Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Consent And The Subjective World Of The Worker, Marty Laubach, Michael Wallace

Sociology and Anthropology Faculty Research

Purpose: This study tests three theories of determinants of workers’ subjective response to work situations – structural factors (measured by individual, organization and job characteristics), general disposition, or informal work arrangements as constructed by Laubach’s (2005) “consent deal.”

Design/methodology/approach: Data were obtained from the Indiana Quality of Employment Survey, a survey of workers covering general working conditions. We constructed 10 models regressing worker perceptions and attitudes (e.g. satisfaction, relations with supervisors, meaningfulness) on structural determinants. We then used structural equation modeling to identify an underlying factor representing a general worker response from elements of the attitudes and perceptions. …

Trials And Triumphs: Piloting A Web Conference System To Deliver Blended Learning Across Multiple Sites, Marty Laubach, Laura J. Little

Sociology and Anthropology Faculty Research

Barriers to classroom-based education such as high gas prices, inclement weather, and job and family requirements often make travel to campus more difficult for people who want to continue their educations (Fletcher, 2008). The promise of synchronous tools such as Wimba LiveClassroom can provide a cost-effective alternative to a real-time classroom experience by allowing students to attend a class wherever they are, thus allowing a classroom experience despite geographic barriers. Indeed, other reports have also indicated that hybrid learning can result in increased student outcomes when compared to traditional classroom learning (Brunner, 2006; McFarlin, 2008). To attempt to overcome these …

The Practitioner, The Priest, And The Professor: Perspectives On Self-Initiation In The American Neopagan Community, Marty Laubach, Louis Martinie’, Roselinda Clemons

Sociology and Anthropology Faculty Research

Initiation is a religious practice that is generally understood as involving socialization and acceptance into a religious community, but American Neopaganism, with its emphasis on individualism and autonomy, has evolved a meaning that challenges that simple understanding. American Neopagan communities are marketplaces of ideas that are comprised of groups and solo practitioners, all in interaction in which they might conduct main holidays together, but not necessarily work together in what they would consider more “serious” practices in which they receive the spirit communications with which they develop the ideas. Among groups, these practices include initiations through which candidates are trained …

The Epistemology Of Esoteric Culture: Spiritual Claim-Making Within The American Neopagan Community, Marty Laubach

Sociology and Anthropology Faculty Research

Non-institutionalised religious communities within western esotericism, such as New Age or Neopagan subcultures, are dynamic marketplaces for knowledge construction that may appear to be chaotic and governed only by the rule of caveat emptor. However, a close examination reveals authorization processes developing along similar lines as those followed by scientific empiricism during the seventeenth century. Claims of esoteric knowledge are developed from psychism experiences, and are authenticated by examining the claimant’s social standing, the narrative structure of the claim and the interests of the claimant and the judge. Such claims are authorized by incorporation into collective action, publications, workshops and …

Consent, Informal Organization, And Job Rewards: A Mixed Methods Analysis, Marty Laubach

Sociology and Anthropology Faculty Research

This study uses a mixed methods approach to workplace dynamics. Ethnographic observations show that the consent deal underlies an informal stratification that divides the workplace into an “informal periphery,” a “conventional core,” and an “administrative clan.” The “consent deal” is defined as an exchange of autonomy, voice, and schedule flexibility for intensified commitment, and is modeled as a single factor underlying these elements. When constructed as an additive scale, consent allows informal organization to be included in workplace models. Despite its derivation from subjective and informal processes, informal structure exerts an independent effect on objective job rewards such as wages.

The Social Effects Of Psychism: Spiritual Experience And The Construction Of Privatized Religion, Marty Laubach

Sociology and Anthropology Faculty Research

What is the relationship between spiritual experiences and privatized religion? This study defines spiritual experiences in terms of “psychism,” or psychic intrusions in the stream of consciousness that are not perceived by the actor as originating within the “self.” Intrusions interpreted as psychism are regarded by the actor as having the same facticity as empirical experience and are regarded as “proof” of an esoteric belief system. Psychism originated beliefs are therefore resistant to refutation or change, and support spiritual autonomy. Psychism theory is tested using 1988 GSS data on religious beliefs, where psychism is measured using GSS questions on “paranormal” …

Structural Identity Theory And The Dynamics Of Cross-Cultural Work Groups, P. Christopher Earley, Marty Laubach

Sociology and Anthropology Faculty Research

The creation of a global village, transnational corporations, internet and similar influences remind us constantly that a science of organizations and management is incomplete without the integration of concepts of culture and self-awareness. It is no longer appropriate to discuss organizational activities and employee actions without incorporating a more complete view of where such activities take place. Not only must we include an immediate social context, but we must deal with the international and cultural aspects of the social world as well. More than ever, understanding of employee action requires knowledge of how action is related to the environment in …