Trait anticipatory public speaking anxiety as a function of self‐efficacy expectations and self‐handicapping strategies

The purpose of this study was to determine if the independent variables of self‐efficacy expectations and self‐handicapping strategies would predict trait anticipatory public speaking anxiety. A model was proposed and tested in which self‐efficacy expectations were found to be significant independent predictors of trait anticipatory public speaking anxiety. Self‐handicapping was not a significant predictor. Implications for future research are discussed.     

An Erosion Model of Employee Turnover Based on Network Centrality

An Erosion Model (EM) of employee turnover is introduced to explain the previously observed negative relationship between network centrality and employee turnover. The EM hypothesizes that social support moderates the centrality–turnover relation as those more active in the organization's social network experience less job strain due to esteem provided by work peers. Three EM hypotheses were supported using meta-analytic procedures with significant relations identified between centrality and turnover (k=5, r=.29), social support and centrality (k=7, r=.23), and social support and turnover intentions (k=17, r=.35). Future research for EM expansion and practical applications are proposed.     

Precursors to probation and parole agent intent to send informational,emotional, and esteem social support messages to female clients

Supervising agents serve as sources of social support for over one million women in the US on probation and parole who strive to avoid recidivism. Little is known about the supportive messages agents intend to provide their female clients or their precursors. The optimal matching model of social support is used in an investigation of the precursors to agents’ intent to send different types of social support messages to the women they supervise. Results indicated that supervising agents intended to provide informational support in the form of suggestions or advice, esteem support in the form of compliments, and emotional support in the form of encouragement to the women. Both agent communication pattern and offender level variables were precursors to the intent to send informational support messages, but only agent communication pattern variables predicted the intent to send emotional support messages.     

Higher education libraries and SENDA

Reports selected results of a Masters research project which examined provision of higher education library and information services for students with disabilities within the context of the new disability legislation, the Special Educational Needs and Disability Act 2001 (SENDA), which came into force on 1st September 2002. Five HE libraries were selected as case studies and provision was evaluated via staff interviews, student questionnaires and an accessibility audit. The results are presented under three themes: policies; procedures; and practices. Both good and bad practice was identified. All libraries had a disability representative, demonstrating a commitment to disability issues, and many staff had received disability awareness training. Libraries were often well supported by the institutions’ student support services. Accessibility of the built environment was often inadequate for the needs of people with disabilities. Often, lighting was poor, shelving was of inappropriate width and height and signage was far from ideal. Recommendations to improve provision are given covering policies, training, publicity and promotion, co‐operation and liaison.     

Electronic information for students ‐the Elinor project

The article presents an overview of recent developments in mentoring in the library and information services (LIS) community in the United Kingdom (UK). The article discusses the concept of mentoring, provides a review of relevant literature and summarises a recent fourteen‐month project (May 1995‐July 1996) investigating mentoring as a staff development tool. The project was funded by the British Library Research and Innovation Centre (BLRIC) and was carried out by the Centre for Information Research and Training (CIRT) in the School of Information Studies at the University of Central England in Birmingham (UCE). Project results relevant to academic libraries are particularly drawn out in this article. The article makes some comparisons between findings in the general literature on mentoring and findings in the recent Birmingham research. It concludes with a discussion of some possible advances in mentoring in the UK LIS community, and a substantial bibliography.     

Innovation Management and U.S. Weekly Newspaper Web Sites: An Examination of Newspaper Managers and Emerging Technology

Using Everett Rogers's (2003) Rogers, E. M. 2003. Diffusion of innovations, 5th, New York: Free Press.  [Google Scholar] theory of innovation in organizations, this nationwide study examines U.S. weekly newspapers and their adoption and management of innovation—specifically, the online newspaper. From a theoretical standpoint, the creation of the online product was somewhat unsystematic. The data reveal that most weekly newspapers were not following any type of innovation management strategy when developing their online editions. This study echoes the findings of Saksena and Hollifield (2002) Saksena, S. and Hollifield, C. A. 2002. U.S. newspapers and the development of online editions. The International Journal on Media Management, 4: 75–84. [Taylor & Francis Online] , [Google Scholar] in the assessment that newspapers are adopting and managing emerging technology in a “relatively haphazard fashion.” Most newspaper managers report they did not develop a business plan for the new product or set specific, measurable goals to aid in assessing the success of the online newspaper. In addition, almost ¾ of the newspapers did not gather target-market or audience research before launching the online newspaper. The study found that newspaper managers were sensitive to their staffs' questions, needs, and concerns about publishing an online newspaper; and most involved their staffs in the decision-making process. A majority reported that they did not meet any resistance from their staffs about the adoption of new technology to produce the online newspapers.     

The Effects of “Friend” Characteristics on Evaluations of an Activist Group in a Social Networking Context

Research suggests that individuals use cues about the popularity of a cause or group to make judgments. This bandwagon phenomenon has found particular support in online contexts. However, perceptions regarding the group may also depend on the identity of those supporters. We employed a 2 × 2 × 2 experiment to test the effect of number of affiliates and affiliate race and age on feelings toward the group, its page, and intended support. Results suggest that feelings are not subject to a consistent bandwagon effect but rather are moderated by race, with White participants exhibiting more positive feelings when seeing a page with few Black affiliates or many White affiliates. This result contrasts with findings for age, which serves to moderate only intended page use.     

Building Cataloging Capacity for Libraries in South Sudan: A North–South–South Collaboration

In the developing world, a common trend is to have north–south collaborations constituting most of the continuous professional development (CPD) activities for librarians. The emerging drift highlighted in this article is a north–south–south initiative aimed at rebuilding the University of Juba Library through capacity-building of the library staff. This article will illuminate the process of equipping library staff with cataloging skills in the absence of previous library training. This endeavor is a result of the collaborative efforts of Makerere University Library (MakLib) in Uganda and the University of Bergen Library (UoBL) in Norway under the Juba Library Automation Project (JULAP). JULAP's main objective is to rebuild the University of Juba Library with the components of library automation and training of library staff. This article will concentrate on the practical training of the library staff in cataloging and the hands-on training on the Koha integrated library system to lay the groundwork for computerized library services for the University of Juba. This article will also highlight the challenges and lessons learned so far while articulating strategies for the future.