Andrea Ollo-López

ICT impact on competitiveness, innovation and environment

This paper examines the impact of ICT on competitiveness, innovation and environment in the glass, ceramics and cement concrete industry. The results show that use of ICT seems to favor innovation and competitiveness. As for the effect on the environment, the use of some ICT helps to reduce emissions, whereas others increase them.

The Relationship between New Work Practices and Employee Effort

In the context of the debate about the effectiveness of implementing new work practices, such as job rotation, teamwork and enhancing job autonomy, this article analyses their relationship with different dimensions of workers’ effort. Using two different but complementary data sets, our study reveals that in general these new work practices are associated to greater voluntary and involuntary mental effort, with a weaker link with involuntary physical effort. Besides this general trend our study also shows that different practices play different roles in different dimensions of employee effort.

Sports spectatorship in Spain: attendance and consumption.

Abstract Using ordered probit and Heckit models, this paper analyses the determinants of sports attendance, differentiating between professional and amateur sporting events and consumption in Spain. The results suggest that there are two main reasons for developing different strategies to attract more spectators and increase revenues. Firstly, the determinants for attendance at both sporting events are clearly different. Results show that attendance at professional sporting events is positively associated with regional income, individual socio-economic characteristics, fan motivation and sports supply. On the other hand, attendance at amateur sporting events is associated less strongly with income variables but more with social interactions motivation, children at home, sports participation and Internet usage at regional level. Secondly, consumer expenditure on attendance should be analysed in terms of two separate decisions: consumption and amount of money spent at sporting events. Both decisions are explained by different individual and regional variables.

Differences in work–family conflict: which individual and national factors explain them?

Abstract This paper contributes to cross-cultural literature on work–family relationships by testing not only hypotheses about the impact of work and family demands and gender at individual level on work–family conflict (WFC), but also at country level. Concretely, several theories commonly used in the literature (role conflict, boundary management and social support theory) are used to analyzed how national culture dimensions affects WFC. Using information about employee residents in each of the countries interviewed in the Second European Quality of Life Survey and also GLOBE dimensions of national culture, the paper shows that the relationship between work and family demands and WFC is universal and equal phenomenon throughout Europe. In line with gender role theory, demanding and stressing work have stronger effects on women’s WFC than on men’s. While opposite to it, household hours also have stronger effect on women’s WFC than on men’s. Moreover, the paper shows that national culture affects how people perceive work–family relationships. In line with integration/segmentation hypotheses derived from boundary management theory, uncertainty avoidance decreases WFC. Moreover, in line with social support, human orientation decreases the level of WFC, especially for men. Eastern Europe and Mediterranean countries have higher levels of WFC, while Scandinavian countries are those that have lower levels of WFC.

Disentangling the relationship between high-involvement-work-systems and job satisfaction

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to study how high-involvement work systems (HIWS) affect job satisfaction, and tries to disentangle the mechanisms through which the effect occurs. Design/methodology/approach – The authors use data for a representative sample of 10,112 Spanish employees. In order to test the mediation mechanism implied by the hypotheses, the authors follow the procedure outlined in Baron and Kenny (1986). Given the nature of the dependent variables, ordered probit models were estimated to study the effect of HIWS on the mediating variables (job interest, effort and wages), and regression models were estimated to analyze the effect of HIWS on the final attitudinal variable (job satisfaction). Findings – Empirical results show that HIWS results in higher levels of effort, higher wages and perceptions of a more interesting job. Moreover, greater involuntary physical effort reduces job satisfaction while higher wages, greater voluntary effort, involuntary mental effort and having an int...

Temporary contracts, participation in decision making and job satisfaction in European workers: Is there a buffering effect?

The purpose of this paper is to establish to what extent temporary contract and participation in decision making impact on employees job satisfaction and to propose a model whereby participation in decision making mitigates against the negative impact that temporary work has on job satisfaction.,The authors use data for a representative sample of 14,778 employees in 23 European countries. In order to test the hypotheses, the authors use regression models and the Chow test.,The results show that while temporary contracts decreases job satisfaction, participation in decision making increases it. However, autonomous teams, job autonomy, and job involvement buffer against the negative effect that temporary contract has on job satisfaction.,The use of secondary data and the non-longitudinal nature of the data set.,The effect of participation in decision making in job satisfaction is greater for temporary workers than for permanents. Participation in decision making should not be restricted to permanent workers.,Participation in decision making and temporary contracts has been considered incompatible practices. The paper contributes to enrich the understanding of the relationship between these practices and job satisfaction. Sample representatives support the results obtained.

Family-friendly practices, high-performance work practices and work–family balance: How do job satisfaction and working hours affect this relationship?

