Centre for the Study of Education and Work | Research | OISE/UT

Adams, M., Livingstone, D., Roth, R., Sawchuk, P., Terepocki, M., & Vanstone, S. (1999). Preliminary Bibliography of the Research Network for New Approaches to Lifelong Learning (NALL). Toronto: Centre for the Study of Education and Work, OISE/UT.

This preliminary bibliography is intended as a basic resource for the development of most NALL projects. It has tried to identify some of the most relevant prior writings on informal learning in relation to each of the major themes that the network has chosen to emphasize.

Adcock, R., & Collier, D. (2001). Measurement Validity: A Shared Standard for Qualitative and Quantitative Research. American Political Science Review, 95(3), 529-546..

Scholars routinely make claims that presuppose the validity of the observations & measurements that operationalize their concepts. Yet, despite recent advances in political science methods, surprisingly little attention has been devoted to measurement validity. We address this gap by exploring four themes. First, we seek to establish a shared framework that allows quantitative & qualitative scholars to assess more effectively, & communicate about, issues of valid measurement. Second, we underscore the need to draw a clear distinction between measurement issues & disputes about concepts. Third, we discuss the contextual specificity of measurement claims, exploring a variety of measurement strategies that seek to combine generality & validity by devoting greater attention to context. Fourth, we address the proliferation of terms for alternative measurement validation procedures & offer an account of the three main types of validation most relevant to political scientists. 128 References. Adapted from the source document.

Albrecht, G., Seelman, K., & Bury, M. (2001). Handbook of disability studies. London: Sage Publications.

Alderson, A.S. (1999). Explaining deindustrialization: Globalization, failure, or success?. American Sociological Review, 64(5), 701-721.

Explores the link between globalization & the deindustrialization of the advanced industrial societies, using a pooled time-series of cross-sections data set that combines observations on 18 OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation & Development) nations, 1968-1992. Fixed-effects regression models that control for unmeasured country-specific effects reveal support for arguments that implicate foreign direct investment & North-South trade in the declining % of the labor force employed in manufacturing in the OECD countries. Regression results also show that deindustrialization across this period is largely explained by a model that combines an attention to the post-Golden Age "troubles" of Northern manufacturing with classic generalizations of the process of development. Interpretation of the empirical findings is tempered by an exercise in counterfactual history, which reveals that deindustrialization would have been considerable in these countries even if the upswings in direct investment & Southern imports had not occurred or if the performance of the manufacturing sector had been stronger. 2 Tables, 5 Figures, 1 Appendix, 72 References. Adapted from the source document.

Alheit, P., & et al.. (Eds.). (1995). The biographical approach in European adult education. Vienna: Verband Wiener Volksbildung.

Alheit, P. (1994). The "biographical question" as a challenge to adult education. International Review of Education, 40(3-4), 283-298.

Modern society is experiencing profound changes in the traditional patterns & phases that used to mark the course of a human life. "Living a life" has become a more problematic & unpredictable undertaking, a laboratory for developing skills whose usefulness is uncertain. This situation represents a challenge for adult education. Here, a case is made for a biographical approach to learning that has the capacity to change both the individual & the context in which learning takes place. This is contrasted with conventional education, where learning takes place within a stable context. Through the biological approach, learning processes can become voyages of discovery for both learners & teachers. 61 References. Adapted from the source document.

Alic, J.A., Herzenberg, S., & Wial, H. (1998). New rules for a new economy: Employment and opportunity in postindustrial America. Ithaca, N.Y. ; London: ILR Press.

Altonji, J.G., & Spletzer, J.R. (1991). Worker characteristics, Job characteristics, and the receipt of on-the-job training. Industrial and Labor Relations Review, 45(1), 58-79.

Data from the National Longitudinal Survey of the High School Class of 1972 & the Dictionary of Occupational Titles are analyzed to investigate the relationship between the receipt of employer-provided training & worker/job characteristics. Results indicate that: the intensity & duration of training are negatively related; the incidence of training is slightly higher among women than among men, but the amount of training is higher among men; blacks receive somewhat more training than whites; postsecondary education has a strong positive relationship with training; aptitude has a positive effect on training; & training does not appear to be affected by high school curriculum or by factors specific to an individual's high school. 5 Tables, 1 Appendix, 21 References. Adapted from the source document.

