Assessment and analysis of a psychology related problem or challenge in Eastman Kodak

Introduction Organizations are usually complex units. They are associated with many issues that have to be carried out in a given manner in order to achieve individual and overall organizational success. Some of the major aspects in organizations include the fixed and current assets and the human resources. Human resource plays a great role in organizations.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Assessment and analysis of a psychology related problem or challenge in Eastman Kodak specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More They facilitate other aspects in an organization through manipulation to achieve the desired results. Employees performance is affected by various things some of them being physical while others are psychological. For this reason, they ought to be treated in an appropriate manner to enhance performance. This piece of work looks at absenteeism as a psychology related problem in an organization. The organization of study will be Eastman Kodak. Background Information Eastman Kodak is a well known multinational corporation / company in the film and imaging industry. It is an info imaging organization that is based in the United States of America. It has, however, spread its operations far and wide to eight major countries, that is, Germany, Canada, Mexico, France, U.S., Australia, Brazil and the United Kingdom. Its products and services are also marketed by subsidiary companies to people in more than 150 countries. Due to its large size, Eastman Kodak has a large workforce and requires a lot of coordination in order to achieve success. Over the recent past, the company has experienced some problems in the human resource department, an aspect that has raised concern due poor performance by the employees which in turn affects the productivity of the company. The major problem is, however, absenteeism among the workforce which presents the challenge of meeting the employees’ desires for i nstance in regard to work-life balance (Kodak, 2011).Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Absenteeism in Eastman Kodak Absenteeism entails the habitual behavior of failing to attend to a duty or obligation. It is a problem that has been there for a long period for as long as organizations have existed. In olden days, absenteeism was taken as a sign of poor personal performance or an extremely bad mistake performed by an employee towards an employer. It was perceived to be a pure management issue. In the recent past, however, absenteeism has been discovered to be a sign that is related to either, medical, social or even psychological problem which is linked to adjustment to work. Absenteeism is generally perceived to be a deviant workplace behavior and thus negative attributions. For this reason, it is subject to social control and it usually results to conflict in the work place (Eggert, 2002). There are various causes or factors that lead to absenteeism among employees. The major factors include lack of job satisfaction and poor treatment where the employees feel unappreciated. Poor working conditions could also result in work place stress which in turn lead to absenteeism due to lack of morale to carry on. Another factor is employees’ poor image on an organization or the way in which employees perceive their organization. Poor organization’s perception among the employees can hinder their performance in terms of work attendance. Other factors include poor management or leadership and lack of self motivation, serious illness and accidents, boredom on the job, personal problems, work stress and poor physical fitness among others (Eggert, 2002). According to the withdrawal model of psychology, absenteeism is a mechanism that represents an employee withdrawal from working conditions that are not satisfying. There is a positive relationship betw een absenteeism and job satisfaction.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Assessment and analysis of a psychology related problem or challenge in Eastman Kodak specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Solution to the Psychology Related Problem A high degree of absenteeism in an organization is usually linked to poor morale. Despite the fact that absenteeism is an extremely disturbing issue in organizations and Eastman Kodak in particular, there exist some strategies that should be applied in an effort to get a solution or rather avoid absenteeism. Different parties should play different roles in fighting the problem of absenteeism. Some of the general measures that should be adopted by the management include development and implementation of appropriate absence policies. The policies should have a clear distinction between absences that have genuine reasons and those that are as a result of indiscipline. This will avoid ins tances where employees feel obliged to go to work even when they can not perform, for instance, when sick just to avoid some severe consequences. This could cause greater absenteeism and reduced productivity due to working in poor health. The policies should also offer some guidelines on reporting in advance incase