Showing papers on "Situational ethics published in 1997"

Anonymity in group support systems research: a new conceptualization, measure, and contingency framework

Abstract: Anonymity is a fundamental concept in group support systems (GSS) research. It is expected to reduce fear of social disapproval and of evaluation, and to lower inhibition and censorship. This is believed to create an environment that improves participation and communication, that promotes more objective and honest evaluation of ideas, and that enhances the productivity of groups and their decision-making process. However, empirical evidence about what are the effects of anonymity in GSS is inconclusive. This paper argues that there are two main reasons for the lack of consistent findings. First is the fact that anonymity has been defined too narrowly as the nonidentification of participants when, in fact, the literature in social psychology suggests that anonymity is multidimensional and subjective in nature. Second is the fact that the effects of anonymity interacts with other situational variables, making its relation to disinhibition complex. This paper argues that one critical situational variable is the importance of social evaluation of group members. A measure of the new conceptualization of anonymity and of the importance of social evaluation is proposed and the results of a preliminary test are presented. A contingency approach for studying the effects of anonymity is presented and the implications for future research and for practice are discussed.

Video-based situational testing.

Abstract: In two separate studies, video-based tests of situational judgment were developed and validated against measures of performance for hourly service workers. In the first study, 684 employees were used to develop a test of retail associate judgment and 787 newly hired employees were used to cross-validate the instrument. In the second study, 412 current employees were used to develop a test of nursing home caregiver judgment and 148 newly hired caregivers were used to cross-validate this video-based test. In both studies, responses to video-based situational vignettes were empirically keyed against supervisory ratings of performance. The resulting keys produced uncorrected cross-validities in the low .20s. The video-based test scores were also found to be related to measures of cognitive ability and, to a lesser extent, experience. These results suggest that cognitive ability and possibly experience account for some but not all of the predictiveness of video-based situational tests. Video-based situational tests demonstrated score differences between Whites and non-Whites of roughly one-half a standard deviation, indicating that the use of such tests could produce adverse impact against non-Whites. In the second study, customer preferences regarding desired behavior were also used to develop a rational scoring key. This customer driven key was significantly related to performance (r= .33) in the cross-validation sample, demonstrating that customers' preferences can provide the basis for developing valid predictors. Potential benefits of video-based situational tests in selection and directions for future research are discussed.

Ideology and Interpersonal Emotion Management: Redefining Identify in Two Support Groups

Abstract: This ethnographic study demonstrates the process by which our emotions are constructed not only by ourselves but also by others. Support groups for divorce or bereavement are used to illustrate the process of interpersonal emotion management. The study considers how support groups with differing ideologies produce dissimilar situational definitions for the loss of a spouse. Each of these definitions promotes different cognitive and affective outcomes for the participants. Despite these differences in definitions, the group leaders use a largely identical process of interpersonal emotion management, in which they redefine not only the event of spousal loss but also the sufferer's very identity. These redefinitions encourage understandings and emotions that coincide with the groups' own ideological perspectives. In addition, the results of the study are unexpectedly congruent with affect control theory, thus demonstrating that the propositions of this theory inform qualitative as well as quantitative research.

Self-interest and the common good: The impact of norms, selfishness and context in social policy opinions

Abstract: This article revolves around driving forces behind human actions: self-interest or the common good. Opinions on social policy give support to both approaches. Man is a Faust, torn by conflicting desires and wants. Which of these will be chosen depends on various situational factors that “frame” choices. By utilizing an opinion survey ( n = 1,117), the study analyzes the impacts of “frames” and how the wording of questions affects opinions on the welfare state. The study displays that: (a) Responses to general level questions show a strong commitment to altruistic values; in more specific questions, this altruism tends to fade away, (b) Frames referring to altruistic norms, self interest, and additional information given in the questionnaire have decisive impacts on answers.

