The economic crisis and Hospitality Industry in EU Essay Example for Free

The economic crisis and Hospitality Industry in EU Essay The report prepared on the Economic crisis and the hospitality industry in Europe, is an attempt to have an insight on the major reasons responsible for the economic crisis in the European Hospitality sector. It also takes the attentions towards the effective and strong measures taken by the Nation at the EU level and the national level to survive during the bad economy time. It was identified that the option of reducing their operating costs was one of major strategies followed by the enterprises in the tourism sector of Europe, along with this the economic crisis gave a strong reason for the small enterprises to review their business methodologies so as to be able to manage their business during the crisis period and also to increase the ratio of their profitability in the future times to come. The European Hospitality sector has survived in the year 2009 and it is pacing towards the recovery path in the current year. Studies reveal that the European hospitality industry will be able to stabilise itself by year 2011 and it is sure that Europe will definitely be able to bring back its economy as they all stand united at times of need. Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said â€Å"Yes, Europe has the unity, the confidence and determination to win this battle†. Introduction Global economy crisis has left no sector untouched but it can be argued and debated over that the most adversely affected sector in Europe is the entertainment and tourism sector. In other words, we can straight away state that Europe’s Hospitality industry is the most badly hit sector in the economic crisis. The prime reason related with this is that the leisure and tourism get immediately and easily affected with the economic fluctuations going on in any country or location. Almost all the travel activities require an optimal amount of expenditure to be made by an individual for the fun, entertainment and relaxation of his family or friends and people are comfortable spending money for fun only at the favourable economic times. At the time of recession or the economic crisis, they would rather prefer to save their money for the unforeseen hard times that they might have to face in their future time to come. Thus they might consider saving their extra money for their basic necessities like shelter, food and other family requirements. Although, this does not mean that people stop travelling completely but their frequency of travelling might get a bit down because of the economic fluctuation and the tourists and travellers might adapt the idea of spending bit less on travel than their planned expenditure. Experts state that the tourism and hospitality business that can adapt to the situation that they can provide the best quality of services and customer satisfaction on a tighter budget too can only survive at the time of economic crisis. There is a possibility that the customers/travellers do not expect luxurious kind of services but would be interested if they get the low cost services and this fundamental fits perfectly to the airline and the hospitality industry of Europe, too. Trevor J Ward, Managing Director, W Hospitality Group, told that there has been a loss of confidence in the whole banking system in Europe, which has reduced lending to businesses and individuals, and this reduction in credit is affecting businesses and consumers alike. The fall in the house prices has affected the other business activities and consumer spending too and it has in a way affected the European hotel industry. HOTREC (Confederation of the National Hotel and Restaurant Associations in the EC) HOTREC is the name for the trade association of hotels, restaurants and cafes in Europe. They have combined together 40 national hospitality associations in around 24 countries across Europe. European hospitality industry comprises of almost 9. 5 million workers having network of Around 1. 7 million enterprises. HOTREC works towards the objective to promote the hospitality industry in Europe. Their motive of execution is to create more number of jobs for the European people and thus boost the economy of Europe by enabling the hotels, restaurants and cafes to create more job opportunities. HOTREC works extensively towards achieving a competitive and stable tourism industry in Europe. All the policies are made and implemented by HOTREC with the vision to encourage the creation of environment positive for the development of the hospitality sector. The Economic crisis and the hospitality industry The economic crisis has left no sector untouched and so the European hospitality industry is no less affected with this economic crisis. There are various zones or segments of the tourism industry that has got badly hit with this crisis. It has directly affected the business travels which were quite frequent in Europe and was a key contributor in the profit earning of the European hotels and cafes but with this crisis the industry has seen tremendous fall down in the business travel of the people coming to Europe. Not only the business travels, but the business events like the conferences, the presentations and the seminars which were quite in trend in Europe also got severely affected with the economic crisis and this again has brought the profitability graph of the European Hotels and cafes. It is true that the although the industry has experienced a slowdown in the business travels and the business events, people are still trying to figure out the best deals in the lowest possible rates that fit to their budget and serve their purpose too as they are able to let their business function smoothly irrespective of this economic crisis. They also try to find out the hotels which can provide them with the basic services without asking them to pay a hefty amount for their stay in the hotel. In a survey conducted by DLA PIPER 2009, the respondents were asked the major reasons for their lack of confidence in the Europeans hospitality industry during this economic crisis and the survey consisted of a couple of questionnaires like the Struggling European economy, Lack of liquidity, Current operating performance of hotels, Time and cost restraints on consumer travel, Reduced business travel, Lack of confidence in Europe’s political leaders, Struggling US economy etc. Around 43% of the people considered lack of liquidity and almost 33% considered the struggling European economy to be the major contributors to the rapid downfall in the confidence level. A study stated that out of many other reasons required to cope up with the effect of economic crisis in the hospitality industry in Europe the low cost of credit can be considered to be an effective step fighting against the crisis of funds and it is believed that the European commercial banks will be the most active type of lender in the European hospitality industry in the coming year as they will work towards lowering their cost of credit and thus it will be beneficial to the hospitality sector which is struggling due to the economic crisis. Data about European Hospitality industry This question is of major concern that that how long will this economic crisis go and how will all the European sectors survive in this bad economy when the entire world is getting affected with this global economic crisis. Despite other sectors, the European hotel industry is getting severely hit with this crisis and this can be well understood by the data illustrated below. An analysis done by IMF, stated that Europe’s biggest economy, Germany will get severely affected during this crisis with a 5. 6-percent GDP decline in 2009 and a 1. 0-percent dip in 2010, while the GDP in the euro area, completely is expected to be going down to 4. 2 percent in 2009 and 0. 4 percent in 2010. The data reveals that the GDP rate will go down by 1. 5% in last quarter of the year as compared to the third quarter which is definitely a sign of concern and effective steps required to be taken to come out of this problem. Talking about the unemployment figures in the European hospitality sector in the year 2009, as compared to the numbers of year 2008, the statistics show that there will be a rise in the unemployment from 6,8% to 7,6% in EU27 and it will go up from 7,2% to 8,2% in Euro area. It is a matter of great concern and worry for the government of any country when they are experiencing a steady downfall in their GDP and their graph of unemployment is going high in any of its business sectors and that calls for the time when they all need to unite together to fight against this severe crisis as this is the indication of a very big crisis for that particular nation and the data clearly states that Europe is struggling badly with this situation and needs remedial measures which are effective enough to bring Europe’s hospitality industry to come out of this situation. The data also describes that there has been a visible drop in the European economic sentiment indicator which is also an important reason of the low confidence in the European hospitality industry. Figures state that the Economic Sentiment indicator, in short termed as ESI went down by 2. 2 points while it was earlier stable at 61. 0 points during Janaury-09 –February 09 in EU27. While it went down from 65. 4 points to 63. 6 points thus showing a downfall of 1,8 points in the Euro area. When the entire globe is suffering from this problem of recession and bad economy, Europe is also facing the hit back in the tourism industry. A study revealed that the tourism prospects in the year 2009, for European cities will be a stage of stagnation or it may even go down by around 3% than the earlier times and figures. A survey conducted by Deloitte and Touche on the European hotels revealed that the occupancy rate of rooms in the hotels of Europe went down from 69. 3% in the year 2007 to 66. 9% in the year 2008. Although all the major cities of Europe have suffered due to this crisis but the most badly affected cities are Rome, Dublin and Prague. According to the Eurobarometer survey conducted on the 27,000 tourists coming to 27 EU countries for their holidays with family and friends in the year 2009 , the study reflected that around 1/3 of the people stated that there has been a drastic change in the plans which they make for their travel and leisure by decreasing their accommodation cost budget, out of which around 38% belonged to the category of completely swiping out the option of going to Europe for their holidays, others stated that there will be no change in their cost of accommodation budget due to this economic crisis. The study also stated that to fight against this crisis and still not completely go away with their idea of going on holidays, they would rather do little bit of adjustments and comprises to fit the holiday budget to their pocket. 15% of the surveyors stated that they would save on accommodation, 23% mentioned that they would prefer to go on vacation in the low season when the prices will automatically come down and they do not need to cut down on their estimated budget, 23% mentioned that they would try to cut down on their restaurant expenses and 30% mentioned to cut down their shopping budget to manage their vacation and enjoy with their families and friends. Economic Crisis with low confidence The Economic crisis when followed with the lowering of confidence in any sector becomes a reason of great concern and worry for the government of any nation and the situations like this needs an immediate attention and plan of action as if it is not dealt in time it may lead to adverse consequences for the economy of any nation. Such thing was experienced by the European hospitality industry in the year 2009. The data gathered by DLA Piper 2009, Europe Hospitality Outlook survey on the reasons of low confidence on the European hospitality industry during the time of economic crisis were found to be Struggling European economy, current operating performance of hotels, time and cost restraints on consumer travel, Lack of liquidity (debt or equity), Struggling US economy, Reduced business travel and last but not the least Lack of confidence in Europe’s political leaders. A survey done by DLA Piper’s 2009 Europe Hospitality Outlook Survey stated that almost 84 % of participants consider the European hospitality market to be bearish. Majority of the participants of the survey did not expect the European hospitality industry to come back to its original state until year 2011. Almost 70% of the people have cut down on their business travel due to the economic crisis. The survey also tried to gather numbers regarding the investment options in the European hotel industry and it found that around 71% of respondents believe that investment in Sustainable hotel development is a long-term trend. And there is a widespread risk of bankruptcy for European hotel chains. The major concern of the participants was the clause passed by EU Parliament regarding the potential removal of an EU country’s right to opt-out from the Working Time Directive which limits to an employee’s working hours to forty eight hours only. They mentioned this to be a very strong reason to put a negative impact on the European hospitality industry. Recovery Plans of European Hospitality Industry It is a fact that the European hospitality industry, along with the other sectors has suffered major setbacks in the year 2009 due to the economic crisis and this can be well described and understood by the data gathered by DLA Piper 2009, Europe Hospitality Outlook survey. The survey revealed that almost 84% of the participants mentioned the European hospitality market to be the bearish one when queried regarding their confidence in the European economy they stated Expected rebound of European economy, Foreign investment in European market, Abundance of equity capital available for investment, Expected rebound of US economy, Investment opportunities created by financial crisis and Confidence in Europe’s political leaders as the factors that in any situation will let the European hospitality industry come out of any such crisis in the present time and in the future times to come. European hospitality industry along with the major tourism associations like WTTC, UNWTO, HOTREC and PASTA are quite optimistic towards the idea that European hospitality sector will be able to cope up with this economic crisis and will easily survive this hard economic time. European tourism sector has faced a lot of obstacles till the time it has reached the 21st Century and developed such face of tourism for the entire world. Although, it is a true fact that this sector will go through hard times in the next coming months but the enterprises which are flexible enough to adapt to the required business model and plan their strategies keeping in mind the existing scenario will easily be able to survive and develop a strong platform for their existence in the long run in the European Hospitality industry. The recovery plan to successfully face the problem of economic crisis has been divided into a few segments or divisions so as to leave no stone unturned to fight with this scenario and bring back the economy to its stable state. It was segmented as 1. Recovery at EU level 2. Recovery at National Level We will discuss in brief the steps and measures taken at both the levels to beat the Economic crisis. 1. Recovery at EU level The European government considered dealing with the economic crisis quite seriously and so they planned the various meetings of the EU heads of State. They all mutually agreed upon following three lines of actions so as to come out of this situation. First one was to promote the financial stability in such a way that the confidence level of the people gets a boost again on the government along with the European Economy which is badly affected with the economic crisis. Second plan of action was to get the real economy to the shape where it was earlier, and third one was the most important one. It was to stay tightly united to fight against the crisis and to work together at the global level. The third measure sounded bit simple to sate but it was the most effective plan of action to get out of such a critical situation. Several measures were taken by the Government at the EU level out of which one measure specifically taken by the EU state with regards to the hospitality industry was to change the existing VAT Rate system. The new provision stated that all the member states will be granted the permission to apply for a reduced VAT Rate for the restaurant services. The current provision had this option to only 11 members so now this will be applicable to all the member states in EU.