Amaratunga, D., Baldry, D., Sarshar, M., & Newton, R. (2002). Quantitative and qualitative research in the built environment: Application of "mixed" research approach. Work Study: A Journal of Productivity Science, 51(1), 17-31.

Discusses the process of research in the built environment (BE), particularly cognitive, affective, and behavioral components. Both qualitative and quantitative methodologies are appropriate in conducting BE research, but the use of only 1 often fails to explore all components. Common methods include research interviews, participant observation, tracer studies, case studies, and quantitative analysis. Evidence analysis commonly uses pattern matching, explanation building, and time series analysis. Validity and reliability studies are paramount in evaluating BE research. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2003 APA )

Anderson, R., Keller, C., & Karp, J. (Eds.). (1998). Enhancing diversity: Educators with disabilities. Washington, DC: Gallaudet University Press.

Andrew, L., Anisef, P., Krahn, H., Looker, D., & Thiessen, V. (1999). The persistence of social structure: Cohort, class and gender effects on the occupational aspirations and expectations of Canadian youth. Journal of Youth Studies, 2(3), 261-282.

From a rational action perspective, one might predict that the occupational aspirations & expectations of Canadian youth would have declined between the 1970s & 1990s as the youth labor market deteriorated. Whether or not such a shift in the level of occupational goals was observed, a late modernity analysis would predict that social class, gender, & urban-rural residence would become less prominent determinants of aspirations & expectations, in contrast to a social structural prediction of continued strong structural effects. Analyses of baseline data from five longitudinal studies of school-work transitions conducted in Canada during the 1970s, 1980s, & 1990s lead to rejection of the rational action argument; a decline in occupational aspirations & expectations was not observed. Instead, male occupational goals remained largely unchanged, while female occupational ambitions rose. Social class continues to have strong independent effects on occupational goals, which appear to be mediated, to a considerable extent, through the streaming of high school students into academic or nonacademic programs. Gender continues to influence specific occupational aspirations & expectations, while rural youth continue to report somewhat lower occupational goals. The persistent structural effects on aspirations & expectations provide strong support for the social structural hypothesis. 9 Tables, 65 References. Adapted from the source document.

Aneesh, A. (2001). Skill saturation: Rationalization and post-industrial work. Theory and Society, 30(3), 363-396.

The proliferation of new information technologies in the US has brought about a shift in work skill requirements. After tracing various debates on work skills, skill formation is located within the framework of rationalization to illuminate the shift from industrial to postindustrial information work; focus is on new information technologies that require the worker to interact primarily with electronic text & graphics. The notion of "de-skilling" is discussed, followed by an analysis of "skill saturation"; a distinction is made between saturated & unsaturated skills. Changes in the characteristics of saturated vs unsaturated work are identified, including a loss of spaces for play & creativity & a paradoxical intensification of work, despite a decrease in the physical requirements of work. The way that skills move from an unsaturated to a saturated state is described in the context of computer programming, & a history of programming languages & skill saturation is advanced. Possibilities of resistance to saturation in the postindustrial work world are explored. K. Hyatt Stewart.

Antikainen, A. (1998). Between structure and subjectivity: Life-histories and lifelong learning. International Review of Education, 22(2-3), 215-234.

Arai, A.B. (2000). Self-employment as a response to the double day for women and men in Canada. La Revue Canadienne de Sociologie et d'Anthropologie/The Canadian Review of Sociology and Anthropology, 37(2), 125-142.

Despite recent increases in the amount of work done in the home by men, most household work is still performed by women. Their duties range from child care, cleaning, & cooking to shopping, financial management, domestic discipline, & counseling. Yet many women have paid jobs in addition to their domestic responsibilities. Data from Statistics Canada's Survey of Work Arrangements (N = 11,828 female & 13,766 male respondents) reveal that some women are turning to self-employment as one way of coping with conflicting family & work pressures, but the same is not true for men. 4 Tables, 30 References. Adapted from the source document.

Arai, S.M. (2000). Voluntary associations as spaces for democracy: Toward a critical theory on volunteers. Dissertation Abstracts International, A: The Humanities and Social Sciences, 60(10), 3810-A.