Coping style and situational appraisals as predictors of coping strategies following stressful events in sport as a function of gender and skill level

Abstract: The purpose of this study was to examine links between coping style, situational appraisals and the subsequent use of coping strategies in response to acute stress among competitive Australian basketball players (N = 190, 93 men and 97 women, ranging in age from 18 to 44 years). Regression analyses indicated that participants' approach and avoidance coping responses varied across four sport-related stressful situations. In addition, both personal and situational factors accounted for significant variation in players' approach coping responses, with situational factors better predictors of approach coping than personal dispositions. For avoidance coping, situational appraisals (i.e. perceived stress and controllability) were again better predictors than personal dispositions. The results lend credence to the interactional (contextual) model of coping in which participants' use of coping strategies is at least a partial function of situational demands.

Social-Cognitive Mechanisms and Personality Coherence: Self-Knowledge, Situational Beliefs, and Cross-Situational Coherence in Perceived Self-Efficacy

Abstract: This article presents a social-cognitive analysis of cross-situational coherence in personality functioning Social-cognitive analyses are contrasted with those of trait approaches in personality psychology Rather than attributing coherence to high-level constructs that correspond directly to observed patterns of social behavior, social-cognitive theory pursues a “bottom-up” analytic strategy in which coherence derives from interactions among multiple underlying causal mechanisms, no one of which corresponds directly to a broad set of responses Research investigating social and self-knowledge underlying cross-situational coherence in a central social-cognitive mechanism, perceived self-efficacy, is presented Idio-graphic analyses revealed that individuals' schematic self-knowledge and situational beliefs give rise to patterns of high and low self-efficacy appraisal across diverse, idiosyncratic sets of situations that do not, in general, correspond to traditional high-level trait categories Bottom-up analy...

Effortfulness and flexibility of dispositional judgment processes.

Abstract: Two experiments investigated how situational information is used to identify behavior (assimilative identification) and to adjust dispositional inferences from the identified behavior (inferential adjustment). Participants heard an ambiguous or unambiguous evaluation of a job candidate by an evaluator who was under situational pressure to present either a positive or negative evaluation. In Experiment 1 participants were under low or high cognitive load. In Experiment 2 the situational information was either validated or invalidated. Results showed that cognitive load and invalidation eliminated the use of situational information for inferential adjustment. Behavior ambiguity determined the use of situational information for assimilative identification. The results suggest that the use of situational information for assimilative identification is resource independent but inflexible, whereas inferential adjustment is flexible but resource dependent.

Students’ perceptions of instructors’ socio‐communicative style and the influence on instructor credibility and situational motivation

Abstract: This study investigated whether instructors with different socio‐communicative styles differed in their students’ perceptions of their credibility and their students’ Situationen motivation. Students (N = 260) completed a questionnaire on the class/instructor they had immediately before their current class. The questionnaire consisted of measures of assertiveness, responsiveness, credibility, and situational motivation. Instructors with the socio‐communicative style of competent were perceived highest in all three dimensions of credibility (expertise, character, and caring) and in students’ situational motivation. Instructors classified as noncompetent were perceived as lowest in caring and expertise, while instructors classified as aggressive were perceived as lowest in character. Additionally, situational motivation was positively correlated to all three dimensions of credibility. The results support the importance of instructors being able to display assertive and responsive communication behaviors.

Reconsidering the role of opportunity in situational crime prevention

Abstract: 1 Introduction: Towards a Theory of Situational Crime Prevention Graeme Newman, University at Albany, New York Preamble The chapters in this volume ...

Individual and Situational Precursors of Successful Action Learning

Abstract: Action learning is based on exposure to managers and teachers engaged in the solution of real-time problems. This article reports on a study of three action learning programs to determine individual and situational factors that lead to useful behavioral outcomes. Students improved the most in questioning competencies as well as in some of the traditional mangerial skill domains. This study also found a strong association between action science proclivities and action learning outcomes.