one really can not make it to work. Motivation has a great impact in developing employees’ moods and emotions which may determine the level of their absenteeism. This is because employee feel appreciated and well represented and hence the urge to even work harder to improve their individual performance and thus that of the organization as a whole. According to the expectancy theory of motivation, employees usually tend to work better if they believe that hard work will lead to better performance and that better performance will lead to rewards. Rewards, therefore, reduce the level of absenteeism among the employees (DuBrin, 2008). The element of equity also plays a fundamental role in improving employee’s performance. Employees will be discouraged if they feel that they are being discriminated against.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More This may increase the level of absenteeism in the workplace. On the other hand, employees will be satisfied when they believe that their compensation is equal to that given to others who make similar contribution in the organization. An appropriate organizational culture bonds employees together and facilitates realization of organizational goals. This close bond also motivates employees to work towards the realization of an organization’s objectives and goals. This ensures that the level of absenteeism is minimized. Leaders should come up with an organization culture that encourages employees’ attendance in the workplace. Since a culture is difficult to change once engraved in employees’ minds, it is important that the leaders be careful while creating organizational cultures. Strong cultures are associated with innovation, growth and high level of employees’ attendance (Robbins and Judge, 2010). Another effort of dealing with absenteeism is adoption of organizational change to influence behavior. It is a good practice to facilitate necessary changes in an organization in order to promote employee commitment in the work place. In the modern business world, the level of competitiveness of an organization is determined by its ability to handle necessary changes within an organization. The process of change is not always easy. It involves adjustments in an organization which may affect day to day activities. Change is associated with numerous challenges, for example, employee resistance to change. Therefore, the process needs a lot of attention in order to come up with effective changes which will invoke employees’ support rather than resistance. The employees should be fully involved in the changes to develop a sense responsibility in implementing the changes. Good interpersonal skills in an organization are also crucial. Interpersonal skills play a significant role in reducing the level of employee absenteeism. This is both b etween the leaders and employees as well as among employees themselves. Good interpersonal skills promote mutual understanding within an organization. This promotes good relationships among the employees hence enhancing their understanding and job satisfaction. Leaders must take time in communicating with employees to sensitize them on the impact of absenteeism on the performance of the organization. Such interaction will help in developing a sense of responsibility among the employees thus avoid absenteeism. Employee compensation also helps in reducing absenteeism. Compensation is the reward given to employees for the amount of work they have done in a specific time period. Employees could be compensated through various ways. For instance, there is a need to have over time regulation and payment. This will help in compensating employees for working for many hours than expected. This will help in reducing the level of absenteeism in the work place. For example, employees will be enc ouraged to attend to work even if it means working for long hours because they expect compensation at the end of the day. Contrary, employees may fail to report to work in case they expect working overtime without compensation (Aamodt, 2009). Human resource managers can also influence the conduct of the employees in the work place. The managers can control employees in such a way that there is minimal level of absenteeism. This could be through development and compensation of the employees. This helps in motivating the employees. Human resource managers also have an important role in hiring employees. The human resource managers are supposed to carry out a critical examination of the previous performance of the candidates. This will help in detection of the vices like work place absenteeism among the recruits thus assisting in elimination of candidates who have a tendency of absenteeism in the workplace. By so doing, the company will be able to hire only those employees with a good record of job attendance. Employee empowerment is another crucial aspect in reducing the level of absenteeism. Employee empowerment allows making of independent decisions by the employees concerning an organization. This encourages employees to work towards the realization of organizational goals. It creates a sense of identity since employees will have authority to make some decisions in the organization. The