Role Of Newcomers Research Articles

Between gentrification and reurbanisation: The participatory dimension of bottom-up regeneration in Gdańsk, Poland

Urban regeneration has become a key issue in the development of contemporary cities. The paper discusses bottom-up regeneration practices performed by inhabitants of a decaying inner-city neighbourhood under post-socialist conditions, which differ notably from the widely researched Western European context. Results of a qualitative study in Wrzeszcz Dolny, Gdańsk, have indicated the leading role of newcomers to the area in animating bottom-up regeneration efforts, which in turn translate into an activation and integration of the local community. Thus, it is argued that an in-migration into the inner city, usually interpreted as gentrification, does not necessarily generate losses for the indigenous inhabitants but can also bring a desired social change and significantly contribute to the building of inclusive civil society. The presented case study therefore signals the need for a careful investigation and precise labelling of the post-socialist inner-city transformation processes, as well as demonstrates how increasing participation might be employed as the potential antidote to ills associated with gentrification.

Socialization Tactics of New Retail Employees: A Pathway to Organizational Commitment

To address the prevailing issue of high turnover and low employee commitment in the retail industry, this study explores the role of newcomers’ individual differences and proactive socialization tactics in developing employee organizational commitment and reducing employee turnover. Based on data collected from 239 employees in a major U.S. retail store chain, this study found that individual differences, such as goal orientation and proactivity, are significantly related to employees’ choices of different socialization tactics, including inquiry, observation, and networking. The three tactics are associated with organizational commitment and furthermore employees’ actual turnover mainly through role clarity and attitudes toward a retail career. Among the three proactive socialization tactics, observation plays the most important role in the socialization process.

I Want to Be Like You

Entering a new group provides the potential of forming a new social identity. Starting from self-regulation models, we propose that goals (e.g., internal motivation to enter the group), strategies (e.g., approach and avoidance strategies), and events (e.g., the group’s response) affect the development of the social self. In two studies we manipulated the group’s response (acceptance vs. rejection) and assessed internal motivation as well as approach and avoidance strategies. It was expected, and we found, that when newcomers are accepted, their use of approach strategies (but not avoidance strategies) facilitates social identification. In line with self-completion theory, for highly internally motivated individuals approach strategies facilitated social identification even upon rejection. The results underline the active role of newcomers in their social identity development.

A model of psychological contract creation upon organizational entry

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to highlight the importance of a number of factors in newcomers' psychological contract development.Design/methodology/approachThe approach taken is a literature review with the development of a conceptual model.FindingsThe paper contributes to the psychological contract literature by adopting a sensemaking perspective and focusing on the role of newcomers' pre‐entry expectations and emotions on the psychological contract creation process. The authors also discuss the differential role of contract makers and facilitators and the modes they employ to influence newcomers' psychological contract creation.Originality/valuePsychological contract research has emphasized the consequences of psychological contract breach and violation. The paper's aim is to direct attention at understanding the psychological contract in its very initial stages. The authors discuss implications for research and practice on managing psychological contract creation.

Engineering the Engineers: Socialization Tactics and New Engineer Adjustment in Organizations

Newly recruited engineers entering organizations often experience anxiety and uncertainty with regard to their roles, tasks, and career prospects in the organization. Successful adjustment of these newcomers to the role and organization has implications for performance, retention, and turnover of valuable knowledge workers. Organizations use several tactics to facilitate the new engineer's adjustment to the role and organization. This study investigated the socialization of 135 new engineers using the theoretical framework of organizational socialization tactics. The moderating effects of gender on new engineer adjustment are also examined since engineering is often described as a male-dominated profession. Results show that organizational socialization tactics strongly influence newcomer role clarity, workgroup integration, and task mastery. These proximal outcomes, in turn, lead to increased satisfaction and organizational commitment. Gender-specific differences are also found with regard to the impact of tactics on outcomes. Gender-moderated the effects of investiture, serial, and fixed tactics on role clarity and work group integration. Implications of the results for practice and theory are discussed.

The Socialization of Emotion: Learning Emotion Management at the Fire Station

In a variety of fields, particularly human service occupations, the management of emotion is a precondition of employee and client well being. Based on qualitative data from participant observation and interviews, this study examines how firefighters are socialized to manage feelings and emotional displays. It concludes that firefighters recognized a need to manage their own emotions and those of their clients in order to deliver adequate service. Veteran firefighters facilitated the use of emotion labor techniques among newcomers by considering the emotion management knowledge and capabilities of job candidates during employee selection processes, providing habituated emotional events, and reinforcing customer service expectations. Newcomers actively participated in their own socialization to local emotion expectations through observational information seeking, retrospective surveillance, and performance of a normative newcomer role demeanor. The article concludes by offering practical and theoretical implications.

Back to organizational socialization: building a case for the advancement of women in organizations

Although organizational socialization is a powerful phenomenon with numerous long lasting effects on employees, many organizations and employees weather the experience unconsciously, going through the process blindly and unaware of its powerful influences. Though studies have analyzed organizational socialization and the role of newcomers in the process, none have looked at the role of specific socialization tactics and their influence on women’s careers in organization. In this paper we consider the relationship between organizational socialization methods and the advancement of women’s careers in organizations. We develop and discuss a theoretical integrative framework and propositions, and conclude with implications and suggestions for future research to better explain the linkages between organizational socialization tactics and women’s career advancement strategies.

Food Specificity in Interspecies Competition

N iche competition has been the subject of intensive field Sand experimental studies basic to emerging ecological concepts. One especially current area of application to applied ecology is the competitive role of newcomers to large communities, brought there either by accidental, weedy arrival or by deliberate introductions targeted at biological control of economic pests. A second area of intensive application is the rising preoccupation with measuring biodiversity of endangered ecosystems, that is, how many species can live sympatrically by splitting the niche? In this article, we focus on the first of these areas, comparing the interestingly different characteristics of higher vertebrates and arthropods. Biological control is generally viewed as an environmentally friendly alternative to chemical control. However, the introduction of alien species, whether or not as part of a biological control plan, is not without risk. Alien species themselves, for example, the gypsy moth (Lymantria dispar) in North America and the European rabbit (OryctoVertebrates are poor

The role of informal support networks in the adjustment of Central American immigrant families

Central Americans are one of the fastest growing immigrant groups in the United States, yet little is known about their adjustment to life in this country. Research with previous immigrant groups has suggested that informal support networks play a significant role in newcomers' adjustment process. In the present study, 91 recently arrived Central American immigrants were interviewed concerning the circumstances of their immigration into this country, characteristics of their networks in this country, and the adjustment of family members since arriving. Results indicate that although the networks of these individuals tend to be dense and provide a great deal of support, they may have an insulating effect that diminishes immigrants' interaction with the larger community. These findings are discussed in light of the larger issue of the receptivity of the host community to newcomers.

A longitudinal study of newcomer role adjustment in US organizations

Abstract This paper examines the socialization and adjustment experiences of newcomers to organizations from a role stress perspective. A longitudinal field study is reported which tested a three-stage socialization model using physiological and psychological distress symptoms, general satisfaction, and intention to leave the organization as indicators of newcomer adjustment. Data were collected from newcomers (the focal role) (N = 91) at three times during me study and also from their supervisors (the role senders) (N = 41). While the data confirmed the general utility of the model, it also suggested some revisions by way of new and altered pathways between some of the variables.