The Cultural Intelligence Scale (CQS): A Contribution to the Italian Validation

In the current globalized working context, professionals are asked to be able to implement specific competences. Cultural Intelligence is a construct referring to an individual’s ability to function and manage effectively in culturally diverse settings and is conceived as an aggregate multidimensional construct. Purpose of this study was to examine the validity of score interpretations of the Italian version of the Cultural Intelligence Scale (CQS). CQS is aimed to measure individual ability to understand, act and manage effectively in culturally diverse settings. Participants were 755 professionals (females = 64.2%) from different organizational contexts, ranging from 20 to 63 years old (M = 40.4; SD = 10.29). Data were collected with the Italian translated version of the CQS. Results of confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) suggested good data-model fit. As proposed in the original version, CQS is composed of 20 items and four different theoretical dimensions (Metacognitive, Cognitive, Motivational, and Behavioral) that correlate with each other. This study could be considered a first contribution to fill the lack of self-report measure concerning cultural intelligence in the Italian context with a scale showing promising results

At the end of the match : exploring retirement of Italian football players

Retirement of Italian football players is unknown, thus, after analysing current literature about leaving from sport and using a Phenomenological-Interpretative approach we develop an explorative study on Italian former football players' experience of withdrawal. We interview 14 former players that competed in the highest level of Italian football Championship, to better understand their lived experience of retirement and compare it with literature. It emerges that the minority of football players choose voluntary to retire - except in the case when they enter into their Clubs as coaches or manager - and cannot plan retirement in advance; they share a strong athletic identity but the risk of identity foreclosure seems to be moderated by social support, especially from families and partners, while less from sport context (coach and teammates). Implications for future research in Italy and the work of sport psychologists and professional Clubs of football are discussed.La retirada de jugadores de fútbol en Italia es desconocida. Así, después de analizar la literatura actual y usando un enfoque fenomenológico-interpretativo, desarrollamos un estudio exploratorio sobre esta experiencia de los ex-jugadores de fútbol italiano. Entrevistamos a 14 ex-jugadores, que compitieron en el más alto nivel del Campeonato de Fútbol italiano, para comprender su experiencia de jubilación y compararla con la literatura. La minoría de jugadores de fútbol eligen voluntariamente retirarse - excepto en el caso de que entren a sus clubes como entrenadores o gestores - y no quieren planificar la jubilación anticipadamente. Comparten una fuerte identidad atlética, pero el riesgo de exclusión de identidad parece ser moderado por el apoyo social, especialmente de las familias, pero menos del contexto deportivo (entrenador y compañeros de equipo). Se discuten las implicaciones para futuras investigaciones en Italia y el trabajo de psicólogos deportivos y clubes profesionales de fútbol

DIVERSITY CULTURES AND DIVERSITY MANAGEMENT IN ORGANIZATIONS: A CHALLENGE ALREADY TAKEN UP?

Nel campo della psicologia delle organizzazioni, la gestione della differenza è un argomento di crescente interesse. Studi sul Diversity Managemetn sono stati promossi dalla graduale consapevolezza che per le organizzazioni, promuovere la diversità non solo contribuisce a garantire la soddisfazione e le prestazioni dei singoli lavoratori, ma offre anche vantaggi in termini di business e riconoscimento da stakeholders esterni e contesto sociale. Podsiadlowski et al (2012) hanno identificato cinque culture – Reinforcing Homogeneity, Color-Blind, Fairness, Access, Integration – con cui le organizzazioni possono approcciare la differenza e che possono essere collocate su un continuum da difensiva, a reattiva, a proattiva. Scopo di questo lavoro è ottenere una fotografia delle culture organizzative della differenza nel contesto italiano al fine di comprendere "lo stato dell'arte". Inoltre, si mira a capire: se e che tipo di interazioni la cultura organizzativa della differenza può avere con altri fattori della vita organizzativa e che tipo di impatto la cultura organizzativa della differenza può avere sulla creatività organizzativa e sul benessere individuale. Al fine di offrire un contributo alla validazione di due strumenti non ancora particolarmente diffusi in ambito italiano si sono anche testate le proprietà psicometriche della Cultural Intelligence Scale e del Diversity Perspective Questionnaire.In the field of organizational psychology, Diversity Management is a topic of growing interest. Studies on Diversity Management have been led by the gradual awareness that for organizations, fostering diversity not only helps to ensure the satisfaction and performance of the individual workers, but also offers benefits in terms of business and recognition from external stakeholders and social context. Podsiadlowski et al. (2012) identified five different ways organizations approach diversity – Reinforcing Homogeneity, Color-Blind, Fairness, Access, Integration – that can be seen on a continuum from defensive, to reactive, to proactive attitude. Aim of this work is taking a picture of the organisational cultures of difference in the Italian context in order to understand "the state of the art". Moreover, this work aims to understand: if and what kind of interactions the organisational cultures of difference can have with other organizational life factors and what kind of impact the organisational cultures of difference can have on organizational creativity and individual well-being. In order to offer a contribution to the validation of two tools not yet particularly widespread in terms of use in the Italian context we also tested the psychometric properties of: the Cultural Intelligence Scale and the Diversity Perspective Questionnaire