employees, therefore, feel valued and become motivated to improve on their productivity. This boosts job satisfaction and thus an improved level of attendance (Aamodt, 2009). Some of the measures that have been taken by Eastman Kodak to avoid the issue of absenteeism among the employees are directed towards establishing a work- life balance so as to foster job satisfaction. They include provision of part time work rather than having employees working on a full time basis, allowing for job sharing to avoid overworking and monotony, compressed work weeks, telecommuting or flex - place arrangements where people could work at the comfort of their home as well as flextime. The policy parameters that exist to allow for success of the above named measures state that in the event of inability to report to work, an employee have to complete an application, get permission from the supervisor and ensure that the arrangement will not affect the organization negatively. All employees regardless of position, terms of employment or geographical location are entitled to ask for any flexible work arrangement. Adequate information regarding the flexible work arrangements should always be made available to all employees. Supervisors and managers were also impacted with relevant knowledge on flexible work arrangement. The flexible work arrangements at Eastman Kodak have proved to be beneficial to both the supervisors and other employees. Effective relationships and communication have been attributed to this success (Workplace Flexibility, 2010). The management should take a positive approach towards solving the problem of absenteeism. The employees should be appreciated, motivated and cared for. Apart from the specific measures that have been undertaken by Eastman Kodak, the above named strategies ought to be incorporated to allow for success in coming up with an absolute solution of absenteeism in the organization. Conclusion Human resources play a significant role in determining the success of an organization. The productivity of other resources used in an organization depends on the human resources. For instance, other resources used in production in an organization like machines significantly depend on the human resource control. Absenteeism affects the employees’ performance negatively. It could be caused by various factors for instance work stress and job dissatisfaction. An organization should invest in all possible strategies aimed at solving the problem of absenteeism to avoid the effects associated with it. Proper working conditions an d motivation should be offered to foster job satisfaction and thus better performance. Reference List Aamodt, G.M. (2009). Industrial/Organizational Psychology: An Applied Approach. 6th Ed. New York: Cengage Learning. DuBrin J. (2008). Essentials of Management. Mason, OH: Cengage Learning. Eggert, M. (2002). The Controlling Absenteeism Pocketbook. UK: Pocketbooks Kodak. (2011). Eastman Kodak Company Equal Opportunity Employment Policy (EOE). Retrieved from https://www.kodak.com/US/en/corp/default.htm Robbins, S. and Judge, T. (2010). Organizational Behavior. New York: Prentice Hall. Workplace Flexibility (2010). Flexible Work Arrangements: Selected Case Studies. Retrieved from http://workplaceflexibility2010.org/images/uploads/FWA_CaseStudies.pdf This essay on Assessment and analysis of a psychology related problem or challenge in Eastman Kodak was written and submitted by user Franco Byers to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Network Consultation Proposal Essay Essays

Network Consultation Proposal Essay Essays Network Consultation Proposal Essay Essay Network Consultation Proposal Essay Essay Essay Topic: Equus DesignIT is a in writing humanistic disciplines company that is spread outing concern and has late purchased a new edifice 56’*36’ infinite for the intent of lodging two full clip interior decorators and a receptionist. The new edifice has four cells. one office. one waiter room. one response desk. and a conference room. DesignIT has already relocated one Web Server ( Microsoft IIS Server ) . one File Server ( Microsoft Server 2008 ) . and one more Waiter 2008 ( Small Business Server ) . As a web design adviser. I have been charged with the undertaking of planing and configuring the web for DesignIT. The little company has informed me that the web should include six computing machines. three pressmans. a Firewall. a radio web for portable devices. and a high velocity cyberspace connexion. DesignIT has besides requested me that all the interrelated devices and wiring. along with the velocity should be able to offer the best public presentation. I will plan a Local Area N etwork ( LAN ) for DesignIT. a Local Area Network ( LAN ) is a web of computing machines. and other web devices such as pressmans which exchange informations. and are located under one roof. LAN webs are largely used in little organisations or little concerns. The computing machines in a LAN communicate through protocols and portion informations such as files and electronic mails. Every computing machine in a web is assigned a alone Internet Protocol ( IP ) . When a computing machine communicates by directing a petition to the LAN web. it is routed to a peculiar waiter that has the requested information. The waiter so communicates back to the IP reference of bespeaking computing machine with the information that was requested ( Kenyon. 