Taylorism, targets, technology and teams - compatible concepts? Evidence from a US call centre

Taylorism, targets and technology form a potent mix in call centres where groups of individuals are asked to perform as “teams”. In this paper we explore how ‘task’ oriented concepts interact with the ‘interpersonal relationship’ realm in an environment where group life dominates the notional foundation of a call centre’s organisational structure. Tuckman’s four stage model of sequential group development serves as the theoretical lens through which the role ‘teams’ play in the working environment of a large call centre is examined.Our analysis of structured interviews conducted in an outbound, financial services call centre in the southern United States reveals the mechanisms by which agents have interpreted their ‘team charter’ to focus on individual achievement of increased remuneration levels. The interplay between these variables indicate that reward mechanisms associated with simple Taylorist targets, imposed on the entry level call centre agents, mitigate against meaningful group development. The advancement through promotion based on individual performance to more challenging, less target based work, is in sharp contrast to their initial training period where ‘team building’ is an essential ingredient of skills acquisition

Cocoon viability and evidence for delayed hatching by the earthworm Lumbricus terrestris in a laboratory-based study.

Clitellate Lumbricus terrestris, obtained from 5 commercial suppliers (A-E) and also field collected (F) - grassland in Preston, Lancashire, UK, were kept under controlled environmental conditions (15 °C and 24 h darkness) in a sterilised loam soil and surface-fed with horse manure. Survival, biomass and cocoon production was monitored every 4 weeks over 1 y. Collected cocoons were maintained in water-filled Petri dishes on filter paper. Time to hatch and cocoon viability was recorded over a 2 y period. Cocoon production ranged from 15.1 – 32.2 ind.-1 y-1. Cocoon production was initially low followed by a period of high production (12-36 weeks) and then fell (36-52 weeks). Time for cocoon hatching ranged from 132-731 days. Hatching success after 2 years was 58–90% across treatments, with a total viability (including cocoons dissected after the 2 year period) of 88-94%. Evidence of 2 distinct hatching peaks was recorded, separated by a period of approximately 12 months in treatments of most of the commercially obtained earthworms. Cocoon incubation periods are in excess of those previously recorded under similar laboratory conditions (e.g. 90–280 days). Furthermore, viability is also higher than previously recorded (e.g. 67.9–83%). These differences are mainly attributable to the extended length of cocoon observation. Origin, age, unknown pre-treatment (in A-E) and experimental conditions (e.g. a constant temperature regime) may have influenced incubation times. However, it is suggested that asynchronous and delayed hatching within cohorts and ability for cocoons to remain viable for extended periods allows this K-selected species to maximise reproductive potential. This proposed “bet-hedging” strategy is worthy of further laboratory and field-based investigation

An oasis of fertility on a barren island: Earthworms at Papadil, Isle of Rum

The Isle of Rum, Inner Hebrides, has an impoverished earthworm fauna as the soils are generally acidic and nutrient-poor. Species associated with human habitation are found around deserted crofting settlements subjected to “clearances” in the mid-19th century and at Kinloch, where a large volume of fertile soil was imported from the mainland around 1900. Earthworms, and the dew worm Lumbricus terrestris L. in particular, were investigated at Papadil, an abandoned settlement and one of the few locations on Rum where a naturally developed brown earth soil is present. The small (1.5 ha), fertile location is isolated, so was also suitable for field experimentation. Visits over six years allowed dew worm distribution to be assessed within low lying grassland and woodland and also within an adjacent sloping broadleaved woodland. The factors limiting dew worm distribution at the site were investigated with associated translocation to adjacent uninhabited areas. Small scale spatial dynamics were studied with density manipulation and containment experiments where Visual Implant Elastomer marking of individuals was utilised. Translocations from streamside woodland to adjacent grassland was successful over a short period (5 months), but the colonies did not persist over a longer term (5-6 years). Field trials with earthworm tagging were successful, but highest tag recovery rate was 25%. Where adults/sub-adults were removed, recruitment of juveniles was notable. Exceptionally large (>12 g live mass) individuals were found in soils of terraces on wooded slopes, suggesting that dew worms may be long lived at this location, where food is abundant and relatively few terrestrial predators are present

17 So you want to work with the community? Principles and strategies for school leaders affecting the establishment of Aborignal language programs

16 page(s

Assessment of avoidance behaviour by earthworms (Lumbricus rubellus and Octolasion cyaneum) in laboratory-based linear pollution gradients.