Edward Hallet Carrs Arguments In What Is History?

Edward Hallet Carrs Arguments In What Is History? Introduction This essay attempts to review Edward Hallet Carrs (1892-1982) arguments in his book What is History? According to Carr, history is a continual process of interaction; a dialogue between the historian in the present and the facts of the past and the relative weight of individuals and social elements on both sides of the equation. Advocating the adoption of a suitable philosophy to the approach of writing history, in terms of selecting, distinguishing and interpreting historical fact, Carr elucidates that great history is written when the historians view of the past is illuminated by insights into the conditions of the present. In addition to continually asking why, the historian also needs to project into the future. This essay attempts to understand Carrs views on objectivity, truth and narrative in the arguments put forth in his book What is History? and the assessment of his arguments by other historians. H.E. Carrs Arguments on What is History In his arguments on What is History? Carr sets out the following premise. History is a continual dialogue between the past and the present; an interaction between the historian and his facts. Establishing the criteria for selecting historical fact, Carr argues that fact itself is insufficient and must be correctly and truthfully interpreted. To arrive at a correct interpretation and factual account of history, a historian must continually question why and whither, as history in essence is change. Carr also underlines the fact that historians, as individuals, cannot be divested from the society they live in. A proper philosophy to the approach of history is thus essential for the historian. Each era or century has its own interpretation of what history is. As a social process, history is an interaction between the past and the present and between the society of today and yesterday. History according to Carr contains a corpus of ascertained facts and these are available to the historian in documents. He however asserts that fact without accurate interpretation is ineffectual. To understand this, one has to first distinguish historical fact from other facts in the past. Carr discusses historical fact in light of the Empirical or Common Sense View of History. There are certain basic facts that are the same for all historians and which form the backbone of history. These facts, however, form the raw material for the historian, rather than history itself. The necessity to verify the truth of these basic facts rests on a priori decision by the historian. Whilst accuracy of such facts is a necessary, a historian must also rely on the auxiliary sciences of history archaeology, epigraphy, numismatics, chronology amongst others. A historian like any other scientist must continually ask the question why. The question whither also assumes importance, since the line of demarcation between pre-historic and historical times is eclipsed when people cease to live only in the present and become consciously interested in their past and future. However, Carr also reveals that as a social being the historian is naturally and inclined to be selective of the facts he chooses. Our picture of the past has been preselected and predetermined for us by people who consciously or unconsciously imbued a particular view and saw those facts as worthy of preserving. Carr likens history to an enormous jigsaw puzzle with many missing parts. A lacunae in the historical facts of 5th century Greece B.C has arisen due to one sided view of Greece from the Athenian citizen. Hardly any information is available on how it looked to other citizens like the Spartan, Corinthian, Theban or even a slave. The 19th century fetishism of facts was complemented by an equal fetishism for documents. However, none of this means anything unless the author has actually deciphered and processed the facts found in these documents before making use of them. Carr defines the method the historian makes use of facts as the processing process. The Stresemanns Vermà ¤ch tnis volume is one such illustration of the selectiveness of historians. Sometimes mere fact about the past is transformed into history. For example while the Battle of Hastings 1066 is an important historical event, it is the historian who decides the whether the inclusion of Caesars crossing of the Rubicon is a relevant historical fact. Or the mention of the murder of a ginger bread vendor at Stalybridge Wakes in 1850 is equally relevant. Their status as historical facts will depend on their interpretation. Correct and truthful interpretation of historical fact is equally important stresses Carr. Facts are like fish swimming about in a vast and sometimes inaccessible ocean. What the historian catches will depend largely on which part of the ocean he is fishing and what fish he intends to catch. The ancient or mediaeval historian may be grateful for the large winnowing process which has over the years put a manageable corpus of facts at their disposal. The modern historian on the other hand has the dual task of discovering a few significant facts and discarding the insignificant ones as unhistorical. Each historian belongs to his own age and is bound to it by the conditions of human existence. An understanding of the past can be achieved by an insight into present conditions. The choice of words for example democracy, empire or war, are connotations linked to the historians specific time in history. Similarly, over the years, a change in the balance of power, world wars and other movements have also influenced historical writing. French history in the latter twentieth century was deeply affected by the Russian Revolution of 1917. Carr advises historians that equal importance should be given to the date and publication of writing as the name of the author when commencing on a study. Carr states it is imperative that the author should neither dwell solely on the past nor disassociate totally from it, but master and understands it, as the key to understanding the present. The reconstitution of the past in the historians mind is dependent on empirical evidence, but is not in itself an empirical process as facts do not speak for themselves. The process of reconstitution governs the selection and interpretation of facts. This indeed is what makes them historical facts. The facts of history are never handed down to us in a pure form clarifies Carr. They are always refracted through the mind of the recorder. When a historian takes up a work of history, the authors first concern should not be with the facts, but rather an understanding of the historians who wrote it and their back ground. To appreciate the work of the English Liberal Historian, Trevelyan England under Queen Anne, one must interpret it against the background of his traditional Whig historian lineage. To appreciate the thoughts behind peoples action, Carr exhorts historian to cultivate an imaginative understanding of the minds of people they are dealing with for a correct interpretation of historical fact. Historians must necessarily cultivate an objective approach to history asserts Carr. The duty of the historian to respect fact cannot be overshadowed by the obligation to see that the facts are accurate. The historian must seek to bring into the picture all known or knowable facts, relevant in one sense or the other to the theme and the interpretation proposed. History is meaningless in a static world affirms Carr. History in its essence is change reveals Carr. It is meaningless in a static world. A society which loses its belief in its capacity to move into the future will quickly cease to concern itself with its progress in the past. History can be accurately written by those who find and accept a sense of direction in history itself. Whilst writing history, two processes must go hand in hand input and output, states Carr. Working historians must stop and reflect what they are doing. The historian can thus effectively mould facts to his interpretation. Speaking from his own experience, Carr reveals that the process of reading and writing are simultaneous exercises for him. The writing is added to and subtracted from as he goes along. He found that his reading was more guided and directed by the writing as he went along. Assessment of Carrs Arguments Since its publication in 1961 E.H. Carrs What is History? the book established itself as a classic reference on the subject.  [1]  Yet despite its widespread recognition, many inner flaws and contradictions have surfaced, sparking several debates on Carr supposition of What is History? Whilst rejecting the crude and rigid re-constructionist stance of the empiricist, Carr as a political constructionist historian has failed to visualise the post modern challenge to the distinction between fact and fiction in historical narrative and the influence of root metaphors.  [2]  His epistemological position is revealed through his scepticism about the nature and status of historical knowledge and sociology of knowledge. (Alan Munslow). Over the years there have been disagreements about Carrs contribution to the analytical philosophy of history, shadowing the distinction between re-constructionism and constructionism.  [3]   Authors Anders Stephanson and Rendall Germain in their appraisal conclude that Carrs answers to the questions he has set about history are in themselves unsatisfactory. Another writer, Keith Jenkins underlines the futility of Carrs empirical-analytical concept particularly in light of the post modern challenges.  [4]  Carr devalues his currency of re-constructionist theory, by his ultimate acceptance of the epistemological model of historical explanation as the best method to create and evaluate historical thought.  [5]   Exploring Carrs epistemological claim to radicalism and his insistence that a historian cannot divorce himself from the outlook and interests of his age, Historian Alan Munslow, highlights the fact that today with greater awareness of the weakness of representation, reference and inductive inference, a larger part of historical writing is based on the supposition that we cannot know any absolute truths about the past. Whilst acknowledging Carrs attention to the discursive nature of historical facts, Historian Alex Callinicos refutes Carrs opinion that the importance of empirical evidence diminishes since the facts of history are refracted through the mind of the historian.  [6]  Rather this premise gives rise to the question of the historians subjective bearing on the facts. Carr drops his objectivist anchor when he argues that Historian Collingwoods logic of sceptical position leads to the idea that there is no certainty in historical meaning and that the discourses of historians, or what Carr termed as total scepticism, like something spun out a human brain, suggests that there could be no objective truth in historical writing.  [7]  Supporting his own belief in the power of empiricism, Carrexplicitly rejected Nietzches notion that historical truth is defined by fitness of purpose. This misguiding percept excludes the possibility that one interpretation is as good as another.  [8]   While confirming the necessity of a continual interaction between the historian and his facts, Carr was unwilling to acknowledge that the written historical fact could possibly be a work of fiction.  [9]  He overlooks the reality that new evidence and new theory can offer new interpretations. Carrs epistemological theory of knowledge argues that the past is known from its evidence and remains so whilst being introduced in the historical narrative.  [10]   For example, Carrs argument that facts are a priori decision of the historian, and that the historians influence on and the arrangement of these facts is what constitutes historical meaning. However, this gives rise to the risk of subjectivity and the outcome may not be an accurate representation of the evidence.  [11]   Carr pulls back from relativism which his own logic has thrust him into. Aware that he is running a post empiricist wind, he rejects Collingwoods demand for the emphatic and constructive approach and cites another historian who accepts the model of dialogue between past and present, while keeping an objective point of view. This profile of a historian is affirmed by the American Commentators Joyce Appleby, Lynn Hunt and Margaret Jacob who repacked Carrs position as practical realism.  [12]   Carr uses his objectivist angle to underplay the problems of historical form.  [13]  He does this by arguing that the standard for objectivity in history is the historians sense of the direction in history, which means the historian selects facts not on personal bias, but on the ability to choose the right facts, or, in other words, that he applies the right standard of significance.  [14]   Carrs objective historian is one who has the ability to see beyond the inadequate vision of his own position in society and history and at the same time has the ability to visualise the future to give him a more in depth and enduring understanding of the past.  [15]   The objective historian is also one who penetrates most deeply into the mutual method of fact and value, who recognises that facts and values are not necessarily in opposition to differences in standards emerging from disparity of historical fact, and vice versa. An objective historian also understands the boundaries of historical theory. Carrs insists that the objective historian should develop the habit of reading and interpreting the evidence at the same time. However, appropriate social theory precludes presumption or series of connected presumptions, of how people in the past acted intentionally and related to their social contexts.  [16]   Conclusion In his book What is History? H E Carr lays out the premises for conducting a correct approach and philosophy to writing history. History according to Carr is a continuous dialogue between the past and present and a continual interaction between the historian and the facts, for a correct interpretation and accurate recording of facts. It is constantly changing. It is important therefore for the historian to develop a proper philosophy of history before undertaking a study, where historical fact, the criteria for selection of, and their factual interpretation are of vital importance. Carrs arguments about objectivity and his epistemological theory of knowledge have been widely criticised by empiricist as well as the social theory historians. His failure to visualise post modern challenge to the distinction between fact and fiction in historical narrative and his inclination towards post-empiricism despite his claims to radicalism have reduced the currency of his re-constructionist theory.

Docter Faustus Essay -- essays research papers

The truth that ambition and desire for material objects does not always satisfy the soul is a major theme depicted in Christopher Marlowe’s Doctor Faustus. The poem on page 93, lines 96-113 is the essence of this theme. It describes Faustus meeting, what he believes, is the icon of perfection. This perfection is a mere human women, yet, to Faustus, she is worth his life. Marlowe’s use of syntax and diction, allusions and references, and other literary devices throughout this monologue give support to the theme while adding rich symbolic images. The first example of diction in the monologue is the use of the saying, "the face that launched a thousand ships" (l. 96). This is a commonly applied expression when speaking about Helen of Troy. Throughout the play, Faustus fluctuates between the use of advanced and lesser vocabulary. Here, he is so shocked by Helen’s beauty that he knows nothing else but this typical phrase. This implies that Faustus is in a state of hypnosis. He is taken over by Helen’s beauty, and in the process, loses his soul. Another illustration of the trance Faustus is in, is by the use of alliteration in the first two lines of the poem. This device causes the reader to read the lines more slowly. The pronunciation of words in a moderate fashion suggests this trance, and makes the rest of the passage more comprehensible. In contrast to the first two lines, the rest of the section can be read more easily and therefore, faster. Few caesuras are utilized in this part, making the para graph flow better. The quick pace of the these lines indicate excitement on Faustus’ part. If this is the case, it is understandable how he loses his soul without resistance. The last line is brought back to a slower pace. The word "paramour" lends itself to a laggard pronunciation, which enforces Faustus’ realization that his soul has been taken. This is all due to Marlowe’s choice of words and sentence structure. Because the reader can experience Faustus’ state of mind through the writing, they can relate to the upcoming circumstances. Faustus’ excitement of the need for the material aspects of life, lead to his downfall. Allusions and references also add to the comprehension and depth of this piece. Many references are made to familiar Greek mythology characters, including Paris, Menelaus, Achilles, Jupiter, ... ...ted at as being a demon, their kiss makes him cursed. In the Catholic church, relations with a demon is unpardonable, and in turn kills any chance of Faustus being redeemed by G-d. Because he wanted Helen for her material beauty, he had to sacrifice his soul. When he finally does sacrifice his life to Helen he gives a brief cry for help. He underestimates the damage he has done and screams, "Her lips suck forth my soul. See where it flies" (l. 99)! He returns to her asking her to kiss him again, soon forgetting the damage he has done. This example of a litotie is contrasted with Faustus’ hyperbole of Helen’s magnificence. The juxtaposition of these concepts against each other prove that Faustus cared little for his spiritual body, and more for Helen – the material body. Marlowe’s use of strong literary devices in lines 96-113 on page 93 greatly supported the theme that only striving for material objects will only lead to harm. Faustus exemplified this theme in his Helen of Troy monologue, where he asked for her in return for his soul. In the end, Helen took Faustus’ soul, leaving him with neither, the material pleasures, nor a spiritually complete life.