2002 ) . There are three waiters for DesignIT. the Web Server will be used to link the company to the cyberspace. and the File Server will be utilized for sharing while the Small Business Server will be utilized as a Mail Server. Since DesignIT needs a web that incorporates six computing machines. three pressmans. and a radio web. the web design should therefore take several factors into consideration. These factors will impact on the web costs. velocity. substructure. and functionality. When planing this Local Area Network ( LAN ) for DesignIT. there is besides need to see the web demands. The web should incorporate sound. picture. synchronal. every bit good as asynchronous informations. When planing the LAN web. the organisational ends of DesignIT should be factored in the LAN design. I will besides pay attending to web throughput. line charges. security. and the integrating of newer engineerings in the hereafter. When planing a LAN web. some issues must be considered. one of these issues is the organization’s short. medium. and long term ends. Several factors to be considered include the web equipment. user applications. end-user equipment ( workstations ) . and connectivity to the cyberspace. The LAN web for DesignIT will include other web devices which include gateways. routers. firewall. and overseas telegrams. Without these devices communicating can non be possible from a computing machine to another in the LAN web. A router and switch are the most of import devices of a web. Networks which are good configured and have a good substructure are helpful in be ttering manageableness. public presentation. dependability and cut downing overall operating cost ( Kenyon. 2002 ) . To put up this LAN web for the DesignIT. the following are the hardware and package devices that I would use so as to plan the LAN web for DesignIT. T1 Lines- This is a criterion for informations communicating which was foremost developed in the sixtiess. T1 lines offer a information rate of 1. 544Mbps. I will use T1 nexus from Verizon to link DesignIT to the cyberspace. T1 lines are offer private voice and dependable informations networking. A T1 line typically costs $ 1000 per month. Cisco Linksys Firewall- A firewall is a package or hardware web device that controls incoming and surpassing informations communicating through analysing informations packages and giving permissions whether to let or non based on a set of regulations. A firewall may besides include a default gateway or a placeholder waiter which helps to do web petition on the behalf of a user. I will use Cisco-Linksys BEFSX41 EtherFast Cable/DSL Firewall Router ( 4-Port 10/100 Switch / VPN Endpoint ) for this web. The device costs $ 150. LAN Switch- A LAN Switch performs the same work as a hub except that. a switch does non broadcast packages to every computing machine in the web like hubs. All the computing machines and computing machine devices will be connected to the switch by Ethernet overseas telegrams. The LAN Switch costs $ 150. Linksys Wireless Router- A router is a web device that is used to link two or more computing machine devices in a web. The Linksys Wireless router will be utilized to link wireless devices the LAN web. The Linksys WRT54G Wireless Router that I will utilize in this instance costs $ 150. Ethernet Cables- Ethernet Cables will be utilized to link all the web devices in the DesignIT LAN web. They will link routers. switches. computing machines. and pressmans in the LAN web. I will use CAT5 Ethernet Cables for this web. The Ethernet overseas telegrams will be about $ 100 for DesignIT LAN web. ESET NOD32 Antivirus- an Antivirus is package that is used to forestall. observe. and take malicious computing machine plans. ESET NOD32 Antivirus is a good pick since it besides acts against other types of malware such as worm. Trojan Equus caballuss. back doors. and spyware. The ESET NOD32 Antivirus 6 that I will use for this web costs $ 40 for subscription of one twelvemonth. The edifice will portion one cyberspace connexion ( T-1 nexus from Verizon ) . This connexion will come to Web Server in the waiter room. This will be the entree point of the LAN web of DesignIT. The T-1 nexus from Verizon will link the company to the cyberspace and can besides be utilized to link the LAN web to another LAN or WAN web in instance the company decides to spread out concern in future. The T-1 nexus utilizes frame relay which will supply the edifice with high velocity informations connexion between and among all users. This connexion will besides enable all computing machines to have dedicated connexion at a velocity that every computing machine requires. This connexion will besides be low-cost for DesignIT since it is merely charged for the resources. It costs an norm of $ 1000 per month. Frame relay is an industry criterion engineering for accessing fast package switched. â€Å"cloud computing† informations webs ( Bates. 