HR practices, commitment, job performance and early retirement among older employees with an on average low occupational status

This study examined the influence of the perception of the quality of HR practices on job performance, commitment and a preference for early retirement among older employees, with an average low occupational status in the creative industry in the Netherlands, This study has adopted a mixed-methods approach, using both surveys and semi-structured interviews. Using the principles underlying social exchange theory, it was expected that perceived quality of HR practices would have a positive relationship with job performance and affective organizational commitment and a negative relationship with a preference for early retirement. Perceived quality of certain HR practices seemed to have a positive relationship with job performance and affective organizational commitment. However, in contradiction with the social exchange theory, perceived quality of HR practices was found to be unrelated to a preference for early retirement. An explanation of this lmexpected finding arose from the qualitative study: older employees perceive the provision of HR practices for older employees as a stamp that they now belong to this devalued social group, which can be explained by the social identity theory. It was found that for older employees with an average low occupational status personal factors like finances and health strongly influenced the retirement decision. On the organizational level, flexibility, communication and a mentality change towards older employees seemed important in this decision. The qualitative study could explain the unexpected findings of the quantitative study, showing the contribution of a mixed-methods, approach. Theoretically, this raises the question whether social exchange theory applies to older employees with an average low occupational status and shows that the social identity theory better explains the relationship between perceived quality of HR practices and a preference for early retirement

Sexual harassment in the creative industries

Women often have to consider it 'part of the job' and tolerate it if they want to get ahead professionally, write Sophie Hennekam and Dawn Bennet

Breadwinner vs caretaker: the pandemic’s potential gender implications for families

COVID may intensify gender roles for some, but over time some men and women may be forced to reinvent their roles, write Sophie Hennekam and Yuliya Shymk

Creating a career as a woman composer: Implications for music in higher education

Recent decades have seen gender and feminist research emerge as major fields of enquiry in musicology and to a far lesser extent, music education. While these fields have increased awareness of the issues confronting women and other marginalised groups, the pedagogical practices and curricular design that might support aspiring women composers are in urgent need of attention. This article reports from an international survey of women composers (n=225), who in western art music continue to experience a masculine bias that has its roots in the past. The findings in the survey were focused on income, work and learning, relationships and networks, and gender. Numerous composers surveyed noted the under-representation of music composed by women in their higher education curricula. They also described their unpreparedness for a career in music. The article explores the issue of gender in music composition and makes practical recommendations for a more gender balanced music curriculum in higher education

Self-authorship and creative industries workers’ career decision-making

Career decision-making is arguably at its most complex within professions where work is precarious and career calling is strong. This article reports from a study that examined the career decision-making of creative industries workers, for whom career decisions can impact psychological well-being and identity just as much as they impact individuals’ work and career. The respondents were 693 creative industries workers who used a largely open-ended survey to create in-depth reflections on formative moments and career decision-making. Analysis involved the theoretical model of self-authorship, which provides a way of understanding how people employ their sense of self to make meaning of their experiences. The self-authorship process emerged as a complex, non-linear and consistent feature of career decision-making. Theoretical contributions include a non-linear view of self-authorship that exposes the authorship of visible and covert multiple selves prompted by both proactive and reactive identity work

Erratum: Evaluation of DNA Methylation Episignatures for Diagnosis and Phenotype Correlations in 42 Mendelian Neurodevelopmental Disorders (The American Journal of Human Genetics (2020) 106(3) (356–370), (S0002929720300197), (10.1016/j.ajhg.2020.01.019))

(The American Journal of Human Genetics 106, 356–370; March 5, 2020) In the version of this paper originally published, the underlying cause for Hunter McAlpine syndrome was incorrectly described in Table 1. The relevant description has been changed to read “Chr5q35-qter duplication involving NSD1” in the updated Table 1 reflected here. The authors apologize for this error

Evaluation of DNA Methylation Episignatures for Diagnosis and Phenotype Correlations in 42 Mendelian Neurodevelopmental Disorders.

Genetic syndromes frequently present with overlapping clinical features and inconclusive or ambiguous genetic findings which can confound accurate diagnosis and clinical management. An expanding number of genetic syndromes have been shown to have unique genomic DNA methylation patterns (called episignatures ). Peripheral blood episignatures can be used for diagnostic testing as well as for the interpretation of ambiguous genetic test results. We present here an approach to episignature mapping in 42 genetic syndromes, which has allowed the identification of 34 robust disease-specific episignatures. We examine emerging patterns of overlap, as well as similarities and hierarchical relationships across these episignatures, to highlight their key features as they are related to genetic heterogeneity, dosage effect, unaffected carrier status, and incomplete penetrance. We demonstrate the necessity of multiclass modeling for accurate genetic variant classification and show how disease classification using a single episignature at a time can sometimes lead to classification errors in closely related episignatures. We demonstrate the utility of this tool in resolving ambiguous clinical cases and identification of previously undiagnosed cases through mass screening of a large cohort of subjects with developmental delays and congenital anomalies. This study more than doubles the number of published syndromes with DNA methylation episignatures and, most significantly, opens new avenues for accurate diagnosis and clinical assessment in individuals affected by these disorders

Further delineation of Malan syndrome

Malan syndrome is an overgrowth disorder described in a limited number of individuals. We aim to delineate the entity by studying a large group of affected individuals. We gathered data on 45 affected individuals with a molecularly confirmed diagnosis through an international collaboration and compared data to the 35 previously reported individuals. Results indicate that height is > 2 SDS in infancy and childhood but in only half of affected adults. Cardinal facial characteristics include long, triangular face, macrocephaly, prominent forehead, everted lower lip, and prominent chin. Intellectual disability is universally present, behaviorally anxiety is characteristic. Malan syndrome is caused by deletions or point mutations of NFIX clustered mostly in exon 2. There is no genotype-phenotype correlation except for an increased risk for epilepsy with 19p13.2 microdeletions. Variants arose de novo, except in one family in which mother was mosaic. Variants causing Malan and Marshall-Smith syndrome can be discerned by differences in the site of stop codon formation. We conclude that Malan syndrome has a well recognizable phenotype that usually can be discerned easily from Marshall–Smith syndrome but rarely there is some overlap. Differentiation from Sotos and Weaver syndrome can be made by clinical evaluation only

Factors Influencing Retirement among Older Employees with a Low Occupational Status

International audienceThis study examined the factors that influence the retirement decision of older employees with a low occupational status in the creative industry in the Netherlands. Thirty semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted by telephone. The sample existed of employees with a low occupational status, aged 50 or above, in the creative industry in the Netherlands. All participants were member of the trade union of this industry. It was found that non-organizational factors play a more important role than organizational factors, such as HRM practices. Three key factors have been identified that might prevent older employees from retiring: a mentality change that is more welcoming towards older employees, a workplace that is highly flexible in the broadest sense of the concept, and regular open communication between the organization and its employees. The findings show that a welcoming mentality towards older employees, greater flexibility, and enhanced communication were found to strongly influence the retirement decision of older employees with a low occupational status