Kompetansevurdering og kompetanseheving i pleie- og omsorgssektoren

Realkompetansevurdering innebærer at kompetanse opparbeidet gjennom erfaring blir dokumentert og anerkjent på linje med formell kompetanse. Basert på en spørreundersøkelse blant 213 medarbeidere i seks kommuner oppsummerer artikkelen erfaringer med slik vurdering i tilknytning til kompetanseheving for ufaglærte i den kommunale pleie- og omsorgssektoren. Sektoren har en stor andel ufaglærte og innvandrere og står foran tiltagende knapphet på arbeidskraft. Informasjon til målgruppen om retten til realkompetansevurdering, formidlet av arbeidsgiver, er avgjørende særlig for minoritetsspråklige. Realkompetansevurdering er for de fleste et trinn på veien til fagbrev og til en styrket stilling hos nåværende arbeidsgiver. Tilgang til relevant praksis og oppmuntring fra arbeidsgiver er viktig i denne prosessen

Dynamic capabilities as antecedents of the scope of related diversification: the case of small firm accountancy practices

We propose that differences in the scope of related diversification in firms can be accounted for by differences in their dynamic capabilities. In order to test this, we analyze 254 Norwegian small firm accountancy practices' possession of key dynamic capabilities including the heterogeneity of their human capital, their internal development routines, and their alliances with complementary service providers. We also analyze the influence of strategic choice, in terms of the positioning of the practice and its underlying strategic intent. While we observe no clear effects for these two latter factors, we find that dynamic capabilities have a distinct impact on the scope of services

Chemical communication and mother-infant recognition

Fifty years after the term “pheromone” was coined by Peter Karlson and Martin Lüsher the search for these semiochemicals is still an elusive goal of chemical ecology and communication studies. Contrary to what appears in the popular press, the race is still on to capture and define human scents. Over the last several years, it became increasingly clear that pheromone-like chemical signals probably play a role in offspring identification and mother recognition. Recently, we analyzed the volatile compounds in sweat patch samples collected from the para-axillary and nipple-areola regions of women during pregnancy and after childbirth. We hypothesized that, at the time of birth and during the first weeks of life, the distinctive olfactory pattern of the para-axillary area is probably useful to newborns for recognizing and distinguishing their own mother, whereas the characteristic pattern of the nippleareola region is probably useful as a guide to nourishment

A Cross-Cultural Exploration of Masculinity and Relationships in Men From Turkey, Norway, and the United States

Masculinity ideology is the endorsement of a set of culturally based male role norms that influences gender-related attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors. However, masculinity research has been criticized for not being inclusive enough of different cultures. This study explored the cultural and relational components of masculinity by comparing 564 Turkish, Norwegian, and U.S. men\u27s endorsement of masculinity ideology and examining the associations between masculinity ideology and interpersonal attitudes and behavioral competencies with romantic partners and work colleagues separately for the three groups of men. Norwegian men had significantly lower scores on a measure of masculinity ideology than both Turkish and U.S. men. Canonical correlation analyses revealed that all three groups of men had significant associations between male role norms and interpersonal relationship variables, but the patterns of association differed by country. Generally, endorsement of traditional male role norms was associated with poorer interpersonal competencies for men in all three countries, although the associations were much stronger for the Norwegian sample. Implications, limitations, and directions for future research are discussed. © The Author(s) 2013