Historical Development of Law Enforcement Essay -- essays research pap

Since 27 B.C. law enforcement has been used by humans as a means to defend property and keep peace. Law enforcement has been changing ever since it was created. It will keep changing for the greater good of the community as long is there is a continual need for law enforcement. According to REAL POLICE. (N.D.) Para 5, the first organized police force was created by the great nephew of Julius Caesar, Gaius Octavius in 27 B.C. These men were called Vigiles. The Vigiles were armed with wooden clubs and small swords. They were formed to perform two duties, fight fires in the city and arrest law breakers. The prefect of the Vigiles became a powerful man. He had the ability to judge and sentence lawbreakers. In 1200 A.D., English law enforcement evolved into agents called bailiffs. These men were the original peace keepers. They stood night watches to spot thieves and fires. The bailiffs were not tasked with crime prevention, but merely to alert the sleeping public and create a posse to deal with any situation. They worked by staying in one place, a post, and listening for cries of distress from the public. If a cry was heard, the bailiff would bang on every door he could to gather up the townspeople. Once a posse was formed, it would search the city for the law violator. Once the violator was found, a fair trial was not offered. The posses would usually beat or kill the person it suspected committed the crime. This process of gathering the townspeople to punish a crime was called the hue and cry method (Schmalleger, 2005). In the 1600’s, American colonies used a law enforcement system like England’s. The colonies used the hue and cry method along with a night watch (bailiff). The mid 1600’s slight improvements ... ... Local law enforcement, known as municipal law, has the largest number of employees. Local law also has the largest amount of precincts. In 2000, 12,666 police departments employed 566,000 people. Local law enforcement is made up of police officers you see on a daily basis driving around town. Schmalleger (2005). Much has changed since Gaius Octavius created the Vigiles in 27 B.C. Law enforcement has come from posses beating criminals to specializing into three distinct jurisdictions. History has shown that law enforcement must change with the times. Refrences Schmalleger, F. (2005). Criminal Justice Today : An Introductory Text for the 21st Century (8th ed.). Upper Saddle River, Pearson Prentice Hall. Unknown (2001). Real Police, History of Police. PG# 1-11 International Association of Women Police (N.D.).Past and Present, 1915-today. PG# 1-4

Relation of Group Performance to Age

Journal of Applied Psychology 2008, Vol. 93, No. 2, 392– 423 Copyright 2008 by the American Psychological Association 0021-9010/08/$12. 00 DOI: 10. 1037/0021-9010. 93. 2. 392 The Relationship of Age to Ten Dimensions of Job Performance Thomas W. H. Ng The University of Hong Kong Daniel C. Feldman The University of Georgia Previous reviews of the literature on the relationship between age and job performance have largely focused on core task performance but have paid much less attention to other job behaviors that also contribute to productivity.The current study provides an expanded meta-analysis on the relationship between age and job performance that includes 10 dimensions of job performance: core task performance, creativity, performance in training programs, organizational citizenship behaviors, safety performance, general counterproductive work behaviors, workplace aggression, on-the-job substance use, tardiness, and absenteeism. Results show that although age was largely unrelated to core task performance, creativity, and performance in training programs, it demonstrated stronger relationships with the other 7 performance dimensions.Results also highlight that the relationships of age with core task performance and with counterproductive work behaviors are curvilinear in nature and that several sample characteristics and data collection characteristics moderate age–performance relationships. The article concludes with a discussion of key research design issues that may further knowledge about the age–performance relationship in the future. Keywords: age, aging, older workers, job performance, meta-analysisAccording to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median age of the American workforce has been increasing over the last 30 years—35 years old in 1980, 37 years old in 1990, 39 years old in 2000, and 41 years old in 2006. This trend is also evident worldwide. For instance, International Labor Organization (2005) statistics indi cate that young adults between the ages of 20 and 24 were the largest segment of the working population in 1980. However, by 1990 the 30 –34 age group was the largest segment of the working population, and today the largest segment of the world’s working population is the age 40 – 44 cohort.Older workers are becoming an increasingly important concern for organizations for reasons beyond their sheer numbers. The shift to an older workforce has caused many organizations to spend more money on succession planning, pension benefits, health insurance, and medical benefits (Beehr & Bowling, 2002; Paul & Townsend, 1993). In addition, numerous organizations have concerns (and/or stereotypes) that older workers may exhibit lower productivity (Avolio & Waldman, 1994; Greller & Simpson, 1999; Hassell & Perrewe, 1995; Lawrence, 1996).For instance, compared with younger workers, older workers are stereotyped as being less physically capable, as more likely to have problems g etting along with coworkers, as preferring to invest more time in their families than in their jobs (Fung, Lai, & Ng, 2001; Paul & Townsend, 1993), as less technologically savvy, and as less willing to adapt quickly in volatile environments (Isaksson & Johansson, 2000; Riolli-Saltzman & Luthans, 2001). Thomas W. H.Ng, School of Business and Economics, The University of Hong Kong, Pok Fu Lam, Hong Kong; Daniel C. Feldman, Terry College of Business, The University of Georgia. Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Thomas W. H. Ng, School of Business and Economics, The University of Hong Kong, Pok Fu Lam, Hong Kong. E-mail: [email  protected] hku. hk 392 Previous research has produced mixed results, however, regarding the precise relationship between age and job performance.In the three most-cited quantitative reviews of this literature, one found a moderate-sized positive relationship between age and performance (Waldman & Avolio, 1986), one found that age was largely unrelated to performance (McEvoy & Cascio, 1989), and the third found that the age–performance relationship took an inverted-U shape (Sturman, 2003). We believe that one reason for these mixed results is that much of the previous research on the age–performance relationship has focused rather narrowly on the performance of core task activities.As a result, past research has not closely examined the broad spectrum of behaviors that comprise â€Å"job performance† and the multiple ways in which age is related to work effectiveness. Over the past 2 decades, organizational researchers have been examining numerous other job-related behaviors that also legitimately fall under the rubric of job performance. These include the following: creativity, performance in training programs, organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs), safety performance, counterproductive work behaviors, on-the-job substance use, workplace aggression, tardiness, and absence.Although mos t of these job behaviors could not be called core task activities per se (Organ, 1988), they do significantly affect organizational productivity by shaping the organizational cultures and environments in which core task performance takes place (Borman & Motowidlo, 1997). As such, examining a broader and more inclusive set of job performance measures may help clarify the complex relationship between age and performance. Mixed results on the age–performance relationship may also be partially attributable to the differing nature of research samples and data collection characteristics (Lawrence, 1996; S.R. Rhodes, 1983). For instance, research samples may vary in terms of the types of jobs workers perform, and as such, results may vary depending upon which skills older workers are required to utilize. AGE AND JOB PERFORMANCE 393 Similarly, because the nature of the work environment has changed substantially over the past 30 years, studies on the age–performance relationshi p conducted in the 1970s may have yielded very different results than studies conducted more recently. In addition, there may be differences in results depending upon whether data were collected cross-sectionally or longitudinally.For example, the effect of intraindividual aging on performance observed in longitudinal studies may be smaller in magnitude than the effect of broad age group differences observed in cross-sectional studies at any one point in time. Thus, examining the potential moderating effects of sample and data collection characteristics is not only important for research methodology purposes but for theoretical and practical reasons too. It allows us to identify the conditions under which age is likely to have positive, zero, or negative associations with various components of job performance.In the following section of the article, then, we briefly address some definitional issues, consider the results of previous quantitative reviews of the age–performance relationship, and discuss how the current study extends these previous reviews. Next, we present the results of an extended meta-analysis and provide evidence on the relationships between age and 10 performance dimensions. In the subsequent section, we examine the moderating effects of sample and data collection characteristics and also explore potential curvilinear relationships between age and performance dimensions.Finally, in the concluding section, we discuss the implications of our findings for future research and the management of older workers. Theoretical Background Definitional Issues Age versus aging. Age is a continuous variable and is used as such in our analyses. When we refer to age differences, we are referring to group-level differences between individuals at one age and individuals at another age. It is important to note here that, similar to previous quantitative reviews in this area of research (McEvoy & Cascio, 1989; Waldman & Avolio, 1986), the goal of the curr ent meta-analysis is not to isolate the effects of aging per se.That is, we are not directly examining the intraindividual aging process itself and how it relates to job performance. Instead, our goal is to examine the relationships between age and job performance dimensions across different cohorts and research contexts. For instance, is age, on average, related to job performance after taking into consideration different sample characteristics and research conditions? Is the relationship between age and core task performance stronger or weaker than the relationship between age and citizenship behavior? These are the kinds of questions we attempt to address here.Older workers. Who is considered an â€Å"older worker† has been debated in the literature for quite some time. In the retirement literature, older workers are often identified by having reached retirement age or by years until reaching retirement age (Beehr, 1986; Doeringer, 1990). Moreover, as Cleveland and Shore ( 1992) have noted, age can be defined in terms of an employee’s chronological age, the employee’s subjective age (the individual’s self-perception of age), the employee’s social age (others’ perceptions of the employee’s age), and the employee’s relative age (the egree to which the individual is older than others in the work group). Thus, the meaning of â€Å"old† depends, to some extent, on the demographic profiles of an organization or occupation (Shore, Cleveland, & Goldberg, 2003). Another definition that is frequently used in this literature is the legal definition of â€Å"older worker† provided by the U. S. Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA). This act prohibits discrimination against workers who are 40 years old or above.Although our data analyses use continuous measures of age wherever possible, in our discussion of â€Å"older workers† in the text, we generally rely on the ADEA definition for a variety of reasons. First, previous meta-analyses of age in the applied psychology literature have also utilized 40 years old as the cutoff age (Thornton & Dumke, 2005). Second, unlike authors in disciplines like gerontology and sociology (e. g. , Lindenberger & Baltes, 1997) who use high cutoff ages to make fine distinctions between the â€Å"young elderly† and â€Å"old elderly† (e. g. under and over age 85), scholars in the organizational sciences are particularly attuned to the fact that the age range in the active workforce is typically 16 – 65 years old (International Labor Organization, 2005). Thus, at least in terms of making a dichotomous split in the workforce, 40 years old appears to be an acceptable cutoff to distinguish between younger and older workers. Third, careers researchers have observed that age 40 typically marks the end of career establishment stage and the start of career maintenance stage (Super, 1980).As such, the chronological ag e of 40 often represents a major transition in career stages as well. Finally, defining older workers as 40 or above has some practical benefits because it directly aligns research findings regarding older workers to management implications regarding ADEA compliance in hiring, termination, performance evaluation, and promotion decisions. Undoubtedly over time, the definition of â€Å"older worker† will change. For example, the amendment of ADEA (by the Older Workers Benefit Protection Act of 1990 and the Civil Rights Act of 1991) to prohibit mandatory retirement ages may ultimately push back the age t which people retire (although labor statistics have not indicated any increases in retirement age as of yet). Even more likely, gains in life expectancy will change our conceptions of who is â€Å"middle-aged† and who is â€Å"old. † For our current purposes, though, the definition of older workers as being age 40 or older is consistent with both previous research and legal definitions and has the benefit of being â€Å"objectively† determined and verifiable across researchers and contexts. Previous Reviews of the Age–Performance RelationshipThree major quantitative reviews of this literature have been published in the last 25 years. Waldman and Avolio’s (1986) review is the earliest meta-analysis in this area. The authors identified 13 empirical studies containing 40 samples. They found that age was positively related to productivity measures of job performance (. 27). On the other hand, age was weakly but negatively related to supervisor ratings of job performance ( . 14). Furthermore, Waldman and Avolio found that the relationship between age and supervisor-rated job performance was stronger for nonprofessionals ( . 8) than for professionals ( . 05). Peer ratings of job performance were related to age at . 10. In sum, Waldman and Avolio (1986) illustrated that the sign of the relationship between age and task performan ce varies depend- 394 NG AND FELDMAN ing upon which measure of performance is being utilized, who does the performance ratings, and what kinds of jobs workers hold. To the extent that there is a drawback to this meta-analysis, it is the lack of availability of a large number of studies at that time.Meta-analyses that include too few cumulative studies may contain second-order sampling errors (Hunter & Schmidt, 1990). Addressing this drawback, McEvoy and Cascio (1989) identified 65 empirical studies (containing 96 samples) conducted on the relationship between age and performance. Across these 96 samples, the authors found that the mean correlation between age and job performance was quite low (. 06) and that the confidence intervals contained the value of zero. Unlike Waldman and Avolio (1986), McEvoy and Cascio found that type of performance rating (productivity vs. upervisory rating) and job type (professional vs. nonprofessional) did not moderate the relationship between age and performance. The different results observed in these two meta-analyses may be attributable to the different sets of studies the researchers considered, as McEvoy and Cascio located a wider range of empirical studies than Waldman and Avolio had included. Sturman’s (2003) meta-analysis hypothesized that the relationships of performance with three age-related variables (chronological age, job experience, and organizational tenure) were in the form of an inverted-U shape.With respect to the age–performance relationship, Sturman found that the corrected effect size across 115 empirical studies was . 03. Although this effect size is very small, he did find that this relationship was indeed an inverted-U shape. That is, age was positively related to job performance when age was low but was negatively related to job performance when age was high ( 49 years old). Below, we highlight the main evidence supporting these three different perspectives on the age–performance re lationship.Whereas earlier research on older workers largely focused on the negative relationship between age and task performance (S. R. Rhodes, 1983), more recently researchers have been examining the ways in which age can facilitate task performance or, at the minimum, not adversely affect it (Ebner, Freund, & Baltes, 2006; Kanfer & Ackerman, 2004). As a result, we have a much richer picture now of how age is positively or negatively related to core task performance but not as complete a picture of how age relates to a broad spectrum of other performance measures. unctions, that is, monitoring and controlling attention, suppressing irrelevant information, utilizing analytical reasoning, and updating information in working memory. Older individuals were found to perform much more poorly on this test battery than their younger counterparts. In general, M. G. Rhodes’s results suggest that older individuals may have more difficulties with complex tasks that require a high leve l of executive functioning. Indeed, there is also cumulative empirical evidence to indicate that older individuals do not do as well as younger individuals when performing multiple complex tasks simultaneously (Verhaeghen, Steitz,Sliwinski, & Cerella, 2003). Another area in which age appears to have negative association with performance is memory capacity. Previous meta-analyses have demonstrated a significant negative relationship between age and memory. For instance, older adults were found to have poorer recognition and recall memory than younger adults (La Voie & Light, 1994; Spencer & Raz, 1995; Verhaeghen, Marcoen, & Goosens, 1993). Moreover, as a result of these memory differences, employees are less likely to trust the memories of older coworkers.In an experimental study of attribution theory, for example, Erber and Danker (1995) found that participants expected memory-related performance problems of older workers to continue longer than those of younger workers and were les s likely to recommend training when â€Å"problem† employees were older. Above and beyond these differences in aptitudes and short-term memory, researchers have also found that older individuals may have less intense work motivation than their younger colleagues (S. R. Rhodes, 1983). For instance, Ebner et al. 2006) found that younger individuals are more likely to frame their goal orientations in terms of striving for gains (e. g. , I want to improve my fitness), whereas older individuals are more likely to frame their goal orientation around maintaining the status quo or preventing loss (e. g. , I do not want my fitness to deteriorate). These changes in motivation may also be linked to lower productivity on the job. Evidence Supporting Positive or Neutral Relationships of Age With Performance The above literature paints a rather pessimistic view of the relationship of age with job performance.Nonetheless, a strong case can also be made that older workers may exhibit at leas t the same, if not greater, job performance as their younger colleagues (Greller & Simpson, 1999). The rationale most frequently cited to support this case is that older workers substitute lengthy job experience and greater general expertise for speed of information acquisition and information recall. This wisdom and expertise, accumulated over the course of a career, may be sufficient to compensate for productivity losses due to any changes in cognitive and physical abilities (Baltes, Staudinger, Maercker, & Smith, 1995).Kanfer and Ackerman (2004) have emphasized that older age is often accompanied by increases in â€Å"crystallized† intelligence (experiential knowledge). Indeed, experimental evidence provides robust support for Kanfer and Ackerman’s assertion. For instance, Allen, Lien, Murphy, Sanders, and McCann (2002) found that older participants could multitask as effectively as younger participants, albeit at a slower pace. Artistico, Cervone, and Pezzuti (2003 ) found that older adults’ performance in solving problems exceeded that of younger adults when the problems were familiarEvidence Supporting Negative Relationships of Age With Performance Numerous studies have found support for the proposition that age negatively relates to cognitive functioning. For instance, in a large sample of 20,000 American workers across multiple occupational groups, Avolio and Waldman (1994) found that age was negatively related to several types of aptitudes, including general intelligence, verbal aptitude, numerical aptitude, spatial aptitude, form perception, clerical perception, motor coordination, finger dexterity, and manual dexterity.Thus, for jobs in which general cognitive abilities, visual-perceptual abilities, and psychomotor abilities are important components for superior job performance, Avolio and Waldman have suggested that age is negatively related to job performance. Furthermore, M. G. Rhodes (2004) found that there was a strong and s ignificant difference between older and younger adults in performance on a test battery measuring individuals’ executive AGE AND JOB PERFORMANCE 395 and representative of tasks frequently encountered.ColoniaWillner (1998) found that the best performing older employees had higher levels of tacit knowledge than their younger employees. Studies using different research designs have also found that professional expertise, developed over years of practice and experience, can attenuate potential negative relationships between age and performance dimensions (Hess & Auman, 2001; Lindenberger, Kliegl, & Baltes, 1992; Morrow, Leirer, Altieri, & Fitzsimmons, 1994; Thornton & Dumke, 2005; Wilson, Li, Bienias, & Bennett, 2006).Taken together, the research described above suggests that, after a slower pace of initial learning, older workers can reach the same performance levels as those of their younger colleagues and can multitask effectively. Moreover, when older workers are asked to sol ve familiar problems, higher self-efficacy beliefs are activated, and these beliefs can accelerate performance. Thus, although fluid intelligence, short-term working memory, and cognitive speed may decrease with age, deductive reasoning and professional expertise are likely to increase (Masunaga & Horn, 2001).Moreover, increased wisdom and judgment gained over years of service may increase older workers’ effectiveness in contextual performance activities as well. Creativity Creativity is the extent to which employees generate new and useful ideas for improving organizational productivity (Anderson, De Dreu, & Nijstad, 2004). For many jobs, creativity might be considered as a separate element of job performance, particularly when creativity relates to organizational adaptability and flexibility.For instance, some researchers have emphasized the importance of employees’ creativity as a critical component of an organization’s ability to adapt to rapidly changing bu siness environments (A. De Jonge & De Ruyter, 2004; Johnson, 2001). Consistent with this view of creativity as a key element of job effectiveness, a major study of performance evaluation systems found that some organizations evaluated employees on their innovativeness as well as on their core task performance (Welbourne, Johnson, & Erez, 1998). Performance in Training ProgramsOlder workers are often stereotyped as being somewhat resistant to change and slow in learning new material. For this reason, researchers have examined older workers’ performance in training programs as an element of job effectiveness (Martocchio, 1994). As Tracey, Tannenbaum, and Michael (1995) have suggested, organizations typically provide training to employees on the basis of the assumption that the short-run costs of the design and execution of training can be recouped through employees’ increased productivity in the long run.However, if employees do not perform well in training programs, it is highly unlikely that they will transfer that new knowledge to real work settings. Furthermore, when employees fail to learn in training programs, the expenses associated with training are wasted as well (Winfred, Bennett, Edens, & Bell, 2003). Expanding the Domain of the Performance Construct Previous reviews of the age–performance relationship have primarily focused on the performance of core tasks.According to Borman and Motowidlo (1997), core task performance is concerned with â€Å"the effectiveness with which job incumbents perform activities that contribute