Pending Issues on Professionals’ Well-Being: The Living and Working Together in Organization Perspective

Evolving research has increasingly recognized the crucial role of workers’ well-being in contributing to organizational effectiveness and survival, also studying the different factors that can influence it. This paper explores how the construct of living and working together in organizations (LWTO) can face two current organizational challenges in terms of well-being: 1. keeping a balance between performance and organizational quality of life; 2. managing the relationship with others’ differences. Thus, LTWO is understood as the possibility (or absence) of a good exchange between workers (identity and otherness), related to a clear and shared work purpose within a specific organizational culture of difference that allows diversity of expression through generative conflict. We tested our model using the exploratory structural equation modeling methodology with EQS-6.3. Our results show how well-being is in fact influenced by LWTO and highlights in particular the central role played by work purpose

At the end of the match : exploring retirement of Italian football players

Retirement of Italian football players is unknown, thus, after analysing current literature about leaving from sport and using a Phenomenological-Interpretative approach we develop an explorative study on Italian former football players' experience of withdrawal. We interview 14 former players that competed in the highest level of Italian football Championship, to better understand their lived experience of retirement and compare it with literature. It emerges that the minority of football players choose voluntary to retire - except in the case when they enter into their Clubs as coaches or manager - and cannot plan retirement in advance; they share a strong athletic identity but the risk of identity foreclosure seems to be moderated by social support, especially from families and partners, while less from sport context (coach and teammates). Implications for future research in Italy and the work of sport psychologists and professional Clubs of football are discussed.La retirada de jugadores de fútbol en Italia es desconocida. Así, después de analizar la literatura actual y usando un enfoque fenomenológico-interpretativo, desarrollamos un estudio exploratorio sobre esta experiencia de los ex-jugadores de fútbol italiano. Entrevistamos a 14 ex-jugadores, que compitieron en el más alto nivel del Campeonato de Fútbol italiano, para comprender su experiencia de jubilación y compararla con la literatura. La minoría de jugadores de fútbol eligen voluntariamente retirarse - excepto en el caso de que entren a sus clubes como entrenadores o gestores - y no quieren planificar la jubilación anticipadamente. Comparten una fuerte identidad atlética, pero el riesgo de exclusión de identidad parece ser moderado por el apoyo social, especialmente de las familias, pero menos del contexto deportivo (entrenador y compañeros de equipo). Se discuten las implicaciones para futuras investigaciones en Italia y el trabajo de psicólogos deportivos y clubes profesionales de fútbol

Match-fixing a threat to the values of sport. Representation of phenomenon among italian League B players

Today, March-Fixing (MF) is a phenomenon of great relevance and, unfortunately, more and more widespread in sport context; it originates from the failing of morality and in the non-application, or the lacking safeguard, of those values that characterize healthy sport (Mcnamee, 2013). Moreover, despite the existence of a significant amount of policy implementation lines related to MF, at both national and European level, the scientific literature from psychological, relational and organizational point of view, is still very limited (Hill, 2009; Huggins, 2017). The aim of this contribution is to present what professional football players belonging to the second division of Italian professional Football League (League B) know and think about MF and their disposition toward it. The purpose of this study, therefore, has been to fill the abovementioned gap in literature, trying to understand 1) player\u2019s personal and socio-relational characteristics, 2) their knowledge about MF and 3) their behaviour toward MF. For this purpose, a structured questionnaire has been developed and proposed to 283 professional players members of the 22 Teams belonging to Italian Football League B. Due to the explorative nature of this project, it has been done descriptive analysis of collected data. Results show that players have a great awareness of MF. However, when players perceive their possible, or effective, involvement in an illegal situation, as \u201cmembers of a team\u201d, they deal with the situation by keeping it limited into the sport context, without involve others actors from outside this context, generating a situation of \u201ccode of silence\u201d about it. This research represents the first step of an ongoing project granted by the European Union, aimed to increase our knowledge of the MF phenomenon and its social and relational dynamics

Home-Care Workers’ Representations of Their Role and Competences: A Diaphanous Profession

Because of the gradual aging of the population, hospital facilities for socio-sanitary care of the elderly are quite scarce relative to the very high number of elderly people present in the country. This has pushed a high number of families to privately hire home-care workers. The scientific literature gives a picture of the psycho-physical risks that this type of profession is exposed to; however, there is still a need for a more systemic reflection with regard to representations about their role and competences. The aim of the present study is to outline the representations of the role and the skills it requires from home-care workers’ point of view. We reconstructed how home-care workers perceive and define the profession, and understand the necessary skills required from their point of view. Our results show that the professional profile of home-care workers still remains poorly defined and that professionals themselves struggle to find value and recognition, and to articulate what the skill set they develop is formed of