2000 ) . Through T1 link DesignIT will utilize frame relay as an interface between informations terminal equipment such as routers. switches. and host machines such as waiters. This engineering will supply connectivity via logical channels or lasting practical circuit connexions which will be deployed over dedicated entree installations and shared on a high public presentation exchanging platform. This shared informations platform and anchor makes transport more efficient. such that allusers will have better web throughput which is besides cost effectual. T-1 nexus engineering is an added advantage for DesignIT LAN web since it is flexible to utilize and an first-class platform for many application. Since multiple practical connexions are established over one physical entree line. Frame Relay can cut down the figure of client premises router p orts necessary for LAN applications. The figure of private lines required to achieve mesh connectivity and dependability can besides be reduced. Frame Relay handles terminal to-host. LAN-to-LAN connexions. or applications like imaging. electronic mail and in writing file transportations with equal simpleness. With all of these capablenesss. Frame Relay is an first-class pick for DesignIT. I will configure a Class C web for DesignIT with an IP of 192. 168. 0. 0/16. There will merely be one subnet for this web. I have selected a Class C web because it exhibits the ability to battle spamming of sites located on the same waiter. Search engines have removed associating power from one site to the other in instance they are on the same category C IP. I will take web security steps so as to implement the best security for DesignIT. The security will be designed in respect to the user group in inquiry. this means that the two interior decorators will portion different user groups with the receptionist if need be. I will implement entree control measures such as entree logs so as to pull off what each user should hold entree to in resp ect to the organisational policies and processs. I will besides put in ESET NOD32 Antivirus in the Small Business Server. The Cisco Linksys Firewall will besides be a cardinal device for heightening security ; it will command entrance and surpassing informations communicating through analysing informations packages and giving permissions based on security regulations. The Bus Topology is the best suited for this web ; the coach topology is the simplest web topology. Besides known as additive coach. in this topology all computing machines will be connected to a immediate overseas telegram or a overseas telegram joined together to do it immediate. Ethernet is the common illustration of a coach topology. Each computing machine determines when the web is non busy and transmits informations as needed. Computers devices in a coach apology listen merely for transmittal from other computing machines ; they do non reiterate or send on the transmittal on the other computing machines. It is besides deserving observing that the signal in a coach topology travels to both terminals of the overseas telegram. To maintain the signal from resiling back and Forth along the overseas telegram. both terminals of the overseas telegram in a coach topology will be terminated.

Three Personality Traits of Sagittarius Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Three Personality Traits of Sagittarius - Essay Example These characteristics are often highlighted as the personality traits of an individual. The date that I was born on was the 22nd of November. This date of birth falls into the zodiac sign Sagittarius (November 22 -December 21). The zodiac sign Sagittarius has symbolized an archer. After having gone through the properties associated with my astrological sign, I found that some traits matched those that I believe that I have them. For instance: being optimistic, possessing good communication skills and ambitious nature were just a few of them. The similarities between my personality traits and the properties of my zodiac sign are helpful, in my point of view, because they help me to know myself better and to set my future goals and my job targets accordingly. I find myself to be highly optimistic about matters relevant to every field of life. Whether it is a matter of serious concern or is an everyday matter, my friends tell me that I happen to remain optimistic throughout thick and thin. It was just a few days back that two of my neighbors were fighting over a trivial misunderstanding. When I tried to mediate the situation and get both of them at even terms each one of them started accusing me instead. I was able to keep my mind sane and even though they had turned their guns towards me I tried my best not to think negatively of them. It eventually was this optimistic approach towards the matter only that helped me get out of the unwanted argument in an unhurt manner. The fact that this trait of my personality was similar to the traits portrayed under my zodiac sign Sagittarius became known to me only after I read about it prior to this assignment. It was interesting to get to know that the planet that governs the sign Sagittarius is Ju piter. This planet is thought to have enlightening and optimistic properties combined with honesty.