to the organization’s technical core† (p. 99). In addition to core task performance, however, we also examine nine other performance dimensions that comprise the two broad categories of job behaviors identified by Hunt (1996) as independent of the core job role, namely, citizenship behaviors and minimum performance behaviors.Citizenship behaviors are those extra behaviors engaged in by employees, ove r and above their core task requirements, that actively promote and strengthen the organization’s effectiveness (Organ, 1988). In this study, the first category is represented by such dimensions as employee creativity, performance in training programs, citizenship behaviors geared to different beneficiaries, and safety performance. In contrast, minimum performance behaviors are those that employees have to engage in (like attending work) or refrain from engaging in (like theft) to keep their jobs (Hunt, 1996).This second category is represented by such dimensions as general counterproductive work behaviors, workplace aggression, on-the-job substance use, tardiness, and absenteeism. Conceptually, there are certainly other behavioral dimensions that could be included under these two categories. For example, working long hours and demonstrating effective leadership are examples of additional citizenship behaviors that might be considered, whereas refraining from sexual harassmen t and manipulating stock prices are additional examples of minimum performance variables that could be considered.Empirically, however, a metaanalysis is constrained by the number of previous studies conducted on a specific relationship, and here we have included the nine dimensions identified above as the ones on which the most empirical studies are available. We discuss each of these additional nine dimensions of job performance in more detail below. OCBs Researchers have documented the importance of OCB for organizational functioning over the last 2 decades (LePine, Erez, & Johnson, 2002; Organ, 1988).OCBs (sometimes called prosocial behaviors or extrarole behaviors) are not job-specific but rather support the broader organizational environment in which core performance takes place (Motowidlo & Van Scotter, 1994; Organ, 1988). Examples of OCB are compliance with organizational norms, not complaining about trivial matters, and helping coworkers. Employees’ aggregated OCBs f requently benefit group, unit, and organizational productivity (Podsakoff, MacKenzie, Paine, & Bachrach, 2000). Safety PerformanceSafety performance is the extent to which employees comply with safety rules and demonstrate safe behaviors in the workplace (Parker, Axtell, & Turner, 2001). This performance dimension is particularly important in industries that require employee contact with hazardous materials, operation of heavy machinery, and extensive highway driving (Clarke & Robertson, 2005). Poor safety performance can have two distinct negative consequences for firms’ effectiveness. At the individual level, inattention to safety behaviors contributes to employee injuries; these injuries result in lower worker productivity and time lost from work.At the orga- 396 NG AND FELDMAN nizational level, poor safety practices contribute to potentially costly litigation. These claims create substantial financial burdens for firms in the event of serious employee accidents, dismember ments, and death (Hofmann & Morgeson, 1999). Both directly and indirectly, then, employee safety behaviors are an important component of job performance. General Counterproductive Work Behaviors Whereas research investigating OCB concentrates on what workers can do to romote smooth organizational functioning, research on workplace deviance examines how the lack of counterproductive work behaviors is essential to maintaining smooth organizational functioning (Neuman & Baron, 1998). Counterproductive work behaviors are intentional employee acts that harm organizations’ legitimate business interests (Bennett & Robinson, 2000). Examples of counterproductive work behaviors include working on personal matters instead of assigned tasks, neglecting supervisors’ instructions, stealing property, starting or repeating rumors and gossip, and using unprofessional language.It is easy to see the multiple ways in which these counterproductive work behaviors can reduce both individual and group performance. Moreover, Dalal (2005) found that employees who frequently engaged in counterproductive work behaviors were also less likely to demonstrate OCBs. son, 2000; Martocchio, 1989). Researchers have documented numerous negative effects of employee absence on organizational productivity (Harrison & Martocchio, 1998). When employees are absent from work, the completion of their own work is slowed down.Coworkers are often called upon to cover for absent employees, thereby distracting them from completing their own assignments. In cases in which task interdependence among a group of workers is high, the whole team’s progress may be affected when an employee is chronically absent or absent for extended periods of time. As with tardiness, frequent absences can also adversely affect organizational productivity by creating an â€Å"absence culture† in which more and more employees consider being absent acceptable (rather than counterproductive) behavior (Johns & Xie, 1998).Summary. Before we can draw strong conclusions about the relationship of age to job performance, then, it is important to consider citizenship behaviors and minimum performance behaviors in addition to core task performance. In light of the above literature review, we include 10 dimensions of job performance in the current meta-analysis: core task performance, creativity, performance in training programs, OCB, safety performance, general counterproductive work behaviors, workplace aggression, on-thejob substance use, tardiness, and absenteeism.From this point on, we use the phrase â€Å"job performance† to represent these 10 dimensions collectively. Specific Counterproductive Work Behaviors In addition to general counterproductive work behaviors, four specific forms of counterproductive work behavior have been discussed separately and extensively in the literature. We also examine these four specific counterproductive work behaviors— workplace aggression, on-the-job substance use, tardiness, and absenteeism—in the present meta-analysis. Workplace aggression.Workplace aggression consists of employees’ efforts to harm others with whom they work, harm the reputation of their current employers, or harm former colleagues and previous employers (Lapierre, Spector, & Leck, 2005). Acts of workplace aggression can cause bodily harm to employees, pose physical danger for customers, create public relations crises, and harm the business reputation of the firm as a whole. On-the-job substance use. On-the-job substance use involves drinking alcohol or taking illegal drugs at work or during work time (Frone, 2003).Researchers have found that on-the-job substance use hampers individuals’ decision-making abilities; increases the frequency of dysfunctional job behaviors; and puts coworkers, supervisors, and customers at increased risk of injury (Lehman & Simpson, 1992). Tardiness. Tardiness is lateness for work (Blau, 1994; Koslo wsky, Sagie, Krausz, & Singer, 1997). Employee tardiness is likely to create both direct financial costs to organizations (e. g. , decreased time on productive activities) and indirect financial costs (e. g. , time lost by coworkers waiting for late colleagues. . Left unchecked, numerous cases of tardiness can lead to a â€Å"culture of tardiness† (Koslowsky et al. , 1997) in which employees come to see being late as an acceptable behavior rather than as a deviant one. Absenteeism. Skipping work has also been conceptualized as a form of employee counterproductive behavior (Bennett & Robin- Moderator Relationships Another way in which the present study contributes to the literature is by investigating how different sample and design characteristics moderate the relationship between age and job performance.Many of these characteristics have been discussed in the literature as variables that can affect age–performance relationships (Lawrence, 1996; S. R. Rhodes, 1983; Sho re et al. , 2003; Sturman, 2003) and as potential explanations for inconsistent research findings in the area. Sample Characteristics In this study, we examine the potential moderating effects of the average age, age dispersion, job tenure, and organizational tenure of research samples.Testing for average sample age as a moderator essentially examines whether the form of the relationship between age and performance is linear or curvilinear (see Sturman, 2003). Testing the moderating role of age dispersion associated with the sample (operationalized as the standard deviation of age in the sample) assesses whether the age–performance relationship varies across samples with different degrees of age homogeneity. Testing for average job tenure and average organizational tenure examines whether the age–performance relationship varies across samples with different (average) tenures.In general, these four sample characteristics might influence authors’ definitions of â €Å"old† in a particular setting. We also examine the potential moderating effects of job complexity. The job complexity of the sample is important to consider here because it influences the extent to which the specific job skills required on jobs are associated with age-related performance problems. For the same reason, we also consider two related variables, namely, proportion of college degree holders and proportion of AGE AND JOB PERFORMANCE 397 managers in the sample.It is likely that older workers with more education or who hold managerial roles may have greater ability to substitute accumulated knowledge and judgment for precise technical skills. As such, the results of research on age–performance relationships may vary across samples with different mixes of college graduates and managers. In a more exploratory fashion, we also examine the effects of proportion of women and proportion of Caucasians in the sample. Gender and race have frequently been studied as i ndependent or control variables in previous research on aging, but here we consider their potential moderating effects instead.Examining these two â€Å"proportion† moderators assesses whether the age–performance relationship varies across samples with different proportions of women and Caucasians. of 1993 may have changed the ways in which organizations distinguish between â€Å"absence† and â€Å"leave† before and after that year. Similarly, the amended ADEA prohibits mandatory retirement ages, which might have changed the relationship between age and performance over time because of a potential change in the proportion of older workers in the labor force.Collectively, then, these changes may have affected the context in which older workers perform and thus the relationship of age to performance as well. Method Literature Search We performed a comprehensive search for those articles published during or before December 2006 that examined the relationship between age and job performance. Other published studies that did not aim at investigating this specific relationship but reported their effect sizes nonetheless were also included. We also searched for unpublished studies and dissertations to reduce the â€Å"file-drawer problem† (Rosenthal, 1979).We began our literature search by using the following keywords: age, job performance, task performance, productivity, creativity, innovation, training effectiveness, training performance, contextual performance, citizenship behavior, prosocial behavior, extrarole behavior, safety, injuries, accidents, counterproductive behavior, deviance, deviant behavior, aggression, aggressive behavior, violence, violent behavior, substance use, drinking, alcohol, drug, tardiness, lateness, absenteeism, absence, and job complexity.We searched in numerous research databases, including Dissertation Abstracts International, EBSCOHost, Emerald, Factiva, JSTOR, Oxford Journals, Proquest, PsycINFO, Sc ienceDirect, Sage Full-Text Collections, and several Wiley InterScience databases. Furthermore, the reference lists of recent meta-analyses that focused on criterion variables of interest were examined carefully to locate other relevant articles. These included, for instance, reference lists from meta-analyses on OCB (LePine et al. , 2002), absence (Martocchio, 1989), task performance (Judge, Thoresen, Bono, & Patton, 2001), work injuries (Clarke & Robertson, 2005), and ounterproductive work behavior (Dalal, 2005). Such metaanalyses contained comprehensive and current reference lists in their respective research fields. Four inclusion and exclusion criteria were set prior to the start of the article search. First, we included field studies in which