Creating satisfaction in steady dating relationships : The role of personal goals and situational affordances

Abstract: This research extends previous work indicating that individuals are more effective at regulating their behavior when they are in goal-congruent contexts by examining whether individuals particularly need concrete goal-relevant situational affordances once they are in these broadly affirming contexts. Specifically, the authors explore this issue by using the broad context of steady dating relationships (i.e., intimacy-relevant contexts), and considering the role of both intimacy goals and intimacy-affording daily life situations in producing relationship satisfaction and maintenance over time. Results indicate that those with a strong focus on intimacy experience considerable relationship satisfaction regardless of whether they spend time in daily life situations that facilitate intimacy, whereas those without such a focus depend for satisfaction on the presence of intimacy-conducive situations (e.g., time alone with one's partner, or social support from one's partner). Discussion focuses on the theoretical implications of these findings for the Person X Situation literature.

Career progression in accountancy ‐ the role of personal and situational factors

Abstract: Examines the personal and situational factors that determine career progression for women in the accountancy profession within the context of the Big Six firms in Scotland from data generated by a postal questionnaire focusing specifically on both male and female senior managers within these firms. The results relating to person‐centred data indicate that the most common aspiration of the senior managers relates to the attainment of partnership status. Motherhood appears to modify career expectations and there is also evidence of a different gender attitude towards acceptability of long working hours with women indicating a general reluctance to match the number of hours worked by men. Analysis of situational factors revealed that men have moved into the new areas of work resulting in women being segregated into the less prestigious, more routine functions of the profession. The results also suggest that men are head‐hunted into senior management positions, while women remain loyal to their training firms in order to be promoted. Thus there appear to be both person and situational factors that determine the pace and structure of the careers and pace of senior managers in the accountancy profession when analysed from a gender perspective.

A Survey Study of Japanese Managers' Views of Business Ethics

Abstract: In the United States, a series of survey studies have been done to examine corporate managers' views of business ethics and various business practices (Baumhart, 1961; Brenner and Molander, 1977; Vitell and Festervand, 1987). This paper is a replication study conducted in Japan of those American studies. The results of the study suggest that Japanese managers tend to be more situational in their ethical orientation than Americans. The results also show that the company policy on ethics is the most important factor influencing Japanese managers' ethical decisions.

The Ethical Construction of Auditors: An Examination of the Effects of Gender and Career Level

Abstract: Auditors' ethical orientation and reasoning influence their professional and ethical decisions, thus impacting users of financial statements. This study examines gender and career level influences on ethical orientation and reasoning and documents systematic differences across the accounting firm. Seniors were most likely to adopt the ethical views of relativism and situation ethics. Male managers and partners were conventional ethical reasoners who adopted society's view of ethical problems, with partners scoring highest on Stage 6 principled reasoning. Female managers were largely Stage 5 principled reasoners. The results emphasize the importance of developing richer descriptions of auditors' ethics before recommending changes in the profession.

The meanings of love : an introduction to philosophy of love

Abstract: Preface Introduction Erotic Love: Plato: Symposium and Phaedrus Christian Love: Genesis 1 to I Corinthians 13 Romantic Love: Tristan and Iseult and Heloise and Abelard Moral Love: Immanuel Kant and Soren Kierkegaard Love as Power: Hobbes, Hegel and Jean-Paul Sartre Mutual Love: Aristotle and Luce Irigaray Conclusion Selected Bibliography Index

What''s the excuse? Image repair in Austrian German

Abstract: This paper examines the patterns found in repair-work behavior (e.g., apologies, excuses) in Austrian German as they relate to situational variables and cultural themes. Data for this study were collected from 100 Austrian university students using 12 closed role-play situations. The results reveal a complex interplay of situational variables that inform the repair-work behavior. This points to both research and teaching approaches that do not seek to determine a set of rules for repair work, but rather focus on the role that cultural attitudes and contextual factors play in making linguistic decisions.