Three Personality Traits of Sagittarius Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Three Personality Traits of Sagittarius - Essay Example These characteristics are often highlighted as the personality traits of an individual. The date that I was born on was the 22nd of November. This date of birth falls into the zodiac sign Sagittarius (November 22 -December 21). The zodiac sign Sagittarius has symbolized an archer. After having gone through the properties associated with my astrological sign, I found that some traits matched those that I believe that I have them. For instance: being optimistic, possessing good communication skills and ambitious nature were just a few of them. The similarities between my personality traits and the properties of my zodiac sign are helpful, in my point of view, because they help me to know myself better and to set my future goals and my job targets accordingly. I find myself to be highly optimistic about matters relevant to every field of life. Whether it is a matter of serious concern or is an everyday matter, my friends tell me that I happen to remain optimistic throughout thick and thin. It was just a few days back that two of my neighbors were fighting over a trivial misunderstanding. When I tried to mediate the situation and get both of them at even terms each one of them started accusing me instead. I was able to keep my mind sane and even though they had turned their guns towards me I tried my best not to think negatively of them. It eventually was this optimistic approach towards the matter only that helped me get out of the unwanted argument in an unhurt manner. The fact that this trait of my personality was similar to the traits portrayed under my zodiac sign Sagittarius became known to me only after I read about it prior to this assignment. It was interesting to get to know that the planet that governs the sign Sagittarius is Ju piter. This planet is thought to have enlightening and optimistic properties combined with honesty.

Three Personality Traits of Sagittarius Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Three Personality Traits of Sagittarius - Essay Example These characteristics are often highlighted as the personality traits of an individual. The date that I was born on was the 22nd of November. This date of birth falls into the zodiac sign Sagittarius (November 22 -December 21). The zodiac sign Sagittarius has symbolized an archer. After having gone through the properties associated with my astrological sign, I found that some traits matched those that I believe that I have them. For instance: being optimistic, possessing good communication skills and ambitious nature were just a few of them. The similarities between my personality traits and the properties of my zodiac sign are helpful, in my point of view, because they help me to know myself better and to set my future goals and my job targets accordingly. I find myself to be highly optimistic about matters relevant to every field of life. Whether it is a matter of serious concern or is an everyday matter, my friends tell me that I happen to remain optimistic throughout thick and thin. It was just a few days back that two of my neighbors were fighting over a trivial misunderstanding. When I tried to mediate the situation and get both of them at even terms each one of them started accusing me instead. I was able to keep my mind sane and even though they had turned their guns towards me I tried my best not to think negatively of them. It eventually was this optimistic approach towards the matter only that helped me get out of the unwanted argument in an unhurt manner. The fact that this trait of my personality was similar to the traits portrayed under my zodiac sign Sagittarius became known to me only after I read about it prior to this assignment. It was interesting to get to know that the planet that governs the sign Sagittarius is Ju piter. This planet is thought to have enlightening and optimistic properties combined with honesty.

Nature Conservancy Organization Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Nature Conservancy Organization - Research Paper Example Most news that alarmed us recently or the past few years were the unforgettable natural calamities or what they call incidents of â€Å"when nature strikes back†. These are commonly a surge of typhoons, earthquakes, tsunamis that destroy many lives and properties that leave people with almost nothing. Though each incident has a unique gravity and casualty stories, what is common to all would be the fact that all these are undeniably caused or triggered by irresponsible acts of man. These have kept man wondering how to avoid them from happening again while little is done to reach this goal. However, one of those that start to step up and make a change would be the Nature Conservancy Organization. The Nature Conservancy is one of the leading conservation organizations that works all over the world to initiate programs that would seek to protect our mother earth that would, in return, protect all of us in the long run. What sets them apart is the fact that they do not only provid e help, manpower, and funds during an immediate need such as after an intense tsunami swept almost all of Japan, instead, they are an organization that continuously champions ecological projects to give solution to the most pressing conservation threats at the largest scale (The Nature Conservancy - Organizations - TakingITGlobal. TakingITGlobal - Organizations. N.p., n.d). Having