the age–job performance relationship occurred naturally, whereas laboratory studies were excluded. It is much more difficult to gather measures on performance dimensions besides core task performance in experimental settings (e. g. , lateness and absence).In addition, we had some concern that core task performance observed in laboratory studies might be partially attributable to the strength and form of the experimental manipulations themselves. Second, studies that examined age or performance only at the team level or organization level were excluded because our focus in this research is on individual behavior rather than group-level performance. Third, to avoid double counting, we excluded those studies in which authors used the same data set and reported the same correlations as in their other published studies.Fourth, we included studies that involved four types of performance ratings: ratings by Data Collection Characteristics We examine the moderating effects of two data collection characteristics in particular: (a) whether data were collected longitudinally or cross-sectionally, and (b) the publication year of articles. Both these moderators address the role of time in the age–performance relati onship. Cross-sectional data collection allows researchers to examine the extent to which there are group-level age differences (between different age cohorts) in job performance across different samples and research contexts.In contrast, longitudinal data collection helps shed light on the extent to which intraindividual aging is related to job performance (Baltes, Schaie, & Nardi, 1971; Schaie & Hofer, 2001). Results may vary, then, depending upon how the data in a study were collected. For instance, the effect of intraindividual aging on performance may be subtle and gradual, but the differences in performance between broad age groups at one point in time can be quite large. Thus, we examine the distinction between cross-sectional and longitudinal data collection as a potential moderator here. It should be noted that to truly examine the effect of aging on erformance, it would be ideal to focus the meta-analysis on longitudinal studies alone. However, there are too few articles a vailable to conduct a meta-analysis on only longitudinal studies; in fact, only 12% of the articles on this topic have been longitudinal in nature. Further, even if we tried to examine only longitudinal studies, the time period examined in those studies does not exceed 5 years, and the average period of time examined in those studies is only about 1 year. Thus, these studies generally do not use long enough time spans to capture intraindividual aging either.Thus, our database here largely consists of cross-sectional studies, allowing us to get an overall picture of the strength of various age–performance links, considering the variation in the specific performance measures, sample characteristics, and data collection characteristics. We revisit the limitations of cross-sectional data collection in conducting research involving age in more detail later in the article. The year a particular study was published is used here as a rough proxy for the nature of the work environment at the time a study was conducted.For instance, the last 2 decades have seen increased reliance on career self-management (Arthur & Rousseau, 1996), which may have loosened workers’ attachment to long-time employers and increased workers’ willingness to change careers later in life. The introduction of the Family and Medical Leave Act 398 NG AND FELDMAN supervisors, ratings by others (peers, subordinates, and customers), self-ratings, and objective measures. This allowed us to examine the moderating role of sources of rating in the age–performance relationship.With the above search criteria, our search yielded a total of 380 empirical studies, which collectively contain 438 independent samples. Thirteen studies were unpublished dissertations. Of the studies, 14% were published before 1990, 30% of the studies were published between 1990 and 1999, and the remaining 56% were published between 2000 and 2006. The average age across all samples that provided age info rmation was 36. 6 years old (ranged between 17 and 59 years old with a standard deviation of 8. 8 years). The list of studies is provided in the Appendix. Measures of Key ConstructsCreativity. Previous studies have measured creativity either via self-ratings or ratings by others; we used these two categories in the meta-analysis as well. Sample items of typical Likert-scale measures of creativity include the following: â€Å"creating new ideas for improvements†; â€Å"searching out new working methods, techniques, or instruments†; and â€Å"generating original solutions to problems† (Janssen, 2001). It should be noted that we did not differentiate between creativity and innovation (Anderson et al. , 2004); both types of measures are included in our study.Performance in training programs. Here, we focused on studies that involved training of adults on tasks that have at least some relevance in organizational contexts. Furthermore, only studies that had an explici t training intervention and had measured posttraining performance, competence, or learning were included. Measures of training performance consisted of either ratings given by supervisors or performance on posttraining tests. Studies that assessed employees’ participation in computer usage training are representative of the kinds of research articles included in this meta-analysis (e. . , Martocchio, 1994). Other example studies include training programs that teach specific competences or subject-related knowledge (e. g. , law or health care). Although our decision to include only studies that measured posttraining performance gave us a consistent perspective on the effects of training on performance, as we discuss later, the resulting set of studies was likely overrepresented by technology training programs in which older workers might be less likely to excel. OCBs. We included two types of OCB in the meta-analysis.The first set of studies examined general OCBs and did not d ifferentiate among beneficiaries of those OCBs. The second set of studies examined OCBs geared to three specific beneficiaries: other people on the job, the employer organization as a whole, and the tasks themselves. These subtypes have been identified by previous researchers as reasonable groupings of behaviors in this domain (LePine et al. , 2002). According to LePine et al. (2002), examples of OCB directed to others are helping colleagues with their work and orienting newcomers.Examples of organization-directed OCB are compliance with organizational norms and not complaining about trivial matters. Examples of task-directed OCB are spending extra effort and persistence on the job and trying hard to improve personal and group performance. It should be noted, too, that within each of these three subtypes, we further differentiated self-ratings from ratings by others. Safety performance. With respect to the measurement of safety performance, three major indicators have frequently bee n used in previous research and were included in the present metaanalysis.First, some studies have measured the frequency of work injuries via archival industrial health records. For instance, Hofmann and Morgeson (1999) measured workplace injuries by using the company’s archival records of injuries or accidents that occurred in the previous 12-month period. Second, other studies have utilized self-report measures of frequency of work injuries. A third set of studies have measured self-reported levels of compliance with safety procedures and practices. A sample item from this kind of measure is â€Å"Occasionally I bend the safety rules when I know it’s safe to do so (reverse coded)† (Parker et al. 2001). General counterproductive work behaviors. Most studies have measured general counterproductive work behaviors without differentiating targets, that is, without specifying the target of the counterproductive behavior. A few studies have differentiated between co unterproductive work behaviors directed at specific others and those directed at the organization as a whole (e. g. , Liao, Joshi, & Chuang, 2004). However, because of the small number of studies making this distinction, the current meta-analysis did not differentiate between these two categories of studies.In those few studies that reported both interpersonal and organizational counterproductive work behaviors, we averaged the correlations to obtain an estimate of general counterproductive work behavior. Sample Likert items of measures of general counterproductive work behaviors include the following: â€Å"I keep important information away from my boss† and â€Å"I openly compromise with others but delay implementing the compromise until my own objectives are accomplished† (Duffy, Ganster, & Shaw, 1998). Here, too, we differentiated between self-ratings of counterproductive work behavior and ratings by others.Workplace aggression. As mentioned above, four specific ty pes of counterproductive work behaviors have frequently been measured in previous research on this topic, and therefore we examined these four specific types of counterproductive behavior in more depth. Measures of workplace aggression typically ask respondents to indicate the frequency of occurrence of aggressive behaviors, such as yelling, swearing at others, damaging others’ property, and fighting (Glomb & Liao, 2003). All the studies we located utilized self-reported measures.On-the-job substance use. These measures typically ask respondents to indicate the frequency of on-the-job use of alcohol or drugs (Frone, 2003). Here, too, all the studies identified utilized self-ratings. Tardiness. Tardiness is typically measured in two ways. In the first, employees are asked self-report questions like â€Å"How often are you late from work? (never to constantly)† (Hanisch & Hulin, 1990). In the second, archival measures of lateness are obtained directly from personnel reco rds (Conte & Jacobs, 2003).We included both self-report and archival measures of tardiness in the meta-analysis. Absenteeism. Absenteeism has been measured in three different ways in previous research. The first group of studies measure general absenteeism; these studies do not differentiate between when employees are absent because of sickness or for purely discretionary reasons (Xie & Johns, 2000). Other studies in this line of research measure either the number of days absent from work in a given period (absence duration) or the frequency of AGE AND JOB PERFORMANCE 99 absence spells in a given period (absence frequency). Because these indices are all closely related (Conte & Jacobs, 2003), they are aggregated together in the present meta-analysis. A second research stream includes studies that measure sickness absenteeism. As an example, J. De Jonge, Reuvers, Houtman, and Kompier (2000) computed sickness absence as the number of separate spells of sickness absence during 1 full c alendar year. Researchers have traditionally viewed absenteeism due to sickness as involuntary absence (Dalton & Todor, 1993).The third, and last, group of absence studies consists of those that measure nonsickness-related absenteeism. For instance, Vigoda (2001, p. 1499) asked respondents to report â€Å"their estimates of days missed work (during the previous year) for reasons other than sickness. † As another example, Deery, Erwin, and Iverson (1999) obtained personnel records of frequency of nonmedically certified absences during the prior 12-month period. In contrast to sickness-related absence, researchers have generally viewed nonsickness-related absence as an indicator of voluntary withdrawal behavior (Dalton & Todor, 1993).Meta-Analytical Procedures Hunter and Schmidt’s (1990) meta-analysis technique, which requires corrections for both measurement error and sampling error, was used. Because there is no theoretical reason to believe the measurement of age woul d contain measurement error, we followed the practice of previous researchers (Martocchio, 1989) and did not disattenuate the measurement of age in individual studies. On the other hand, the behavioral measures of job performance did require disattenuation to remove the influence of measurement errors.Disattenuation of core task performance. Some researchers have reasoned that it is more appropriate to use interrater reliability to correct for imperfect measurement when task performance is rated by others (i. e. , not by oneself; Judge et al. , 2001; Schmidt & Hunter, 1996; Viswesvaran, Ones, & Schmidt, 1996). In contrast, other researchers argue that measures of intrarater reliability (that is, alpha coefficients or internal consistency estimates) are more appropriate in this regard (Murphy & De Shon, 2000).In light of these different perspectives on disattentuation, we