JKHRM - Journal of Knowledge & Human Resource Management

Volume: 1, Issue: 1

Authors can view an Abstract, and order a Full Article, which is in the Electronic Copy of the Journal. Please send an email request to obtain the Journal chief-editor@intellectbase.org.

• PART I - THE FOUR FACTORS OF QUALITY: ACHIEVING THE CIRCLE OF ACCEPTANCE AND SATISFACTION
  Author(s): Avis J. Smith
  

PART I - THE FOUR FACTORS OF QUALITY: ACHIEVING THE CIRCLE OF ACCEPTANCE AND SATISFACTION

Author(s): Avis J. Smith

The purpose of this report is to present a theoretical approach to two concepts which the author defines as, The Four Factors of Quality, and the second being The Circle of Acceptance & Satisfaction. These concepts represent the active business process from the manufacturer to the professional customer and social customers; it is part of the overall process to achieve customer acceptance and satisfaction. It outlines the basic responsibilities of all areas of business and consumption in the process, and how diligent sustainability of those responsibilities can help to perpetuate quality. The concepts are those developed by the author, and apply to past and current research in the area of customer satisfaction.

Keywords: Business Customer, Professional Customer and Social Customer.



• THE CHANGING ACCEPTANCE OF BODY ART IN THE WORKPLACE
  Author(s): William. J. Carnes and Nina Radojevich-Kelley
  

THE CHANGING ACCEPTANCE OF BODY ART IN THE WORKPLACE

Author(s): William. J. Carnes and Nina Radojevich-Kelley

In many cases today, body art seems to be becoming more acceptable throughout society in general. However, the same connection does not seem to be occurring in the workplace. In this paper, the authors address three perspective questions of body art; 1) Although corporate culture changes over time, does it necessarily change as often as it should? 2) Have corporate dress codes been affected by body art in the workplace? 3) Is it discrimination if employers do not hire applicants with visible body art? For the purpose of this article, the authors define body art as any tattoos, brands or piercings not natural to the human body that individuals add as a decoration or statement. Although sometimes synonymous with the younger generation, body art is a practice among all generations. In fact, some older people are using body art as a means of applying permanent beauty procedures. One clear indication of a cultural shift in attitudes about body art is the increased prevalence of body art made for children. Currently, there are a number of temporary tattoos available for children in a number of popular characters, such as famous cartoon and children's movie characters. In addition, the authors explore some of the legal cases and religious accommodations surrounding body art. The authors conclude the article by suggesting some guidelines for managers and potential employees regarding favorable dress code policies pertaining to body art.

Keywords: Body Art, Tattoos, Discrimination, Generations, Workplace.



• THE CORRELATION BETWEEN CONFLICT AND JOB SATISFACTION WITHIN NURSE UNITS
  Author(s): Tina Y. Cardenas
  

THE CORRELATION BETWEEN CONFLICT AND JOB SATISFACTION WITHIN NURSE UNITS

Author(s): Tina Y. Cardenas

The purpose of this study was to determine if a relationship existed between conflict types (task and relationship) and job satisfaction, anticipated turnover, and performance among nurses. Interest in conflict has increased because leaders are spending a significant amount of time addressing conflict within the workplace and because conflict is thought to have both positive and negative affects on the organization. Therefore, healthcare leaders should be interested in how much conflict is occurring and how it may impact other important job factors. The challenge for leaders of all industries appears to be managing conflicts so that the negative affects are minimized and that positive affects are maximized. Four hundred and thirty one staff nurses employed at a Veterans medical facility in the southeast were surveyed for perceptions of overall conflict occurring, which type of conflict was occurring most (task or relationship), along with their perceptions of their job satisfaction, anticipated turnover intentions and performance. Of the 194 surveys that were collected, 181 surveys were used in the actual study (a response rate of 45%). The population consisted mostly of older nurses who were highly trained (registered nurses), most had been with the medical facility over eight years, and most worked in geriatric and acute care settings. The population definitely mirrored national trends of nurses soon to be leaving their fields, and many retiring all at once. This article focuses only on the levels of conflict (task and relationship) and job satisfaction and the relationship between these job factors. The results regarding these job factors showed slightly moderate levels of total conflict with higher levels of relationship conflict, and a moderate level of job satisfaction. A significant negative relationship was also found between both types of conflict and job satisfaction. Additional research is needed to better understand the dynamics of conflict in healthcare organizations, and to assess the affects that conflict may have on health care institutions and eventually on patient care. Practical implications are outlined for nurse managers as it relates to conflict, in particular monitoring it and managing it constructively, and future research ideas are outlined as well.

Keywords: Organizational Conflict, Conflict Types, Job Satisfaction, Interpersonal Conflict, Intragroup Conflict.



