its impact on individual employees’ motivation, work behaviors, and further performance at work. This article explores the roles of organizational image and identification in explaining organizational behaviors—extra‐role behavior and absenteeism—in public and nonprofit organizations. A series of seemingly unrelated regressions were used to analyze survey data from 1,220 respondents. Results show that organizational image is positively related to employee identification, and identification has a significant influence on promoting extra‐role behavior and lowering employee absenteeism.

Practitioner Points

• Organizational image as perceived by members of an organization is an aggregate of individual employees’ perceptions of the organization based on their own experiences and judgments (perceived organizational identity) and outsiders’ judgments about the organization (construed external image).
• Both perceived organizational identity and construed external image influence the extent to which employees are likely to identify themselves as part of their organization.
• The higher an employee's level of identification, the more he or she is likely to engage in extra‐role behavior.
• Managing organizational image and identification in a positive way can significantly reduce costly voluntary employee absences, which are reasonably avoidable absences.