Functionalizing human relations in business

This commentary argues that Indvik and Fitzpatrick's article, “Perceptions of Inclusion, Affiliation, and Control in Five Interpersonal Relationships,” presents an inappropriate conceptual and methodological approach to the study of relationship defining communication. Problems are most evident in: (1) the domain isolated to represent the themes of inclusion, control, and affection; and (2) the inattention to the interdependence established with communication between relationship partners.     

Primary and secondary school teachers in France: changes in identities and professionalization

Teacher professionalization is a recent field of study in France that has developed in connection with the creation of the Instituts Universitaires de Formation des Maîtres (IUFMs) and other changes that have brought primary and secondary teachers into closer relation. In order to help the reader understand the traditional divisions between these two groups and recent trends towards unification, we first present historical differences in their development as separate corps, their training and their modes of unionization. We then proceed to analyse the political turning point of 1989, date of the creation of the IUFMs which introduced a similar curriculum for teachers of each degree on the basis of officially specified fundamental skills, as well as leading to the reconstitution of teachers' unions. Finally, we examine the effects of recent moves toward professionalization on the rationalization of teachers' knowledge and skills, the relationship between training and professional activity and teachers' socialization.     

从国外体育商业化看体育的经济因素和商业价值

体育运动的紧张刺激和魅力，人们对明星偶像的崇拜心理，特别是一些国际性的比赛，甚至能牵动观众的民族感情，使体育运动成为当今最能吸引广大观众的娱乐项目。体育运动又是一项牵涉名利和广大商业利益的经济活动，其中加入了商业运作，体育电视转播的发展，电视广告的火爆，风靡欧洲的足球运动，体育衍生商品的收益等，无不显示体育商业价值与日俱增。     

Professor Pinsker responds:

Letter

Professor Pinsker responds:     

Assessing Employer Satisfaction: a test of several survey techniques

Assessing employer satisfaction with the preparation their employees receive in institutions of higher education is a matter of growing importance world‐wide as students, governments and the public seek tangible evidence of educational quality through workforce competitiveness. Three techniques for surveying college and university graduates and employers were conducted over the space of three academic years for the purpose of comparing the effectiveness of these methodologies. Response rates obtained indicate that gaining permission for employer contact directly on a questionnaire mailed to graduates can be as effective as more costly phone contacts, and is more effective than two successive mailings to graduates. The results also suggest that in general employers give relatively undifferentiated positive ratings of employee characteristics unless forced by the method of questioning to differentiate among items. The study provides evidence that a mailed survey methodology for graduates and their employers can be effective if the graduate's permission is obtained on the initial questionnaire and if employers are forced by the survey instrument's format to differentiate among listed job characteristics and performance ratings.