This thesis is an investigation of voluntary associations and volunteers in Canada. The purpose of this interdisciplinary study was to develop a critical theory on voluntary associations in the context of sociopolitical change. Specifically, this study focused on the impacts of neoconservative shifts on the voluntary association and the experience of the volunteer. Empirical data was gathered in a three stage process involving members of the Social Planning Network of Ontario (SPNO). The first stage consisted of a scan of policy statements and reports published by this network of voluntary associations. The second phase included a survey in two rounds of the members of the SPNO. The third phase was comprised of in-depth qualitative interviews with staff and volunteers from three voluntary associations including: one northern, one rural and one urban-with-rural community. The main findings for the SPOs indicate losses in funding and shifts in programs in services. Overall, SPOs indicate increased time spent on activities relating to organizational survival, including fundraising and seeking alternative ways to diversify funding. Specifically, a decline in advocacy and social planning activities, and an increase in direct service delivery is noted. Consequently, shifts in the experiences of the volunteers were detected. A typology of volunteers was constructed indicating the current emphasis on the Techno and Labour Volunteer, and increasing frustration among Citizen Volunteers. Based on the empirical findings a critical theory on voluntary associations was constructed drawing in theories of democracy, social capital, citizenship, and the literature on the social policy process and community organizing. The concept of social nexus--the attachments and connections between people is presented as a way of capturing the essence of the functions and processes within these voluntary associations. Voluntary associations are conceptualized as spaces in which democracy is played out, and collective social and political power forms that is grounded in civic responsibility and a concern for equity. In addition, this study identifies factors that limit the agency of volunteers and voluntary associations, and prevent them from achieving the 'ideal situation'. LA:Language

Arnold, R., Burke, B., & et al.. (1991). Educating for a change. Toronto: Doris Marshall Institute; Between the Lines.

Arnold, R. (1995). Luhmann and the consequences: On the applicability of recent system theory to adult education. Zeitschrift fur Padagogik, 41(4), 599-614.

Discusses the implications of Niklas Luhmann's (& Luhmann's & K.-E. Schorr's) system theory & concept of autopoiesis for adult pedagogy. It is contended that Luhmann's more recent system theory is a constructivistic theory of difference & observation that points to questions of Leitdifferenz & technology deficits. Both of these - & their applications to general & adult-specific pedagogy - are described. Topics covered include binary codes, the role of education in the division of labor, the universalizing & individualizing functions of education, competence vs experience /self-reflection as the goal of education, the relationship of pedagogy to technology deficits, adult education as an autopoietic system, & the possibility of intervention in autopoietic psychic & social systems. Also explored is the introduction of a "didactics of life" into a self-organized learning system of adult education. 63 References. Adapted from the source document.

Arrighi, B.A., & Maume, D.J.J. (2000). Workplace subordination and men's avoidance of housework. Journal of Family Issues, 21(4), 464-487.

Increasingly, scholars argue that men's reluctance to do family work is because they associate it with "women's work" & thus a threat to their masculinity. This idea is extended by considering the link between challenges to men's identities in the workplace & their behavior in the home. Data from the 1980 Class Structure & Class Consciousness Survey for 385 US adults indicate that the extent of men's workplace subordination was negatively related to their performance of "feminine" tasks in the home. Moreover, this relationship was stronger in families in which wives' earnings approached those of their husbands. Theoretical implications are discussed, & a call is made for more longitudinal studies to understand the complex & evolving relationship between work & family. 3 Tables, 99 References. Adapted from the source document.

Ashton, D., Green, F., & Lowe, G. (1993). The linkages between education and employment in Canada and the United Kingdom: A comparative analysis. Comparative Education, 29(2), 125-143.

Analyzes large general population surveys of adults (ages 15+) in Canada & GB (N = 9,300 & 80,000, respectively), limited to the usually employed & adjusted to make occupational classification & gender data comparable, to determine how the countries differ in work force education level, who receives formal education, & in what form. Unemployment rates & % of women in the work force are virtually identical for the two countries, & both are service-based economies. In general, Canadian workers achieved a higher level of education than their GB counterparts; Canadian women, in particular, had more education, tended to seek further training, & had broader job opportunities. Canada, however, is beginning to have an underemployment problem for those with postsecondary qualifications. Canada excels in flexibility of the school-to-work transition as well as in provision for continuing education, while GB provides more on-the-job training & has relied heavily on the apprenticeship system. As Canadian economic growth is not plainly superior to that of GB, results suggest that flexibility & educational attainment may be necessary, but not sufficient, for future economic development in today's global economy. 4 Tables, 1 Appendix, 47 References. F. Shephard.