knowledge on the organization’s mission and vision, I would greatly encourage people to donate their time or money to the Nature Conservancy organization. There are a lot of reasons why I would. First of all, with the growing knowledge of people towards the worsening condition of our earth today, as the damage done to it already exceed the efforts people slowly initiate, one of the strongest reasons why most people do not get involved is that they do not have the venue where they could extend help and not because they do not have much time or have no money to spare. Thus, by studying the Nature Cons ervancy Organization which has been doing what they do since 1951 and has already proven consistency in conserving lands and waters, one would be sure that one’s time and money would not go to waste if invested with them. This is because this organization has already established certain processes that are proven to work throughout all the years, have had established significant connections with other organizations and parties that would be helpful in reaching their goals, and at the same time already have great knowledge on how to improve the condition of our nature. Aside from that, seeing their organization as a whole, I would say that they are more flexible and welcomes different ways that people can extend help. This is because of the fact that it has always opened its doors to youth who want to get involved temporarily or permanently in three ways, which are by being a part of the team, being a supporter, or perhaps helping through resources. Thus, if you are someone who wants to make â€Å"saving the earth† your career, you can easily be part of the team by being a member who would physically address conservation challenges all over the world. If you are someone who wants to take a step in saving the earth and yet you have a job that you love, you can be of help by being a supporter through helping promote nature conservation, gather probable funders of their

Italian Culture and Work Ethics Essay Example for Free

Italian Culture and Work Ethics Essay History teaches us that it is through the family that new generations are equipped with ethics and values regarding work. The advent of bourgeois society, with its characteristic openness towards other social classes, appears to have relegated the promotion of working values by families to the background. This study sets out to test the hypothesis according to which the family continues to maintain an important role in the transmission of working values. Based on data from the Work Importance Study (Super and Sverko, 1995: Life Roles, Values, a n d Careers, San Francisco, Jossey-Bass), two subgroups were compared (working adults, and high school and university students), considered as representing two different generations (youths vs adults). Some results from cluster anatysis show how substantial similarity exists between adults and youths in terms of ideal values, expressing what would be important in an ideal world. The difference between the subgroups lies in expectations (termed expected values) relating to what would be important in my actual work environment. Here, relatively more important values for young people are relatively less important for working adults. Another result presented concerns the relationship existing betiveen value typobgies (classed into six categories) and personal character associated with birth order. What emerges is that the only children are prevalently the tough type, while the first bom, considered by some to be custodians of family traditions, tum out to be more independent than the second or third bom, identified above all by their calm and sociable characters. Introduction: the work ethic and the family ethic This study presents the results of a survey conducted nationaUy in 1995 on a sample of 1523 subjects (represendng the three main geo-cultural areas of Italy: North, Centre and South—see BeUotto, 1997). The objecdve of the survey was to determine values associated with work. For this a quesdonnaire, a values scale (VS) was used, devised by an intemadonal team pardcipadng in a world-wide survey called the Work Importance Study—WIS (Super and Sverko 1995). With the data coUected, a profile of the value judgements of Italian families was formulated. The importance of working values within the family context has been little explored from a psychological point of view. Yet the family is characterized by the ethical nature of the reladonships it contains, hence its values (Boszormeny-Nagy and Spark, 1973; Cigoli, 1992). The family is rightly placed in that class of insdtudons that Hegel indicated as the ethical horizon of human society. There are very few Italian studies on the processes of value transmission within families, not to mendon the handing down of working values. While one of the principal funcdons recognized as typical of families is the socializadon of the individual, studies regarding the socializadon by families with regard to work are rarely encountered. 