Book review of perspectives on organizational fit by Cheri Ostroff and Timothy A. Judge (Editors)

From the first moment you set your eyes on this book, you are aware that it is a serious endeavor. Edited by two of the most published people in the field and sporting an imposing black and lime green dust cover containing an image of a swarm of black skull-headed moths, it contains chapters written by virtually all of “the good and the great” of the field. A flick through the pages reveals hundreds of pages of narrow margins and dense typescript interspersed with equations and three-dimensional graphs. This is a book that demands attention

Book review of 'the people make the place: dynamic linkages between individuals and organizations edited by D. Brent Smith'

The People Make the Place is a festschrift celebrating the work of industrial/organizational psychologist Benjamin Schneider. It contains 11 specially written chapters each addressing a different element of Schneider’s work. The twelfth chapter, written by the honored scholar, summarizes the contributions and uses the opportunity to clarify many of the ideas surrounding attraction-selection-attrition (ASA) theory

Organisational Fit and Misfit: An Empirical Study of Similartities and Differences

This thesis focuses on employees' experiences of fit and misfit at work. This falls within the person-environment fit (PE fit) literature which is based on principles founded in interactional psychology that when a person fits the environment that they are in, positive outcomes, such as job satisfaction, will result. Despite a wealth of empirical studies in the PE fit field studying various aspects of individuals' fit with their work environment, there are significant gaps in knowledge and understanding. One of these is that little research has investigated how employees experience fit and misfit. A second gap is that little is known about misfit and whether this is the opposite to fit, an absence of fit or a separate categorical state. The research focused on these gaps in the literature and took a qualitative, exploratory approach to gain in-depth understanding of the factors affecting individuals' fit in organisations. Causal mapping techniques were used to allow the study's participants to express their perceptions without being prompted to speak a bout specific topics. The resulting data were coded using measures from the PE fit literature to explore whether the extant measures adequately captured people's experiences and also to assess whether there were differences between fit and misfit. The research found that the extant PE fit measures explained participants' experiences of fit and misfit well but that as these are focused on factors within the organisational environment, they miss external factors such as people's links with their communities. It seems that the majority of individuals experience misfit to some extent but that overwhelming misfit perceptions can be triggered by a change in the organisation. Misfit and fit are shown to differ, most profoundly in that whereas fit is a positive experience, misfit is negative and a state to be avoided

Female board Directors’ resilience against gender discrimination

Despite regulatory efforts to promote gender diversity on boards, women are still severely underrepresented in board leadership in the UK, beyond FTSE 100 companies. Evidence suggests that women, when poorly represented inthe workplace, are more likely to suffer discrimination. In this study we report the first‐hand experiences of gender discrimination suffered by female directors and present the process of how they build resilience through developing coping strategies. Such resilience‐building processes seem to vary with the length of board experience of female directors. At the outset of their board journey, they adopt avoidant coping strategies of denial and disengagement. However, with experience in boards, they gain the confidence to pursue the active coping strategy of seeking and extending support. This qualitative study is based on 42 elite interviews of board Directors and is guided by the resilience theory, in the context of top FTSE boards. The article also discusses the contribution of the study to theory, praxis and policy

Vitamin D status, cognitive decline and incident dementia : the Canadian Study of Health and Aging