Aspin, D., Chapman, J., Hatton, M., & Sawano, Y. (Eds.). (2001). International handbook of lifelong learning. Boston: Kluwer Academic.

These volumes contain 40 papers examining the principles, policies, structure, and practice of lifelong learning worldwide. The following are among the papers included: "Towards a Philosophy of Lifelong Learning" (David Aspin, Judith Chapman); "Locating Lifelong Learning and Education in Contemporary Currents of Thought and Culture" (Richard Bagnall); "Lifelong Learning and Personal Fulfillment" (Robin Barrow, Patrick Keeney); "Political Inclusion, Democratic Empowerment, and Lifelong Learning" (Penny Enslin, Shirley Pendlebury, Mary Tjattas); "Lifelong Learning and the Contribution of Informal Learning" (Paul Hager); "Lifelong Learning, Changing Economies, and the World of Work" (John Halliday); "From Adult Education to Lifelong Learning" (Mal Leicester, Stella Parker); "Lifelong Learning for a Learning Democracy" (Stewart Ranson, Glenn Rikowski, Michael Strain); "Lifelong Learning in the Postmodern" (Robin Usher); "Lifelong Learning Policies in Low Development Contexts" (David Atchoarena, Steven Hite); "Lifelong Learning Policies in Transition Countries" (Zoran Jelenc); "Towards New Lifelong Learning Contracts in Sweden" (Kenneth Abrahamsson); "How To Make Lifelong Learning a Reality" (Philip McKenzie); "Schools and the Learning Community" (Judith Chapman, David Aspin); "Universities as Centres for Lifelong Learning" (Ruth Dunkin, Alan Lindsay); "Lifelong Learning and Technical and Further Education" (Nic Gara); "Lifelong Learning and the Learning Organization" (James Walker); "Community Colleges and Lifelong Learning: Canadian Experiences" (Paul Gallagher, William Day); "Lifelong Learning and the Private Sector" (William Hanna, Pierre Haillet); "Lifelong Learning, the Individual and Community Self-Help" (John Wilson); (MN)

Astleitner, H., Herber, H., Paschon, A., & Thonhauser, J. (2000). The influence of formal education on social attitudes and helping behavior. (pp. 14). Salzburg: University of Salzburg.

In considering the question of whether education leads to better and more supportive human beings, a survey was conducted on how formal education and demographic variables, such as age, gender, and degree of urbanization, influence helping behavior and social attitudes. Data were collected from 588 Austrians, ages 14 to 89. Results of the survey indicated that formal education increased progressivism, while decreasing chauvinism and social responsibility. Helping behavior was weakly associated with formal education but strongly associated with age. One explanation of these results is that progressive people often represent a liberal way of thinking in which individuals take care of their own lives. In respect to social attitudes, the survey showed that older people are less progressive, more chauvinistic, and show more social responsibility than younger people, possibly attributable to the expected or given social, health, or financial handicaps or related fears. The present study also reports that men showed higher social responsibility attitudes than women. It suggests that future research consider why social attitudes only lead to helping behavior when certain combinations of attitudes are given. (Contains 2 tables and 14 references.) (JDM)

Aurini, J. (2003). Market Professionals in the Private Tutoring Industry: Balancing Profitability with the Humanistic Face of Schooling. Toronto: Centre for the Study of Education and Work, OISE/UT.

Based on interviews with private tutoring business entrepreneurs, this paper provides a qualitative analysis of some organizational and ideological transformations in the teacher profession with the advent of market professionals within the private education sector. No longer simply a means to generate additional income, the private tutoring industry today promises full-time business opportunities and careers for well-educated investors from a variety of educational and occupational backgrounds. Initial research suggests that the enormous popularity of these businesses rests on the organizational and environmental ‘fit’ between their services and increased consumer demands for individualized education (Author's abstract).

Aurini, J., & Davies, S. (2003). The Transformation of Private Tutoring: Education in a Franchise Form. Toronto: Centre for the Study of Education and Work, OISE/UT.