Democratisation and Ethnic Conflict: The Kin Connection

Abstract: . This article posits that individuation is a determining factor in making democratisation efforts workable or, where it is absent, ethnic conflict likely. Somalia serves as a case study. Since the Somali state has not been able to secure individuals' social welfare or their futures, citizens use genealogies, which chart trustworthiness, to construct social welfare safety-nets. There is also a moral dimension to genealogy. This is quite different from what occurs in the democratic West, where the state has guaranteed individuals a significant measure of social welfare security over time, and where identity can be considered situational. I argue that under conditions of uncertainty, such as have existed in Somalia, identity is not at all situational, but is fixed and fixes individuals in ethnic groups. The push to democratise can then lead to armed ethnic conflict.

Factors Influencing Service Provider Motivation to Help Adolescent Victims of Partner Violence

Abstract: In this study, the authors (a) examined the influence of three situational factors—level of provocation by the victim, frequency of the violence, and visibility of injuries sustained by the victim—on service providers' motivation to help adolescent victims of partner violence and (b) proposed that perceptions of seriousness and attribution of blame mediate the relationship between situational factors and motivation to help. Three hundred and thirty-one service providers from a rural county completed questionnaires. Providers indicated their perception of seriousness, attribution of blame, and motivation to help a victim of partner violence based on scenarios that manipulated situational factors. Findings indicate that provocation influenced motivation to help female victims, whereas frequency of the violence influenced motivation to help males. Perception of seriousness and attribution of blame did not mediate the relationships between situational variables and motivation to help. Theoretical explanations...

Situational Differences in Intentional Smiling: A Cross-Cultural Exploration

Abstract: Situational and cultural differences, especially in relation to status, in the way persons intend to smile were studied. Forty-two U.S. and 48 Japanese college students rated smiling in situations involving (a) student-professor relationships and (b) student-student relationships. The results indicated that the status of the other person affected the students' ratings of the tendency to smile and that the types of smiles varied in different situations. Some cultural differences between U.S. and Japanese participants were found, though the similarities were far more prominent than the differences.

Homosexuality and the law: a gay revolution in South Africa?

Abstract: Recent constitutional developments in South Africa and political statements by President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe have brought to the fore the issue of social tolerance of homosexual conduct. It is a sensitive issue, and is approached in this article from a legal anthropological angle. A distinction is drawn between situational same-sex activity and a gay lifestyle. Although both constitute homosexual conduct, situational same-sex activity need not imply a gay lifestyle, or even a homosexual orientation.

Parenting Behaviors: A Content Analysis of Situational Comedies Based on TV Fictional Families

Abstract: This study focused on parenting behaviors portrayed by characters on 15 series of situational comedies based on fictional families on television. Three series identified by Zoglin in 1990 as antifa...

Hispanic and Non-Hispanic Mall Shoppers

Abstract: Hispanic patrons of a mall are compared with non-Hispanic patrons in terms of situational factors and shopping behavior. Situational influences arise from factors that are pertinent to a particular time and place and specific to a potential purchase. There were a number of significant differences between the two population segments in respect to the relationships of their situational dimensions and their purchase behaviors. Four of five situational variables exhibited relationships with four purchase behaviors. The findings suggest that within the Hispanic population situational factors are operating dissimilarly than for the non-Hispanic population. Merchants may need to react in a different way when targeting this segment.

Situational Effects in Computer-Based Problem Solving

Abstract: Possible bases of peer facilitation of children’s learning are explored, drawing upon concepts from developmental psychology. Against this background, studies of social aspects of children’s computer use in school are reviewed. A series of experimental studies is described in which pairs of children are found to perform better than individual children when faced with novel computer-based problem-solving tasks. Peer benefits are associated with patterns of verbal interaction in some degree, but facilitation by the presence of one or more partners even occurs in the absence of direct verbal interaction. Gender differences in performance are shown to be highly software dependent and also prove to be sensitive to the gender of the partner, even (in fact, especially) when there are no opportunities for interaction. The contextual sensitivity of performance is discussd in terms of situational constraints on cognitive performance. It is argued that the important dimensions of context extend beyond direct interpersonal interactions to encompass wider social processes.