1351-1610/99/040583-13 Â © 1999 Interdisciplinary Centre for Comparative Research in the Social Sciences 584 Massimo Bellotto and Alberto ^atti The lack of research in this field can be partly explained by the relatively recent history of the concept of the family as a scientific subject for study in social psychology. At least until the end of the 1940s, families were considered as a group typology (Lewin, 1951). Successively, interest focused on the pathology of family relationships (Bateson et al. , 1956; Epstein et al. , 1982; Bamhill, 1979; Watzlawick et al. , 1967). It was only in die 1970s that the so-called normal family was considered worthy of psychological investigation as a scientific subject (Scabini, 1985). In recent years, however, the theme of values and the ethical importance of families has emerged strongly in a variety of fields, from individual and family psychotherapy to organizational psychology. In this article we would like to propose that a terminological distinction be made between ethics and morality. Ethics are, as the etymology of the word suggests, the study of the customs (ethos), the social habits, the relational practices of a people or social grouping. Morality relates more to the theme of how much certain behaviour corresponds to a reference model. In this sense, it is important to distinguish between ethics and morality when studying the customs and habits, in a word, the ethics of families (and not their morality). This is to avoid the pitfalls associated with referring to a particular set of values held by the family being analysed. What exacdy are the working values held by families? What relationship exists between these values and family needs? What are the motivations that stir the family organization? And which family values can be linked, even indirecdy, with work? Let us seek some answers to these important questions. Families in history have also been units of production. The peasant family, craft guilds, the factory worker families of the first and second industrial revolutions (Manoukian, 1976) are the most emblematic examples. In medieval society the chances of changing ones profession from the one inherited from the family were rather hmited. Children continued the working traditions of the family without having much choice in the matter. The transmission of working values within family groups, historically speaking, seemed to go without saying. However, it would be worthwhile to pose the question of how families educate their members today with regard to work. Families in Westem society have changed profoundly. The social mobility intrinsic to the very idea of bourgeois society (Weber, 1904) has led to the privatization of family relationships (Aries, 1960) and to the specialization of family practices to the sentimental sphere. The educational role of families is becoming more and more marginal, being delegated to collective institutions such as schools. Moreover, from the viewpoint of economic history, families have become increasingly characterized as units of consumption, losing in part their role as units of production. From a macrosocial perspective, a fundamental problem emerges in Italy: the percentage of youth unemployment is one of the highest in Europe, especially in the South. Working Values and the Italian Family 585 majority of young people between the ages of 15 and 24 live at home: 82. 4% of males and 72. 5% of females. In the next age bracket, 25-34, many more young men sdU live at home with their parents (33. 6%) compared with young women of the same age (22. 9%). According to some demographic projecdons to the year 2000, these percentages wiU touch 36. 3% for young males and 34. 2% for young females. There are cultural and ideological reasons for this phenomenon, such as the idea that marriage is the only proper route towards adult independence (8 males out of 10 and 9 women out of 10 leave the family only foUowing marriage). However, social factors also make a contribudon, in particular, high youth unemployment and a shortage of rental accommodadon. The result is that families coundng a young adult as a member are a socially significant category. Psychological factors and value systems also play an important role. The working values tradidonaUy handed down in Italian families place heavy emphasis on permanent and full-dme employment. The definidve departure from the family is often condidonal on minimizing the risks of independence. Among others, for these two factors (permanent fuU-dme employment and minimum risk of independence), life-dme employment in government and union employment policies have come to be considered as a necessary and sufficient prerequisite for the attainment of adulthood. The quest for so-caUed guaranteed employment has led Italian society to one of the most cridcal paradoxes in its history: the creadon of a barrier to occupadonal access for youth. Thus, the one prerequisite considered a vital and sufficient condidon for the evoludon of Italian families, life-dme employment, has become one of the major obstacles to the same end. By disallowing generational change in employment, it has become impossible for young generadons to enter the workforce, and hence to reach independence. * Following on these consideradons, we decided to use the results of a study on working values (WIS 1995) to shed some light on value differences between young students and adult workers. As mendoned above, very few studies have been carried out in Italy on the transmission of values within families. While the WIS study was not designed for this purpose, we believed that it could give some indicadons regarding the generadon gap (youths vs adults) and differences in social status (students vs workers). The underlying hypothesis to tjiis study is therefore that working adult values can be considered as being similar to those of parents; likewise, those held by young students can be considered as being similar to those of offspring. The WIS survey.