Suchergebnisse

Much debate has surrounded the issue of revolving doors (RDs) between private and public employment. Defenders of the practice argue that RDs enhance the performance of the firm. Elite theorists dispute this claim and contend that RDs distort economic and political marketplaces. An examination of the RDs of 3,815 officers of the top 200 U.S. firms reveals little support for the argument for improved performance. In contrast, the market distortion view receives some support. High-RD corporations cluster in concentrated markets, forge more connections with economic elites, and engage in monopolistic or monopsonistic practices. They are also more involved in questionable political activities, especially bribery of foreign governments.

Theoretical expectations of participatory theorists (e.g. Pateman, Blumberg) are applied to labor management committees (LMCs) in an effort to predict the spillover effects of workers' participation in firm decision-making on their political and social participation. The two focal points are Jamestown, N.Y. and Buffalo, N.Y. Witte has argued that conditions may obstruct the hypothesized spillover effects from occurring: co-optation, structural impotence, and misrepresentation. In Jamestown and Buffalo, evidence that all three can be expected is found. The hypothesized spillover effects are not likely to emerge from the LMC experiments in the areas studied. It is suggested that structural impotence is perhaps the major obstruction to the spillover effect in these cases and in firms in capitalist economies.

Using qualitative data based on interviews with 22 married infertile couples living in western New York State, we describe the ways in which husbands and wives interact in the process of constructing their infertility. The wives experienced infertility as a cataclysmic role failure. Husbands tended to see infertility as a disconcerting event but not as a tragedy. Couples tended to see infertility as a problem for wives. Frustration and lack of communication were typical consequences of the confrontation of husbands' and wives' perspectives on infertility. Interactions with medical professionals tended to reinforce these consequences. These interactions between wives, husbands, and medical professionals may lead to taking wrong directions in treatment and to ignoring treatment options. Some of the problems we describe could be lessened by adopting a model of couple-centered treatment in a setting that incorporated routine counseling.