disattenuated the observed correlations for either imperfect intrarater reliability or imperfect interrater relia bility. We first corrected studies for the lack of perfect intrarater reliability in the measurement of core task performance. Because different studies may measure the same construct using different scales, this disattenuation process also adjusts for the different levels of measurement error contained in different scales (Hunter & Schmidt, 1990).This type of correction requires the use of alpha coefficients (i. e. , internal consistency estimates) reported in individual studies. If no alpha value was reported for a particular scale in a study, an average alpha value calculated from the rest of the studies using the same scale was taken as a substitute (Judge et al. , 2001). The above procedure for correction for imperfect intrarater reliability was performed on all self-report measures and on all measures provided by supervisors, peers, and customers.We corrected studies for imperfect interrater reliability when core task performance was measured via ratings by others (i. e. , not via self-reports). This type of correction required the use of interrater reliability estimates. Unfortunately, many studies included in the meta-analysis did not report these estimates. Therefore, following Judge et al. (2001), for studies that used supervisors as the rating source, we disattenuated the correlations using the metaanalytical estimate of the reliability of supervisor-rated job performance provided by Viswesvaran et al. (1996).For studies that used peers to rate job performance, we disattenuated the correlations using the meta-analytical estimate of the reliability of peer-rated job performance. Because there is a lack of research on interrater reliability associated with less frequently-used raters (i. e. , customers, subordinates, students, or spouses), in these cases we utilized as a proxy estimate the average of the meta-analytical estimate of the reliability of supervisor-rated performance and that of peerrated job performance. As noted earlier, several studies utilized objective measures of core task performance (e. g. quantity of output, sales volume, errors made). Although the notion of interrater and intrarater reliability does not apply to objective measures, it should be noted that these objective measures are still likely to contain some measurement error and might vary depending upon the job complexity of the sample (Sturman, Cheramie, & Cashen, 2005). Because studies seldom reported any kind of reliability estimates for objective measures of core task performance, as a substitute we adopted the meta-analytical estimate of the test–retest reliability of the objective measure of job performance provided by Sturman et al. 2005). Sturman et al. calculated two separate estimates of the reliability of objective task performance, one for jobs of low complexity (e. g. , secretary) and one for jobs of high complexity (e. g. , engineer). For those studies that sampled mixed job complexity types, we used the average value of Sturman e t al. ’s two estimates as the proxy. Disattenuation of other performance measures. The disattenuation of the observed correlations between age and the remaining dimensions of job performance largely followed the protocols outlined above.For instance, for self-ratings of creativity, OCB, counterproductive work behaviors, workplace aggression, tardiness, and absence, we corrected for imperfect intrarater reliability using either alpha coefficients (if provided) or an average alpha value based on the remaining studies that used the same scales (if alpha was not provided). For nonself ratings of these performance dimensions, in addition to correcting for imperfect intrarater reliability using the above procedure, we also corrected for imperfect interrater reliability using Viswesvaran et al. s (1996) metaanalytical estimates of the reliability of job performance. Finally, for performance measures that were objective in nature (e. g. , training test scores and company records of w ork injuries, lateness, and absence), we used Sturman et al. ’s (2005) meta-analytical estimate of test–retest reliability of the objective performance measure as a substitute. Corrections for sampling errors. The second step in the metaanalysis was correction for sampling errors. Here, we calculated the sample size-weighted corrected correlation. A corrected correlation was judged to be significant at . 5 when its 95% confidence interval did not include the value of zero. Moderator Analyses Subgroup moderator analyses. Two approaches to moderator testing were used. The first one was subgroup analysis; this ap- 400 NG AND FELDMAN proach was taken when the moderator variables were categorical in nature (e. g. , longitudinal vs. cross-sectional data collection). The coding of most of these categorical moderator variables is self-explanatory. The coding for the job complexity and age moderators, though, requires some further explanation.In the case of job complexity, two researchers were responsible for the coding. The coding process was guided by previous metaanalyses that also coded job complexity (e. g. , Avolio & Waldman, 1990; Salgado et al. , 2003; Wood, Mento, & Locke, 1987). Specifically, the two raters classified each sample occupation into high and low job complexity according to the general intelligence, verbal ability, and numerical ability required to perform the job (Avolio & Waldman, 1990). Interrater agreement was 93%. In situations in which there was disagreement, discussion was used to reach consensus.The Dictionary of Occupational Titles (1991) was used to assist in these discussions, too, because jobs in the Dictionary of Occupational Titles are coded and classified according to several dimensions (e. g. , data, people, and things) that reflect job complexity (Avolio & Waldman, 1990; Salgado et al. , 2003). Examples of â€Å"high complexity† jobs are researchers, accountants, business consultants, psychiatrists, engineers, managers/executives, financial analysts, nurses, IT professionals, and teachers. â€Å"Low complexity† jobs include clerks, restaurant workers, highway maintenance workers, truck drivers, and receptionists.In those cases in which we needed to examine the differences across different age subgroups, we sorted studies into four groups on the basis of the average age of the sample: less than 30 years old, 31–35, 36 – 40, and over 40 years old. The reason underlying this categorization is four-fold. First, it approximately equalized the number of studies contained in each group. Second, previous research on life-span development has suggested that the time before 30 years old is often a period within which individuals explore careers, whereas the time after 40 years old roughly marked the end of establishment years (Super, 1980).Third, ADEA also uses 40 as the â€Å"cutoff age. † Last, much of the previous research on age and job performance has used decade o r halfdecade benchmarks. Regression-based moderator testing. In other cases, the original studies did not provide sufficient sample information with which to categorize moderators. For these moderator variables, therefore, regression-based moderator testing was used. To illustrate the statistical procedures, we utilize the example of â€Å"proportion of women† (i. e. , gender).We tested the plausibility of gender as a moderator by investigating the effect of the percentage of women in the sample (which was a continuous variable) on the observed relationship between age and job performance (cf. Ng, Eby, Sorensen, & Feldman, 2005). In essence, we used the percentage of women in the sample as an independent variable, in a weighted least squares multiple regression, to predict the correlation coefficients for the age–job performance relationship. If the percentage of women in the sample as a significant predictor of a relationship between age and a dimension of job perform ance, then it would suggest that gender moderated that relationship. It should be noted that, among the eight sample characteristics on which we applied this regression approach, only average age, age dispersion, average job tenure, and average organizational tenure of the sample were truly continuous variables per se. The remaining characteristics (proportion of degree holders, managers, women, and Caucasians) were proxies for sociodemographic variables that are typically measured as categorical variables at the individual level.Nonetheless, this regression technique for testing for moderators in meta-analyses has been found to be more reliable and robust than alternative methods for dealing with this analysis challenge (Steel & Kammeyer-Mueller, 2002). Results The meta-analysis results for the relationships between age and the 10 performance dimensions are presented in Table 1. Relationships Between Age and Job Performance Core task performance. We found that age was largely unrel ated to core task performance. It was related to supervisor-rated task performance at . 02 (. 03 when corrected for interrater reliability), objective measures of task performance at . 3, and self-rated task performance at . 06. Age was unrelated to core task performance as rated by peers and others. Creativity. Age was not significantly related to creativity. Age was neither related to employee creativity as rated by supervisor (. 01; . 02 when corrected for interrater reliability) nor to selfreports of creativity ( . 01). Performance in training programs. We found that age had a weak, negative relationship with performance in training programs ( . 04). That is, older workers’ performance in training programs was found to be slightly lower than that of younger workers. General and specific types of OCB.On the other hand, age demonstrated significant and positive relationships with OCB. With respect to general OCB (i. e. , OCB that did not differentiate among or specify targe ts), age was related to ratings by others at . 06 (. 08 when corrected for interrater reliability) and to selfratings at . 08. Examining studies that differentiated targets of OCB revealed some interesting results. With respect to OCB directed at others, age was related to ratings by others at . 05 (. 06 when corrected for interrater reliability) and to self-ratings at . 07. With respect to OCB directed at organizations, age was related to ratings by others at . 6 (. 08 when corrected for interrater reliability) and to selfratings at . 14. With respect to OCB directed at tasks, age was related to ratings by others at . 21 (. 27 when corrected for interrater reliability) and to self-ratings at . 13. Safety performance. Age also demonstrated significant relationships with safety behavior. Specifically, age was positively related to self-rated compliance with safety rules and procedures at . 10. Furthermore, it was negatively related to objective frequency measures of work injuries at . 08 and to self-rated frequency of work injuries at . 03.General counterproductive work behavior. Age was significantly and negatively related to general counterproductive work behaviors. Most studies have measured general counterproductive work behaviors without differentiating targets. Age was negatively related to these ratings of counterproductive work behaviors given by others (supervisors/peers) at . 09 ( . 12 when corrected for interrater reliability) and to self-ratings at . 12. Specific counterproductive work behaviors. Moreover, older workers appear to engage in less workplace aggression, on-the-job substance use, and tardiness in particular. Age was negativelyAGE AND JOB PERFORMANCE 401 Table 1 Meta-Analytical Relationships Between Age and Job Performance Variable Core task performance Supervisor-rated (Corrected for interrater reliability) Rated by peers and others (Corrected for interrater reliability) Objective measures Self-rated Creativity Rated by supervisor or obj ective measures (Corrected for interrater reliability) Self-rated Performance in training programs Rated by supervisor or objective measures OCB General (undifferentiated targets) Rated by supervisors, peers, or others (Corrected for interrater reliability) Self-rated Directed at othersRated by supervisors, peers, or others (Corrected for interrater reliability) Self-rated Directed at organization Rated by supervisors, peers, or others (Corrected for interrater reliability) Self-rated Directed at tasks Rated by supervisors, peers, or others (Corrected for interrater reliability) Self-rated Safety performance Self-rated compliance with safety rules Objective frequency of work injuries Self-rated frequency of work injuries General counterproductive work behavior (undifferentiated targets or types) Rated by supervisor or peers (Corrected for interrater reliability) Self-rated Self-rated workplace aggression Self-rated on-the-job substance use Tard