This paper looks at the rising percentage of Canadian students enrolled in private schools. Private education is shown to be rising among both older and younger students. As well, such growth is demonstrated not to be limited to traditional school forms, as other forms of private education in North America are growing immensely, ranging from corporate training to home schooling. This paper focuses on another form of private education, one that has received very little attention from sociologists: tutoring businesses. Tutoring has long been a cottage industry organized in personal networks among individual tutors and students, with the exception of "test prep" companies such as Kaplan and Princeton Review that offer coaching for standardized entrance exams However, this paper illustrates that over the past decade the tutoring industry has undergone a staggering transformation. The number of formal businesses that offer fuller tutoring services has grown between 200%-500% in major Canadian cities over the past 30 years, a growth that is independent of public school enrolments or economic trends.

Avrahami, A., & Dar, Y. (1993). Collectivistic and individualistic motives among kibbutz youth volunteering for community service. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 22(6), 697-714.

Compares survey data from high school graduates in the Israeli kibbutz who opt for a year of community service before military enlistment (N = 415) with those who enter military service directly (N = 465) to examine the motives that underlie this volunteering. Analysis reveals a blend of individualistic & collectivistic orientations linked with expectations of satisfying instrumental as well as explorative & expressive needs within a context of moratorial & liminal experience. Particular combinations of motives were also found to vary by the intended field of activity during this year. 4 Tables, 1 Figure, 30 References. Adapted from the source document.

Bélanger, P. (1992). L'éducation des adultes et le vieillissement des populations: Tendances et enjeux. International Review of Education, 38(4), 343-362.

Bélanger, P. (2002). Unlocking people's creative force: A transnational study of adult learning policies. Hamburg: UNESCO.

Bélanger, P., & et al.. (2002). L'effet de l'organisation de l'éducation des adultes sur la participation, rapport de recherche remis à DRHC. Ottawa: Gouvernement du Canada.

Baer, D.E., Curtis, J., & Grabb, E. (2001). Has voluntary association activity declined? A cross-national perspective. The Canadian Review of Sociology and Anthropology, 38(3), 249-274. Retrieved December 29, 2003, from http://crsa.icaap.org/content/recent/38-3/249-274Baer.pdf.

Robert Putnam analyzed General Social Survey (GSS) data for the US for 1974-1994, & concluded that voluntary association involvement levels have been in decline. Missing, in particular, from studies on this issue are findings on trends in associational activity vs affiliations, & there have been no cross-national tests of the generality of recent trends. This paper presents analyses of data on both nominal affiliations & working affiliations from the World Values Surveys of national samples in the US & 14 other societies for 1981-1983 & 1991-1993. Temporal comparisons are made, with memberships in unions & church groups included & excluded. The results show little support for Putnam's decline hypothesis either for the US or across the other nations, particularly when the mean number of active memberships is considered. After controls, the US is one of two nations that showed significant increases in working memberships; most nations showed no significant change in working membership. Of the two societies showing declines, only one of them (Japan) is among those nations comparatively high on levels of personal computer use & television use in the period - the key explanations for activity decline put forward by Putnam.

Baer, D.E. (2002). Political sociology: Canadian perspectives. Don Mills, Ont. ; New York: Oxford University Press Canada.

Bagnall, R.G. (1991). Relativism, objectivity, liberal adult education and multiculturalism. Studies in the Education of Adults, 23(1), 61-84.

From a background of conflicting claims as to the relationships between relativism, objectivity, & liberal adult education (AE), a critical overview is presented of relativistic doctrine, its relationship to conceptions of objectivity, & its implications for liberal & multicultural AE. It is argued that the vagueness of popular conceptions of relativism & objectivity - on the basis of which educational pronouncements are commonly made - masks a diversity of radically different doctrines. Three distinct categories of relativistic doctrine are recognized - subjective idealism, cultural relativism, & transcultural relativism - that differ importantly in the types of objectivity they presuppose (material, construct, formal, or qualitative), in their epistemic status, & in their implications for liberal AE. While both subjective idealism & cultural relativism are judged to have radically illiberal educational implications, the only sense in which relativism appears to be rationally tenable (transcultural relativism) is compatible with & supportive of a liberal approach to AE . This conclusion is emphasized with respect to multicultural education, wherein the practical implications of both subjective idealism & cultural relativism would seem to run counter to its general liberal goals. AA.

Bailey, T. (1993). Can youth apprenticeship thrive in the United States?. Educational Researcher, 22(3), 4-10.

