Deborah J. Dwyer

Effects of Stressful Job Demands and Control on Physiological and Attitudinal Outcomes in a Hospital Setting

We tested the job demands--job control model of stress with a group of 136 registered nurses. Significant interactions between subjective and objective measures of work load and a measure of perceived control predicting physiological and attitudinal outcomes indicated support for the model. In addition, objectively assessed job demands were significantly associated with blood pressure and cortisol levels. The model also predicted elevations in physiological responses after individuals left work, suggesting that potentially health-impairing reactions to jobs that have high demands and low controllability might carry over to home settings and thus pose a high risk of long-term health impairment. The results have implications for the role of personal control in occupational stress generally and for nurse-management practices specifically.

An investigation of the effects of time and involvement in the relationship between stressors and work-family conflict.

Previous researchers have proposed that the time and energy involved in family and paid work should affect the relationship between stressors and conflict in both the work and family domains. Using a sample of 113 registered nurses, the authors hypothesized that the amount of time and involvement in both domains would moderate the stressor-conflict relationships. Results supported many of the interactions in predicting conflict in each domain, and implications for the health of working women with family responsibilities were discussed.

Decision-making autonomy in nursing.

Current nursing literature has suggested that nurses may have low needs or preferences for decision-making autonomy. In this study, the authors found that nurses differed in their preferences for decision-making autonomy in three types of work-related decisions. Employed nurses with a greater preference for autonomy were more satisfied with their jobs, and those with little or no such preference were less satisfied, as they gained decision-making influence over patient care and unit management. The authors discuss implications for designing and implementing decision-making programs.

The Effects of Understaffing on Individual and Group Performance in Professional and Trade Occupations

Drawing on prior research on staffing sufficiency theory, we hypothesized that individuals working in understaffed groups would experience higher levels of perceived task scope and utilization of skills, and that these task perceptions would lead to higher levels of organizational commitment and work performance. Data were gathered from 684 workers from 160 blue-collar groups and 55 white-collar groups. Our path analyses indicated that moderate levels of understaffing were associated with higher levels of task perceptions and commitment for both blue-collar and white-collar individuals. But only for the white-collar sample did task perceptions, in turn, lead to higher performance. At the group level of analysis, however, understaffing was associated with lower levels of group performance. We suggest that these findings have important implications for organizations and departments that are considering structural downsizing.

The Moderating Role Of Hostility In The Relationship Between Enriched Jobs And Health

The purpose of this study was to assess the proposed moderating role of one individual-level health risk factor—hostility—in the relationship between job enrichment and health care costs for a samp...

Downsizing, Corporate Performance, and Shareholder Wealth

Restructuring events, such as downsizing, can either halt a downward spiral in corporate performance or perpetuate that downward spiral (Lindsley, Brass and Thomas 1995). This dual nature of downsizing is reflected in the mixed results found by prior researchers.We recognize the dual nature of downsizing by categorizing events according to the firm’s financial condition preceding the announcement of the downsizing. We find a significant negative stock price reaction for firms that are financially healthy in the period preceding the announcement of the downsizing, but a statistically smaller reaction for firms that are in financial distress. The results suggest that the stock market views downsizing events consistent with the theory proposed by Lindsley, Brass and Thomas (1995).

Don't “just say no” to drug testing in the workplace: Some recommendations for developing and implementing policy

The widespread use of contraband substances by organizational members continues to present policy makers with a plethora of legal, moral, and economic issues to contend with when designing and implementing a comprehensive substance abuse policy. This article addresses methods of drug testing and their relative advantages and limitations, the legal ramifications of policy decisions, including union and nonunion concerns, and the costs and benefits associated with drug testing and screening. General guidelines for the design and implementation of a substance abuse policy are offered, and it is suggested that organizations should not summarily dismiss drug testing as a vehicle for the control and elimination of contraband substances and their use in the workplace.

Faculty Internships in Family Business

Faculty internships in family business offer potential benefits to faculty, students, and the community by blending academics with real world business. The purpose of the paper is to report how faculty internship experiences in family businesses enhance the goals of continuous improvement of curriculum and research output in a business school. The University of Toledo Center for Family Business embarked on a pilot faculty internship program during the summer of 1998. We detail the back ground for the Stranahan Faculty Program at the University of Toledo, discuss the program implementation, and report the final organizational level assessment.