Biblio
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(1981). Not Working: an Oral History of the Unemployed.
"There are people in this book whose living rooms have turned into prisons without bars, and others who gleefully feel they have escaped jobs that were jails. There are people who have been broken by years of idleness, and others who have discovered emotional resources that allow them to endure—even, in a way, to triumph. In short, the men and women in this book vary enormously. Yet amid the variety there is a common feeling, stated with bitter clarity at times, only half spoken at others, and occasionally not yet formed as a thought but rather a troubled notion whispering behind the words. It is a crime that has been committed." (p. 1)
(1981). Stress/Unstress: How You Can Control Stress at Home and on the Job.
"The value of this Self Test for Stress Levels is that if you are getting totals of 300 or more, you are well-advised to take it easy for a year or so with any major life decisions. Not making a decision to change is an acceptable option."
(1981). Theory Z: How American Business Can Meet the Japanese Challenge.
"A Japanese company committed to lifetime employment will go to great lengths to build loyalty among its employees by ensuring fair and humane treatment. In the United States, by comparison, an alienated, disgruntled employee can be laid off during the next downsizing in the business cycle and thus represents only a short-term burden to the employer. The problem is purely one of incentives. People committed to long-term relationships with one another have strong commitments to behave responsibly and equitably towards one another." (p. 34)
(1981). Concepts in Discrete Mathematics.
(1981). Language and Linguistics.
(1980). Quality Is Free.
"Objectivity comes with not placing the blame for problems on individuals. Aim the questions and probing at the job. The job is what failed, not the individual. It may be that the two are imperfectly matched and you have to change one or the other. Either way, the individual has the chance to improve another time, under different conditions." (p. 75)
(1980). Transitions: making sense of life's changes.
"The point is that disenchantment, whether it is a minor disappointment or a major shock, is the signal that things are moving into transition. At such times we need to consider whether the old view or belief may not have been an enchantment cast on us in the past to keep us from seeing deeper into ourselves and others than we were then ready to. For the whole idea of disenchantment is that reality has many layers, each appropriate to a phase of intellectual and spiritual development. The disenchantment experience is the signal that the time has come to look below the surface of what has been thought to be so.
Lacking this perspective on such experiences, however, we often miss the point and simply become 'disillusioned.'" (p. 101)
Lacking this perspective on such experiences, however, we often miss the point and simply become 'disillusioned.'" (p. 101)
(1980). Intervention and Revolution.
(1979). Lying : Moral Choice in Public and Private Life.
"Self-defensive lies can permeate all one does, so that life turns into 'living a lie.' Professionals involved in collective practices of deceit give up all ordinary assumptions about their own honesty and that of others." (p. 79)
(1979). On a Clear Day You Can See General Motors.
"These were not immoral men who were bringing out this car. These were warm, breathing men with families and children who as private individuals would never have approved this project for a minute if they were told 'You are going to kill and injure people with this car.' But these same men, in a business atmosphere, where everything is reduced to terms of costs, profit goals and production deadlines, were able as a group to approve a product most of them wouldn't have considered approving as individuals." (p. 6)
(1979). Organizational Psychology.
"The main conclusion will be that there is no one answer, no 'perfect' way to organize or to design work. Instead, one must become diagnostic and flexible, sensitive to events and their subjective interpretation by the participants in a given situation, so that one can choose a course of action appropriate to that situation."
(1979). Power plays: How to deal like a lawyer in person-to-person confrontations and get your rights.
"Remember, an employer who won't give you your rights when you ask for them must be convinced that it is in his interest to give you your rights." (p. 105)
(1979). The Social Psychology of Organizing.
"As criticisms first start to increase the person exerts more effort, concentration is already quite high, and quality improves. As the criticisms continue to increase there comes a point where the additional increments of effort are now canceled because the person can't concentrate. Beyond this point, the greater the number of criticisms, the lower the quality of performance." (p. 227)
(1979). The Art of Software Testing.
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