Explores the impact of female participation in the labor force (FPLF) on female suicide attitudes using a national sample of 5,559 women. Significant bivariate relationship is indicated, though when controls are added for covariates, FPLF is not related to female suicide attitudes. Relates findings to the role conflict and role expansionist theory…

Schools need a Renaissance human-resources director to implement strategic staffing and fast-track teacher-recruitment plans. The HR director must attend to customer satisfaction, candidate supply, web-based recruitment possibilities, stabilization of newly hired staff, retention of veteran staff, utilization of retired employees, and latest…

Presents highlights of a panel discussion on workplace literacy at the Literacy in the 21st Century Research Conference (Edmonton, Alberta, October 1997). Participants from business, government, and university discussed Syncrude Canada's Workplace Literacy Program, implications of the International Adult Literacy Survey for the labor market, and…

A survey of 55 human resource development graduate programs uncovered great heterogeneity of program names, departmental affiliations, and specializations. Compared with a 1991 survey, master's enrollment declined, part-time study increased. Core curricula do not reflect current literature. (Contains 31 references. Includes "Invited Reaction" by…

Factor analysis was conducted of responses to a transformational leadership questionnaire from 326 work force education graduate students in the United States (exploratory analysis) and United Kingdom (cross-validation). Leadership behaviors were associated with positive learner outcomes. The number of factors was confirmed in replication but the…

The following trends facing the world of work have implications for human resource development: (1) the nature of work is changing, (2) the pace of change is accelerating, (3) the Web is a structural model of team rather than pyramid organization, (4) the bargaining power of the work force is rising, and (5) value exchanges are direct. (JOW)

Examination of the government role in labor force development in Singapore, Taiwan, and South Korean identified strategies and structures enabling the "East Asian Miracle" of economic development, including strong states with high autonomy regarding capital and labor, super-ministries linking institutions, and strong central control of…

This article presents the results of a qualitative study that examined the views and experiences of 12 large city employers of modern apprenticeships (MAs). Given the governments target that by 2004 at least 28 per cent of young people should enter an apprenticeship before the age of 22, it is imperative that large employers are fully involved in…

In 2003, we wrote a critical reply to Frank Coffield's reflections in this journal on the significance of the Performance and Innovation Unit's project on workforce development for the future direction of skills policy in England. As Coffield made clear in a rejoinder, underpinning our arguments are fundamental disagreements about what would be…

Studies show that small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are reluctant to employ graduates and to up-skill existing employees. The cultural barriers exemplified by this unwillingness limit the ability of SMEs to exploit new knowledge and innovate. In conjunction with its goal of producing a "knowledge economy" the UK government is committed to…

Vocational education, once the non-college prep track, has evolved with the times and the changing work force. Now called career and technology education, it is playing a major role in driving high school reform toward smaller learning communities and more focused futures for students. In this article, the author looks at one district's approach.…

This article presents an interview with Emily Stover DeRocco, Assistant Secretary of the Employment and Training Administration, U.S. Department of Labor. In this interview, the assistant secretary answers probing questions about the Community College Initiative, the workforce system, and the training funds directed through the workforce system.

Training programs purporting to develop emotional intelligence (EI) are widely available, yet to date few empirical studies have appeared in the literature providing support that training results in demonstrable changes to EI, and more significantly whether these changes can then be traced to more positive individual or organizational outcomes.…

In an effort to more comprehensively understand economics as a foundation of human resource development (HRD), this article reviews economic theories and models pertinent to HRD research and theory building. By examining neoclassical and neoinstitutional schools of contemporary economics, especially the screening model and the internal labor…

The work of the human resource development (HRD) practitioner is continuously evolving. Human resource development is now expected to make a strategic level contribution and contribute to individual and organizational effectiveness. Human resource development practitioners are increasingly required to network and build relationships to obtain…