Avoidance behaviour by earthworms is recognised as a valuable endpoint in soil quality assessment and has resulted in the development of a standardised test (ISO 17512-1: 2008) providing epigeic earthworms with a choice between test and control soils. This study sought to develop and evaluate an avoidance test utilising soil-dwelling earthworms in linear pollution gradients with Visible Implant Elastomer (VIE) tags used to identify individual organisms. Sequential experiments were established in laboratory-based mesocosms (0.6 m x 0.13 m x 0.1 m) that determined the relative sensitivities (in terms of associated avoidance behaviour) of Octolasion cyaneum and Lumbricus rubellus at varying levels of polluted soil and also assessed the influence of introduction point on recorded movement within gradients. In an initial gradient (0, 25, 50, 75, 100% polluted soil), both species exhibited a clear avoidance response with all surviving earthworms retrieved (after 7 days) from the unpolluted soil. In a less polluted gradient (0, 6.25, 12.5, 18.75, 25%) L. rubellus were retrieved throughout the gradient while O. cyaneum were located within the 0 and 6.25% divisions, suggesting a species-specific response to polluted soil. Results also showed that the use of a linear pollution gradient system has the potential to assess earthworm avoidance behaviour and could provide a more ecologically relevant alternative to the ISO 17512: 2008 avoidance test. However, further work is required to establish the effectiveness of this procedure, specifically in initial chemical screening and assessment of single contaminant bioavailability, where uptake of pollutants by earthworms could be measured and directly related to the point of introduction and retrieval

A pilot study on the impact of occupational therapy home programming for young children with Cerebral Palsy

Occupational therapy home programs are a common approach used to provide interventions for children with cerebral palsy, but there is little evidence to demonstrate the effectiveness of such programs. This singlegroup pretest–posttest design pilot study evaluated the impact of an occupational therapy home program implemented with 20 children who had spastic hemiplegic cerebral palsy (ages 2–7 years, mean 3.8). We measured impact using Goal Attainment Scaling (GAS), the Pediatric Evaluation of Disability Inventory (PEDI), and the Quality of Upper Extremity Skills Test (QUEST). We measured participation amount through a parent self-report log. Significant changes following intervention occured in scores on the GAS, the PEDI Functional Skills and Caregiver Assistance Scales, and the QUEST, but has found no relationship between participation amount and outcome using the same measures. These promising results suggest that further investigation of the impact of occupational therapy home programs is warranted

24 Sounds, spelling and learning to read an Aboriginal language

12 page(s

New Analysis Indicates No Thermal Inversion in the Atmosphere of HD 209458b

An important focus of exoplanet research is the determination of the atmospheric temperature structure of strongly irradiated gas giant planets, or hot Jupiters. HD 209458b is the prototypical exoplanet for atmospheric thermal inversions, but this assertion does not take into account recently obtained data or newer data reduction techniques. We re-examine this claim by investigating all publicly available Spitzer Space Telescope secondary-eclipse photometric data of HD 209458b and performing a self-consistent analysis. We employ data reduction techniques that minimize stellar centroid variations, apply sophisticated models to known Spitzer systematics, and account for time-correlated noise in the data. We derive new secondary-eclipse depths of 0.119 +/- 0.007%, 0.123 +/- 0.006%, 0.134 +/- 0.035%, and 0.215 +/- 0.008% in the 3.6, 4.5, 5.8, and 8.0 micron bandpasses, respectively. We feed these results into a Bayesian atmospheric retrieval analysis and determine that it is unnecessary to invoke a thermal inversion to explain our secondary-eclipse depths. The data are well-fitted by a temperature model that decreases monotonically between pressure levels of 1 and 0.01 bars. We conclude that there is no evidence for a thermal inversion in the atmosphere of HD 209458b.Comment: 8 pages, 5 figures; accepted for publication in Ap