• FOUNDATIONS OF WORK MOTIVATION: AN HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE ON WORK MOTIVATION THEORIES
  Author(s): Kimberly Johnson and Christine W. Lewis
  

FOUNDATIONS OF WORK MOTIVATION: AN HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE ON WORK MOTIVATION THEORIES

Author(s): Kimberly Johnson and Christine W. Lewis

Motivating employees is one of the primary responsibilities of a manager (Moorhead & Griffin, 1998). Companies want motivated employees because they want increased productivity, profits, and satisfied workers. Therefore, interest in work motivation began as early as the 1930's (Klein, 1989). Numerous theories influence researchers' perception of work motivation; consequently, the concept of work motivation does not have one underlying theory. Work motivation is an intangible concept and cannot be measured directly (Ambrose & Kulik, 1999). Although thorough, this paper is not an exhaustive review of the literature. The research focus was limited to articles published in English journals and articles focusing on adults. Moreover, articles were excluded if work motivation was not the primary focus. This paper focuses on the seven traditional work motivation theories: Motives and Needs Theory; Expectancy Theory; Equity Theory; Goal-Setting Theory; Cognitive Evaluation Theory; Job Design Theory; and Reinforcement Theory, and will detail some of the latest research on each of these theories.

Keywords: Work Motivation, Content Theories, Process Theories.



• TECHNIQUES FOR REDUCING APPLICANT RESPONSE DISTORTION: THEIR EFFECTS ON MEASUREMENT EQUIVALENCE AND CRITERION-RELATED VALIDITY
  Author(s): Brian Whitaker
  

TECHNIQUES FOR REDUCING APPLICANT RESPONSE DISTORTION: THEIR EFFECTS ON MEASUREMENT EQUIVALENCE AND CRITERION-RELATED VALIDITY

Author(s): Brian Whitaker

A challenge to the use of non-cognitive tests in selection is the possibility that applicants might distort their responses. Several techniques have been suggested to reduce response distortion, including the provision of warnings that faking is detectable, and the requirement that respondents elaborate on their answers to increase the difficulty of lying. In this study, the provision of warnings and requests for elaborations on responses were assessed for their potential impact on the factor structure, means, and criterion-related validity of a performance predictor. Results indicate that warnings improve criterion-related validity relative to a control condition, but that elaborations distort factor structure. More specifically, participants appeared to interpret personality assessment items equivalently between the warning and control conditions, their scores were lower for those in the warning condition, and criterion-related validity was significantly improved by the use of warnings. These results are promising for practitioners who use warnings in order to reduce faking on non-cognitive tests. In contrast, this study's results suggest that elaboration manipulations should be used with caution. Elaboration requirements resulted in disrupted factor form/factor structure, which prevented the interpretation of mean differences between the experimental and control conditions.

Keywords: Applicant Faking, Response Distortion, Selection, Warnings, Elaborations, Validity.



• PART II - THE FOUR FACTORS OF QUALITY: ACHIEVING THE CIRCLE OF ACCEPTANCE AND SATISFACTION
  Author(s): Avis J. Smith
  

PART II - THE FOUR FACTORS OF QUALITY: ACHIEVING THE CIRCLE OF ACCEPTANCE AND SATISFACTION

Author(s): Avis J. Smith

Part II of The Four Factors of Quality: Achieving The Circle of Acceptance and Quality, is a continued discussion explaining views of the author, and articles obtained from other sources. The information pertains to the business areas of manufacturing, distribution, sales, and professional/social customer. Much focus is given to the areas of concern with respect to the internal and external factors that can create greater efficiency or adversity in the efforts to achieve acceptance and satisfaction, as well as profit and value; depending on one's approach. It explains the need for divisional analysis of the Four Factors of Quality and the internal and external factors. It is suggested by the author, that to investigate these areas separately would be best as an analytical tool because of the attention to detail it can provide. It is believed that when the areas suggested for analytical investigations are properly performed, that the results will equal the achievement of the circle of acceptance and satisfaction. The approach also serves as a logical approach to study customer satisfaction surveys.

Keywords: Divisional Analysis, Internal Factors, External Factors, Business Variation, Divisional Process.



• UNCERTAINTY AND THE IMPOSTOR PHENOMENON: TOWARD A REACTOR ORGANIZATION FORM
  Author(s): William C. McDowell, W. Lee Grubb III and Andrew O. Herdman
  

UNCERTAINTY AND THE IMPOSTOR PHENOMENON: TOWARD A REACTOR ORGANIZATION FORM

Author(s): William C. McDowell, W. Lee Grubb III and Andrew O. Herdman

The imposter phenomenon has been used to describe feeling of inadequacy or phoniness in the workplace. This study develops a theoretical framework for studying the relationship between top management uncertainty, the emergence of the impostor phenomenon and the consequent effects on organizational configuration. Specifically, we propose that feelings of uncertainty will be positively associated with the development of the imposter phenomenon among managers. Using decision-making types, threat, and threat rigidity, this growth in the imposter phenomenon among senior leadership, will result in a "reactor" type of organizational form. Opportunities for future research and limitations of the current study are both presented.

Keywords: Impostor Phenomenon, Strategy, Uncertainty.