Purpose n n n n nThis paper aims to establish to what extent family-friendly practices and high-performance work practices are positively related to work–family balance and to identify the role played by job satisfaction and working hours as mediators of this relationship n n n n nDesign/methodology/approach n n n n nWe use data for a representative sample of almost 17,000 employees of dual-earner couples from European countries. To test the mediation mechanism implied by our hypotheses, we follow the procedure outlined in Baron and Kenny (1986). Given the nature of the dependent variables, ordered probit and regression models were estimated in the analysis. n n n n nFindings n n n n nThe results show that, in general, family-friendly practices and high-performance work practices increase work–family balance and that these positive relationships are partially mediated by job satisfaction and working hours. While both family-friendly practices and high-performance work practices increase job satisfaction, only the first increase working hours. Moreover, job satisfaction increases work–family balance, while working hours reduces it. The net effect of these opposing forces on work–family balance is positive. n n n n nResearch limitations/implications n n n n nThe use of secondary data posits some constraints, such as the type of measures and the failure to control for a higher number of family-friendly practices and high-performance work practices. Additionally, the non-longitudinal nature of the data set implies that some relationships cannot be considered causal in the intended direction. n n n n nPractical implications n n n n nManagers should implement family-friendly practices and high-performance work practices, as, in general, they increase work–family balance. A significant portion of this positive effect is channeled through job satisfaction and working hours. n n n n nOriginality/value n n n n nThe paper contributes to understanding the relationship between different subsets of human-resources management practices and work–family balance, proposing a model that aims to disentangle the mediating mechanisms through which this relationship occurs.

How the relationship between physical activity and health changes with age

In the context of age-related declines in physical activity (PA) and the dramatic increase in ageing populations in many countries, this paper sheds further light on the link between PA and self-perceived health (SPH) by examining whether the magnitude of this relationship is age specific. With a sample of 14,456 Spanish individuals aged 18–69, we estimated three levels of intensity in PA using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire. Individuals who did more PA per week showed higher levels of SPH (βu2009=u20090.28; 95% CI 0.24–0.32), and age moderated this relationship, with a positive effect over age 49. People aged 50–59 and 60–69 who practiced PA had higher probabilities of better SPH compared with those aged 40–49 (βu2009=u20090.14; 95% CI 0.04–0.24) and (βu2009=u20090.32; 95% CI 0.21–0.43), respectively. This association between PA and SPH also depended on the intensity of PA, especially for walking (βu2009=u20090.14; 95% CI 0.04–0.24). In particular, in comparison with people age 40–49, a statistically significant relationship with SPH was found among people age 50–59 who walked (βu2009=u20090.22; 95% CI 0.07–0.36) and people age 60–69 who did moderate PA (βu2009=u20090.38; 95% CI 0.23–0.54). This paper provides a major rationale for the design, organisation and implementation of public policies promoting PA and healthy ageing for different age groups.

Exploring the organizational drivers of sexual harassment: empowered jobs against isolation and tolerant climates

The purpose of this paper is to investigate and identify the organizational drivers of sexual harassment (SH).,Drawing on data from a representative sample of workers in Spain, this paper sheds light on the likelihood of SH influenced by: organizational environment and climate, organizational forms and structure, and job design parameters.,The analysis reveals that organizational climates where negative behaviors are tolerated are particularly advantageous for harassers. Furthermore, the profile of the victims of SH is that they work in isolation, are contracted through employment agencies, are not given training opportunities, and have low status in the firm. Analysis also reveals, however, that firms can reduce the risk of SH by empowering jobs and improving time flexibility.,The use of secondary data implies some constrains: the type of measure and the failure to control for the role of SH perpetrators.,Managers should adopt some organizational policies, such as empower job or improve time flexibility, since they reduce the risk of SH.,This paper identifies some objective organizational settings where SH is more likely and provides some easy to apply solutions to prevent it.

Perfil de los empleados involucrados en las nuevas prácticas de Organización del Trabajo

Resumen El presente trabajo analiza el perfil de los empleados involucrados en las nuevas practicas de organizacion del trabajo. Para ello se han utilizado datos de la Encuesta de Calidad de Vida en el Trabajo para los anos 2001 a 2004. Los resultados muestran que son los hombres de menor edad y con mayor nivel de estudios los que mas rotan de tareas. Asimismo, son los hombres de menor edad, con mayor nivel de estudios, con jornada completa y los que tienen una estructura familiar mas compleja los que mas participan en equipos autonomos de trabajo. Por otro lado, son los hombres de mayor edad, con mas antiguedad en la empresa, con mayor nivel de estudios, con jornada parcial y con una estructura familiar mas compleja los que tienen mas autonomia y los que mas participan en comunicacion ascendente. Igualmente, son los hombres con mas anos de experiencia en la empresa, con mas estudios y con mas cargas familiares los que mas participan en comunicacion descendente.