Although youth apprenticeship models appear to have great potential, the following problems must be addressed before the strategy can succeed: (1) securing employer involvement; (2) assuring and improving the quality of on-the-job learning; and (3) confronting equity issues in public policy in incorporating work into the core educational system. (SLD)

Bailey, T. (2001). Changing labor markets and the U.S. workforce development system. In Berg, Ivar & Kalleberg, Arne L. (Eds.), Sourcebook of labour markets: Evolving structures and processes New York: Kluwer Academic /Plenum.

This chapter analyzes the changes that affected America's workforce development system & policy during the 1980s & 1990s, first describing the system & then outlining the changes that have taken place in America's economic system & in workplaces. It is argued that these changes form the basis for an agenda of reform, & possible reforms are examined & assessed. The chapter concludes by looking at how the latest economic changes have affected both the workforce development system & education reform. 64 References. K. Larsen.

Bakke-Seeck, S., & et al.. (1997). Adult learning and vocational training in the informal sector in developing countries. (pp. 26). Prepared by the Committee on Educational Research in Cooperation with Third World Countries of the German Educational Research Association for CONFITEA V (Hamburg, Germany, July 14-19,1997)..

Because a growing proportion of the world's working population is in the informal sector (in work areas generally outside the sphere of state protection), planners of vocational training for adults must pay closer attention to those concepts of teaching and learning that have relevance for the informal sector, and they must develop strategies for building bridges between various existing forms of formal and informal education and training. The following areas must receive special attention: vocational competencies in the informal sector; the relationship between learners' mother tongue and the language in which they learn basic educational skills; diversification of technical and vocational education; government and nonformal education; motivation for initiative and action; traditional apprenticeship and informal learning; the practice of securing a livelihood by unifying household and enterprise; adult learning in the context of self-help organizations; and strategies for integrating social networks into educational programs. Vocational-technical education and training programs for adults should be emancipatory, based on a combination of traditional and informal methods of acquiring vocational competence, and designed to help individuals and groups from the informal sector become aware of their existing competencies and put those competencies to use in their daily routines. (Contains 16 references) (MN)

Balagopalan, S. (2002). Constructing indigenous childhoods: Colonialism, vocational education and the working child. Childhood: A Global Journal of Child Research, 9(1), 19-34.

Examines a Calcutta street child's experiences with vocational education within a broader historical framework of colonial and post-colonial discourses on formal education and the poor. Provides an ethnographic narrative of the child's experiences, exploring how colonialism, by establishing a modern education system and transforming children's work into wage labor, constitutes a major disjunction in the lives of the poor. (JPB)

Baldock, C. (1998). Feminist discourses of unwaged work: The case of volunteerism. Australian Feminist Studies, 13(27), 19-34.

Draws on questionnaire & interview data from 392 volunteer workers in 61 welfare organizations in Perth, Australia, to argue for the inclusion of volunteerism in feminist discourse on unwaged work. Mainstream literature on volunteerism in Australia, the US, & GB is analyzed to identify common images of women in charitable activities. As in feminist studies of the unwaged work of mothering, domestic labor, & informal care, volunteerism also expresses a desire to gain visibility. The areas of motive, choice, & gratification are compared. It is concluded that women provide most of the volunteer social welfare services because, in the patriarchal division between paid & unpaid labor, they are more apt to act on choice, motive, & human agency rather than on the compulsion to fulfill social roles. D. Bajo.

Ball, M. (2002). Engaging non-participants in formal education: Considering a contribution from trade union education. Studies in Continuing Education, 24(2), 119-31.

A study of 66 British participants at the beginning of and 2 years into labor education revealed that 80% had left school at age 16 and had negative schooling experiences. However, continual engagement in union activities and education, opportunities to see connections between work and learning activities, and the mutual reinforcement of these activities contributed to new perspectives on learning for these formerly disaffected adults. (47 references) (SK)

Ball, S.J. (2000). Performativities and fabrications in the education economy: Towards the performative society. Australian Educational Researcher, 17(3), 1-24.

Balser, D.B. (2002). Agency in organizational inequality: Organizational behavior and individual perceptions of discrimination. Work & Occupations, 29(2), 137-165.

