Suchergebnisse

The implicit assumptions underlying dominant or classic organization designs and the presentforces in society are examined as a background for rise of alternative organization designs. Some fourteen attributes commonly shared by the new designs are presented. These include systemic structure and roles, organizations as open systems, design by joint optimization, organizational uniqueness, stated organizational values or philosophy, quality of working life as an essential objective, comprehensive roles, selfmaintaining social units, flat structure, participation, minimal status differences, make large small, iterative evolutionary development, and minimal critical specifications. Some attributes are a response to needs for institutional survival, others for long-term economic survival, and still others for enhanced institutional effectiveness. A postscript compares evolving alternative organization designs with proposals of proponents of intermediate technology.

This paper presents the results of a step-by-step Delphi analysis used to develop a definition and measure of quality of working life [QWL] in a case specific setting. A representative panel of 64 employees from the headquarters of a large insurance company constituted the Delphi panel that engaged in defining QWL utilizing a six-phase Delphi methodology. The results of a 34-item QWL questionnaire developed from that definition were tested with a sizable [n = 450] sample of the company's employees. Those results identified the following seven significant predictors of QWL, four of which extended beyond specific job content: [a] degree to which my superiors treat me with respect and have confidence in my abilities, [b] variety in my daily work routine, [c] challenge of my work, [d] my present work leads to good future work opportunities, [e] self-esteem, [/l extent to which my life outside of work affects my life at work, and [g] the extent to which the work I do contributes to society.

The abilities of physicians to estimate the length of stay of their hospital patients was investigated. Two estimates were made; one at admission request and another after a prescribed number of days of hospitalization. Data are presented as correlation coefficients between actual and estimated lengths of stay and as conditional frequency functions of actual given an estimated length of stay. Differences between physicians in surgical and medical service are shown. It is concluded that physicians' estimates may be a useful source of data for operating an elective patient scheduling system.