Objective: Vitamin D could prevent cognitive decline because of its neuroprotective, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. This study aimed to evaluate the associations of plasma 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) concentrations with global cognitive function and incident dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Methods: The Canadian Study of Health and Aging is a 10-year cohort study of a representative sample of individuals aged 65years or older. A total of 661 subjects initially without dementia with frozen blood samples and follow-up data were included. Global cognitive function was measured using the validated Modified Mini-Mental State (3MS) examination. A consensus diagnosis of all-cause dementia and AD was made between the physician and the neuropsychologist according to published criteria. Cognitive decline for a 5-year increase in age at specific 25(OH)D concentrations was obtained using linear mixedmodels with repeated measures. Hazard ratios of incident dementia and AD were obtained using semi-parametric proportionalhazards models with age as time scale. Results: Over a mean follow-up of 5.4 years, 141 subjects developed dementia of which 100 were AD. Overall, no significant association was found between 25(OH)D and cognitive decline, dementia or AD. Higher 25(OH)D concentrations were associated with an increased risk of dementia and AD in women, but not in men. Conclusion: This study does not support a protective effect of vitamin D status on cognitive function. Further research is needed toclarify the relation by sex.Objectif : La vitamine D pourrait avoir un effet protecteur sur le déclin cognitif en raison de ses propriétés neuroprotectrices, anti-inflammatoires et antioxydantes. L’objectif de cette étude était d’évaluer les associations entre la concentration plasmatique de 25-hydroxyvitamine D (25(OH)D), la fonction cognitive globale et l’incidence de la démence incluant la maladie d’Alzheimer (MA). Méthodes: L’Étude sur la santé et le vieillissement au Canada est une étude de cohorte de 10 ans réalisée dans un échantillon représentatif des Canadiens âgés de 65 ans et plus. Un total de 661 participants sans démence, pour lesquels un échantillon sanguin congelé et des données au suivi étaient disponibles, ont été inclus dans l’analyse. La fonction cognitive globale a été mesurée à l’aide d’un outil validé, le Modified Mini-Mental State(3MS) Examination. Les diagnostics de démence toutes cause set de MA ont été obtenus par consensus entre un médecin généraliste et un neuropsychologue selon des critères publiés. Le déclin cognitif pour chaque augmentation de 5 ans d’âge à des concentrations spécifiques de 25(OH)D a été mesuré à l’aide de modèles linéaires mixtes avec données répétées. Des rapports de risques de la démence et de la MA ont été obtenus à l’aide de modèles à risques proportionnels semi-paramétriques en utilisant l’âge comme échelle du temps. Résultats : En cours de suivi (moyenne : 5,4 ans), 141 individus ont développé une démence dont 100 étaient la MA. Globalement, aucune association statistiquement significative n’a été observée entre le 25(OH)D et le déclin cognitif, la démence ou la MA. Des concentrations plus élevées de 25(OH)D étaient associées à une augmentation du risque de démence et de MA chez les femmes, mais pas chez les hommes. Conclusion : Cette étude n’appuie pas l’hypothèse d’un effet protecteur de la vitamine D sur la fonction cognitive. D’autres études seraient nécessaires pour clarifier la relation selon le sexe

The neuropeptide NMU amplifies ILC2-driven allergic lung inflammation

Type 2 innate lymphoid cells (ILC2s) both contribute to mucosal homeostasis and initiate pathologic inflammation in allergic asthma. However, the signals that direct ILC2s to promote homeostasis versus inflammation are unclear. To identify such molecular cues, we profiled mouse lung-resident ILCs using single-cell RNA sequencing at steady state and after in vivo stimulation with the alarmin cytokines IL-25 and IL-33. ILC2s were transcriptionally heterogeneous after activation, with subpopulations distinguished by expression of proliferative, homeostatic and effector genes. The neuropeptide receptor Nmur1 was preferentially expressed by ILC2s at steady state and after IL-25 stimulation. Neuromedin U (NMU), the ligand of NMUR1, activated ILC2s in vitro, and in vivo co-administration of NMU with IL-25 strongly amplified allergic inflammation. Loss of NMU-NMUR1 signalling reduced ILC2 frequency and effector function, and altered transcriptional programs following allergen challenge in vivo. Thus, NMUR1 signalling promotes inflammatory ILC2 responses, highlighting the importance of neuro-immune crosstalk in allergic inflammation at mucosal surfaces

Resolution, Relief, And Resignation:A Qualitative Study Of Responses To Misfit At Work

Research has portrayed person–environment (PE) fit as a pleasant condition resulting from people being attracted to and selected into compatible work environments; yet, our study reveals that creating and maintaining a sense of fit frequently involves an effortful, dynamic set of strategies. We used a two-phase, qualitative design to allow employees to report how they become aware of and experience misfit, and what they do in response. To address these questions, we conducted interviews with 81 individuals sampled from diverse industries and occupations. Through their descriptions, we identified three broad responses to the experience of misfit: resolution, relief, and resignation. Within these approaches, we identified distinct strategies for responding to misfit. We present a model of how participants used these strategies, often in combination, and develop propositions regarding their effectiveness at reducing strain associated with misfit. These results expand PE fit theory by providing new insight into how individuals experience and react to misfit—portraying them as active, motivated creators of their own fit experience at work