This study takes an agency approach to inequality, examining how employees interpret organizational practices. Data was collected by administering surveys to employees with disabilities and their employers. 450 employees and 19 employers responded. By interpreting organizational behavior as discriminatory, employees mobilize the law and inject agency into inequality processes, albeit cognitively. Employees with disabilities interpreted discrimination based on their individual characteristics, organizational context and procedures, and their opportunities for training. Employees who worked in organizations that were focused on disability issues or who were offered opportunities for training were less likely to perceive discrimination. Employees who worked in organizations with grievance procedures were more likely to perceive discrimination. Disability-related human resource management structures played a symbolic role with little influence on employees' perceptions of discrimination. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2002 APA )

Balser, D.B., & Stern, R.N. (1999). Resistance and cooperation: A response to conflict over job performance. Human Relations, 52(8), 1029-1053.

Research literature on job performance from both management-oriented and industrial relations/sociology of work models is synthesized to produce a more comprehensive understanding of how supervisors manage employee performance problems. Two assumptions are derived from the synthesis: (1) employees are active in accepting and resisting definitions of performance issues made by supervisors; (2) informal interactions regarding the interpretation of performance issues are pivotal in understanding how performance problems are resolved. This study of university library supervisors focuses on the informal exchanges and characterize them as negotiations over the definition of job performance. Results are reported from a qualitative study of supervisors' interactions with employees identified as having performance problems. Three types of interactions in informal negotiations were found among 15 supervisor-employee dyads. The supervisors' interpretations of their interactions with employees are labeled as conformist, confrontational, or rebellious, designating how supervisors enact their role as agents of the organization. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2002 APA )

Baptiste, I. (1999). Beyond lifelong learning: A call to civically responsible change. International Journal of Lifelong Education, 18(2), 94-102.

The discourses of lifelong learning and the learning society are taking pride of place on the education agenda, but the question needs to be raised as to whether there are other matters that should assume an even more significant place. This paper seeks to refocus the debate on some of the major ethical issues confronting education. (Taylor and Francis Journals)

Baran, J., Berube, G., Roy, R., & Salmon, W. (2000). Adult education and training in Canada: Key knowledge gaps. (pp. ISBN-0-662-29358-4, Report: HRDC-R-00-6E; 38). Hull (Quebec): Human Resources Development Canada. Applied Research Branch.

This paper identifies important knowledge gaps in adult education and training (AET) in Canada and starts to explore strategies to fill these gaps. Following an introduction in English and French, each of the next three sections is comprised of a review of the current state of knowledge on three topics (outcomes of adult learning, motivations and barriers to adult learning, and informal learning) and a discussion of major knowledge gaps relevant to each. Section 2, on outcomes, argues that more must be known about outcomes in terms of overall benefits and costs if the adequacy of AET in Canada is to be judged. Section 3, on motivations and barriers, reports that key knowledge gaps include understanding reasons for participation and non-participation, and assessing whether individual decisions to participate or not are somehow unwarranted because they do not fully reflect associated costs and benefits. The section also argues that increasing knowledge of barriers to AET is a complementary strategy to estimating rates of return in the process of judging the adequacy of training levels in Canada and is essential in design of specific policy actions towards the pursuit of equity goals. Distribution considerations are addressed. Section 4 discusses issues related to informal learning and questions whether informal training is the optimal way for some groups to acquire new skills. Section 5 situates the issue of AET in the context of a strategy of human capital investment and provides a sense of what research priorities should be. Appendixes contain a statistical portrait of AET in Canada; summaries of major Canadian surveys of AET; and 48-item bibliography. (YLB)

Barker, K., & Christensen, K. (Eds.). (1998). Contingent work: American employment relations in transition. Ithaca, NY: ILR Press.

Barndt, D. (2002). Tangled routes: Women, work and globalization on the tomato trail. Aurora, ON: Garamond Press.

Barnes, C., Mercer, G., & Shakespeare, T. (1999). Exploring disability: A sociological introduction. Malden, MA: Polity Press.

Barnes, C. (2000). A working social model? Disability, work and disability politics in the 21st century. Critical Social Policy, 20(4(65)), 441-457.

Following recent developments in the theoretical & general understanding of disability & social policy, this article addresses the complex & changing relationship between the "social model of disability," work, & politics. It is suggested that within a social model framework, the conceptualizations of disability & work are interdependent, that recent policy developments in the employment field are likely to have only a marginal effect on the employment problems encountered by disabled people, that meaningful change is possible only through a radical reformulation of the meaning of work & that the foundations for this reformulation have already been put in place. 57 References. Adapted from the source document.