Kivanç Inelmen

Participation lethargy in disaster preparedness organizations within the framework of a Turkish CBO

The objective of the present study is to examine the history, activities, and relationships of a neighbourhood service cooperative, which evolved into a neighbourhood disaster management project that has been adopted by more than 100 neighbourhoods in the north western part of Turkey. In order to understand the core reasons for participation lethargy of the public in community based organizations (CBOs) for disaster preparedness, both qualitative and quantitative data collection methods were employed. An active CBO, at the local level, is shown to have a positive influence on the trustworthiness and perception of responsibility of such organizations by the public. The respondents in this study seem to prefer autonomous and expert actors that formally belong to the centralized state system, such as universities, search and rescue teams, and the military, although they also attribute responsibility to CBOs for disaster related activities and expect some level of leadership from these organizations. The findings point to the direction of a cultural phenomenon, which results in high power distance and low future orientation, coupled with low levels of trust towards institutions and lack of public legitimacy of such organizations. This results in the public avoiding active engagement in preparedness initiatives and suggests the need for an initial leading group to mobilize the community in this area. A set of policy recommendations are provided that will contribute to increasing the effectiveness of CBOs and will allow them become stronger actors in the network of interactions regarding disaster related activities, especially in centralized state systems.

Job satisfaction, flexible employment and job security among Turkish service sector workers

This article examines the association between job satisfaction, flexible employment and job security among Turkish service sector workers. Data come from a survey of workers in banking and related sectors’ call centres, frontline five-star hotel staff and airline cabin crews (N = 407). Results show that flexible employment involving fixed-term contract, paid and unpaid overtime, on-call work and mismatched contract and hours are not associated with job satisfaction. Perceived job security is positively associated with job satisfaction. The study provides evidence that the perception of job security rather than flexible employment is an important contributor to job satisfaction for Turkish workers in the sample.

Do Perceptions Change? A Comparative Study

ABSTRACT For developing nations affected by negative stereotypes, the question of whether a change in perceptions can be achieved through the tourism experience is important. This research aims to determine whether the perceptions of foreign tourists regarding a country and its people change as a result of the cultural tourism experience. The study examines the discrepancy between pre-travel and post-travel perceptions, matching the responses for every respondent. These changes are investigated from the comparative perspective of two sets of foreign tourists representing geographically different markets. Qualitative methodology is also used to enrich interpretation. The results determine that the perceptions of tourists regarding the host country and its people may positively change after the cultural tourism experience, although this effect is observed to be different for both samples. Implications are discussed, focusing on the role of tourism as benefiting other areas of the country such as trade and international relations.

Demographic diversity in the workplace and its impact on employee voice: the role of trust in the employer

Abstract This article examines the relationship between demographic diversity principles and evaluations of employee voice. An analysis of survey data from 707 employees working at 37 hospitality institutions with different star categories confirmed that trust in the employer, followed by the modest contribution of education, is of the utmost importance in the evaluation of voice systems by all employees. Employee evaluations of voice opportunities were found to display differences between male and female employee groups. While generational cohort was a differentiating attribute for the male group, job tenure had the same effect for the female employees. Implications for future research and for HR managers are discussed.

Understanding citizenship behavior of academics in American- vs Continental European-modeled universities in Turkey

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to understand the impact of university tradition, justice perceptions and quality of leader-member exchange (LMX) on the faculty members’ tendency to engage in organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) from the perspective of social exchange theory (SET). Attention is drawn to the need to contextualize the established relationships between OCB and its antecedents, as direction and strength of relationships may vary in different contexts. Design/methodology/approach The study uses a sequential mixed method design comprising a survey of 203 faculty members, and 15 semi-structured interviews both undertaken in several universities in Turkey. Hierarchical regression and discriminant analyses were used for the quantitative phase, followed by the qualitative phase that includes compiled quotes and content analysis. Findings Analyses provide strong support for the impacts of university tradition and LMX on OCB. The compiled quotes largely support the quantitative findings. Additionally, content analysis reveals sources and consequences of injustice and mechanisms to cope with it among academics. Practical implications The findings have implications for university administrators who are looking for ways to increase OCB and enhance justice perception. LMX emerges as a significant factor in encouraging OCB regardless of university tradition. In order to enhance justice perceptions, Continental European-modeled universities should allocate workload and resources in a fair manner, while American-modeled universities should apply procedures consistently across people and time. Originality/value The inclusion of university tradition as an independent variable is a contribution as it contextualizes the relationship between OCB and its antecedents, verifying SET for both contexts. Using a mixed method design, the study provides an enriched understanding of OCB.

Hotel Guests’ Satisfaction with Employees in Istanbul and Barcelona

This chapter reports results of a comprehensive investigation on the antecedents of guests’ satisfaction with employees of Istanbul hotels. The first phase of the study showed that at those hotels where participation mechanisms are available for greater numbers of employees, there are also higher levels of employee satisfaction, but trust in organization did not follow the same trend. Demand for participation seems to decrease trust in organization, because in this high power-distance setting, employees may find such contribution cumbersome. Suggestions for human resource managers are provided, to keep the levels of trust in organization at a level that would not negatively influence other organizationally important attitudes. In the second phase, Barcelona and Istanbul’s comparability in terms of hotel guests’ satisfaction with employees was tested with matched samples. The result suggests that data obtained from online ratings in separate destinations could be useful for preliminary comparisons. Reported findings could be valuable for both organizational improvement and knowledge development in service sector organizations.

Devlet ve Vakıf Üniversitelerinde Örgütsel Adalet Algısının Lider-Üye Etkileşimi Üzerindeki Etkisi

This study investigates the impact of organizational justice on the quality of leader–member exchange relationships in the Turkish higher education context. Public and foundation universities are compared, as extant literature reveals significant differences between them. The study employs a sequential mixed-method design. Surveys from 182 academicians from faculties of economics and administrative sciences in Istanbul are collected through key contact persons or via e-mails. Surveys are complemented by 17 face-to-face semi-structured interviews, most of which were conducted at the interviewees’ universities. Findings point to a strong impact of informational justice that is modestly complemented by procedural justice on the quality of the leader–member relationship in public universities. In foundation universities, however, procedural, informational and interpersonal justice dimensions influence the quality of the leader–member relationship in a balanced manner. The study also has implications for university administrators.