The Lure of Work‐Life Benefits: Perceived Person‐Organization Fit As A Mechanism Explaining Job Seeker Attraction To Organizations

Drawing from person‐organization (P‐O) fit theory, we explain how the provision of work‐life benefits (WLBs) increases job seeker attraction to organizations during the early recruitment stage because of a perceived value fit between job seekers and the organization. Our results from an experimental study using a sample of 189 MBA students who belonged to two generational groups (Millennials and Gen Xers) and were seeking employment during a period of economic recession support our expectations. We found that job seekers develop higher P‐O fit perceptions for organizations that supplement standard pay with WLBs in their recruitment materials compared with organizations that supplement standard pay with health care benefits or offer only standard pay. In turn, such organizations are assessed as more attractive prospective employers. We also found that generational group moderated the path between P‐O fit and job seeker attraction such that Millennial job seekers were more likely to be attracted toward organizations with which they had strong fit perceptions than their Gen X counterparts. Theoretical and practical implications of our findings are discussed. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Class Size at University

An effective higher education market should increase educational standards. For universities to fulfil this role, students need reliable information about the teaching on offer at different universities, but no such data are currently available. We define a measure of teaching that weights contact hours by their intensity and collect a new data set that allows comparison of teaching across universities and across three departments. No two universities offer identical teaching. There is large variation in contact hours and even larger variation in teaching intensity, across both universities and departments. We combine our data with existing data to investigate the relationship that teaching has with university and student characteristics. We find that how much teaching students receive is uncorrelated with tuition fee; that teaching has little predictive power in explaining student satisfaction; and that physics students consistently receive more teaching than either economics or history students.     

Reviews

Planning in diverse societies. Healey, P. 1997: COLLABORATIVE PLANNING: SHAPING PLACES IN FRAGMENTED SOCIETIES. Basingstoke: Macmillan, £14.99 paper.

Transforming “problem” housing estates. Power, A. 1997: ESTATES ON THE EDGE. London: Macmillan, £57.50 cased.

Contested communities. Hoggett, P. (ed) 1997: CONTESTED COMMUNITIES: EXPERIENCES, STRUGGLES, POLICIES. Bristol, The Policy Press, £15.95 paper.

A planner's view of regeneration in Manchester. Kitchen, T., 1997: PEOPLE, POLITICS, POLICIES AND PLANS: THE CITY PLANNING PROCESS IN BRITAIN. London: Paul Chapman Publishing, £16.95 paper.

Urban design. Parfect, M. and Power, G. 1997: PLANNING FOR URBAN QUALITY: URBAN DESIGN IN TOWNS AND CITIES. London: Routledge, £65.00 cased, £22.50 paper.

Regional impact of the EU Structural Funds. Bachtler, J. and Turok, I. (eds) 1997: THE COHERENCE OF EU REGIONAL POLICY: CONTRASTING PERSPECTIVES ON THE STRUCTURAL FUNDS. London: Jessica Kingsley Publishers, £25.00 paper.

Development trusts. Ward M. and Watson, S. 1997: HERE TO STAY: A PUBLIC POLICY FRAMEWORK FOR COMMUNITY-BASED REGENERATION. London: Development Trusts Association, Joseph Rowntree Foundation, £10.95 paper.

Hart, L. 1997: ASSET BASE DEVELOPMENT FOR COMMUNITY-BASED REGENERATION ORGANISATIONS. London: Development Trusts Association, £6,50 paper.

Community visioning. Burton, B. 1997: COMMUNITY VISIONING: AN EVALUATION OF THE “CHOICES FOR BRISTOL” PROJECT. Bristol: Policy Press, £11.95 paper.     

Analysis of Information Content in U.S. and Japanese Magazine Advertising

Abstract

The content of Japanese versus U.S. magazine advertisements is assessed to determine relative levels of information content based on the type of magazine, the kind of information, the product represented in the advertisement and the size of the advertisement. It was found that Japanese magazine advertisements were generally more informative than U.S. ads, although the emphasis on specific content varies cross-culturally.     

COACHING COSTS AS TULLOCK COSTS: A MODEL OF RISING COACHING SALARIES

Escalating sports coaching costs have strained budgets at many universities. This paper analyses these expenditures as a form of Tullock Costs ( Tullock, 1967 ). In this framework the money the universities receive is spent on recruiting top talent, so the schools receive little, or no, monetary gain under current scholarship rules.     

Housing and Urban Development Indicators: A Good Idea Whose Time Has Returned

This special issue of Real Estate Economics is devoted to "Housing and Urban Development Indicators." The issue has been underwritten by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development as a U.S. Contribution to the United Nation's Habitat II Conference, held in Istanbul, Turkey in June 1996. This introduction first briefly explains the role of indicators in urban research. Current research on indicators is then described, including a major international research effort undertaken in over fifty countries with support from numerous academics and other researchers, the United Nations, the World Bank and a number of governments. Finally, the papers in this issue are introduced and placed in context.     

Comparison of fruit and vegetable consumption among Native and non‐Native American populations in rural communities

Fruit and vegetable consumption of Native Americans was compared with that of non‐Native Americans and determinants of fruit and vegetable intake for both populations were found based upon the Theory of Planned Behavior. A one‐time survey was conducted as part of a larger research project funded by the South Dakota Department of Health. The survey was administered in local grocery stores and supermarkets in six South Dakota communities, including two located on Native American reservations. Of the 1000 distributed surveys, 499 were returned with 230 being usable, resulting in a response rate of 49.9%. Wilcoxon signed‐rank test and two regression models were tested using SAS 9.2 software. Dependent variables were fruit and vegetable intake. Attitudes towards health, fruit and vegetable consumption, perceived difficulty, subjective norm and intention were also measured. Community size, family income, employment status and participation in food assistance programmes [Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or Women, Infants, and Children (SNAP or WIC)] were socio‐demographic control variables. Overall, Native American participants consumed more fruit and vegetables at home and had a more positive attitude towards healthy diets than non‐Native American participants. SNAP or WIC participation, family health, exercise, intention to live healthier than parents, buying healthy food, and fruit and vegetable consumption when eating out were positively associated with fruit and vegetable consumption among Native Americans, while participation in the SNAP or WIC programme had a negative influence on consumption among non‐Native American participants. Family health, exercise, buying healthy food, fruit and vegetable when eating out, and intention to buy healthy food were positively associated with fruit and vegetable consumption among the non‐Native American population. Theory of Planned Behavior variables (e.g. attitude towards healthy food) significantly contributed to the model explaining fruit and vegetable consumption. The fact that SNAP and WIC participation had an opposite influence on the two populations warrants further research.     

Labor Market Discrimination Against Men with Disabilities in the Year of the ADA

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) provides civil rights protections to persons with disabilities, but the debate that preceded passage of the Act was not based on empirical estimates that could be used to measure its performance. This article estimates the extent of wage discrimination against men with disabilities in 1990, providing a reference that can be used to evaluate the impact of the ADA. The results show large productivity-standardized wage differentials between disabled and nondisabled men that are weakly correlated with the strength of prejudice against different impairments. Physical limitations explain part, but not all, of the wage differentials. The results also show that low employment rates are a more serious problem than wage discrimination for workers with disabilities.