This case, which has been endorsed by the UK government (3) and is echoed in wider EU documents (... more This case, which has been endorsed by the UK government (3) and is echoed in wider EU documents (4), is undoubtedly strong. It centres on the large number of well located sites which make up the public library system and the substantial proportion of the population ...
Steward, Fred and Liff, Sonia and Dunkelan, Marilyn (2009) Mapping the Big Green Challenge: an an... more Steward, Fred and Liff, Sonia and Dunkelan, Marilyn (2009) Mapping the Big Green Challenge: an analysis of 355 community proposals for low carbon innovation. Project Report. NESTA. ... Full text not available from this repository. ... Official URL: http://www. ...
Examines the attitudes of senior, predominantly male staff to women managers in a specific indust... more Examines the attitudes of senior, predominantly male staff to women managers in a specific industrial setting ‐ namely the West Midlands region of the UK ‐ using data derived from the Price Waterhouse West Midlands Business Survey. The survey is unique in that it is focused on eliciting the opinions of the senior management level in companies. Finds women to be significantly under‐represented at the senior management level in West Midlands businesses. In a region which is characterized by heavy manufacturing industry, identifies differences in attitudes to women managers by the respondent’s industrial sector, size of company and by individual managers’ educational background. Concludes with a discussion of some of the policy implications of the findings.
Recent writing about the 'service encounter' suggests that high-quality service requires employee... more Recent writing about the 'service encounter' suggests that high-quality service requires employee commitment and this will involve a more developed and sophisticated approach to HRM than has traditionally characterised the sector. Through an in-depth study of a sample of high service level hotels in the US and UK this paper argues, in contrast, that commitment can be created through a workplace culture that draws on family discourses and practices. It explores the ways in which this culture is developed and endorsed by both management and employees. This approach to generating commitment has costs in terms of the time and priority employees can give to their 'real' friends and family. By drawing on the highly gendered and hierarchical organisation of the family, it is argued that culture also contributes to gender stereotyping and hierarchies within and outside the workplace in ways that limit women's career opportunities.
This collection of 16 articles aims to introduce a gender dimension into contemporary debates a... more This collection of 16 articles aims to introduce a gender dimension into contemporary debates about the development and impact of information and communication technologies. These authors are all engaged in theoretical and empirical research which address the absence of ...
The author is grateful to the UK Manpower Services Commission for sponsoring this research. Views... more The author is grateful to the UK Manpower Services Commission for sponsoring this research. Views expressed are not necessarily those of the Commission. Assistance with data collection and development work on the monitor was provided by John Newson.
The rise of large out‐of‐town stores has received attention in terms of concern about the viabili... more The rise of large out‐of‐town stores has received attention in terms of concern about the viability of town centres and local businesses and the environmental consequences of the increased car journeys generated by this change in shopping practices. This article explores whether the competitive pressures which small retailers are under have affected their employee relations. It is based on interviews with owner managers of butchers, greengrocers and newsagent shops in one location. Owner managers had different assessments of the nature of the competition they were facing and how they might continue to have a viable business. However, approaches to recruitment and selection and staff allocation seemed to have more to do with the limited labour market and the personal nature of the employment relationship than the approach taken to competition. Low wages, long hours and limited training remained the dominant features of both successful and unsuccessful businesses.
While there is a general awareness that the proportion of women in the workforce is gradually ris... more While there is a general awareness that the proportion of women in the workforce is gradually rising, some of the features of this increase in female employment are less well understood. For example, between 1951 and 1971 the proportion of women workers in the labour force rose from 34.7 to 43.0 per cent. However, this increase masks an important change in the composition of the female workforce. In the same period the percentage of married women in the female workforce rose from 38.2 to 63.1 per cent. This growth of married women within the workforce has been paralleled by a growth in part‐time work. In fact, since the early 1960s most of the increase in the number of women entering employment has been due to a growth in part‐time rather than full‐time employees.
HOW CAN scientific and technological research and develop-ment be redirected towards socialist ai... more HOW CAN scientific and technological research and develop-ment be redirected towards socialist aims? Our interest in this question led us to examine various political programmes for a transition to socialism, particularly the Alternative Economic Strategy, to see how they deal with ...
Gendered by design?: information technology and …, 1993
Chapter 6 Information Technology and Occupational Restructuring in the Office1 Sonia Liff Introdu... more Chapter 6 Information Technology and Occupational Restructuring in the Office1 Sonia Liff Introduction The introduction of new technology into an area of work as sexually segregated as the office raises important questions about the ways in which gender relations are reproduced and ...
The paper explores forms of 'real' and 'virtual' social capital within a geographical area of the... more The paper explores forms of 'real' and 'virtual' social capital within a geographical area of the UK comprising 65 'communities'. Measures of real social capital based on formal community organisations were compared with web-activity relating to the same communities. Three main types of websites were identified: first a local government scheme which created 'identikit' websites for each of the places which could then be taken up by local people; second a similar scheme operated by a private company and covering the whole of the UK; and third independent, bottom up sites created by social entrepreneurs or community groups. Numbers and forms of organisations and websites, and levels and forms of community web-based participation were measured for each community at two points in 2004. The analysis suggests no strong correlation between these measures of real and virtual social capital. The analysis further suggests that providing a ready made website rarely results in the creation of a developed community site-although it may provide outlets for more limited information exchanges. However bottom up sites which reflect the heterogeneity of real communities are also rare. Interviews with participants suggest the need to understand more about the social networks, practices and organisational forms that sustain community engagement with community websites.
Subscription rates for 2014 are € 30 for individual subscribers and € 60 for institutions. Rates ... more Subscription rates for 2014 are € 30 for individual subscribers and € 60 for institutions. Rates include overseas postage.
Page 1. Rocket science or social science? Involving women in the creation of computing by Ursula ... more Page 1. Rocket science or social science? Involving women in the creation of computing by Ursula Martin Sonia Liff William H. Dutton and Ann Light Oxford Internet Institute University of Oxford e-mail: [email protected] Forum Discussion Paper No. 3 ...
Two studies by Chinese researchers on technology strategy in industrial sectors in Tianjin in the... more Two studies by Chinese researchers on technology strategy in industrial sectors in Tianjin in the People's Republic of China (PRC) are compared and assessed. One uses the UN ESCAP Technology Atlas framework for technology content assessment and applies it to the steel ...
This case, which has been endorsed by the UK government (3) and is echoed in wider EU documents (... more This case, which has been endorsed by the UK government (3) and is echoed in wider EU documents (4), is undoubtedly strong. It centres on the large number of well located sites which make up the public library system and the substantial proportion of the population ...
Steward, Fred and Liff, Sonia and Dunkelan, Marilyn (2009) Mapping the Big Green Challenge: an an... more Steward, Fred and Liff, Sonia and Dunkelan, Marilyn (2009) Mapping the Big Green Challenge: an analysis of 355 community proposals for low carbon innovation. Project Report. NESTA. ... Full text not available from this repository. ... Official URL: http://www. ...
Examines the attitudes of senior, predominantly male staff to women managers in a specific indust... more Examines the attitudes of senior, predominantly male staff to women managers in a specific industrial setting ‐ namely the West Midlands region of the UK ‐ using data derived from the Price Waterhouse West Midlands Business Survey. The survey is unique in that it is focused on eliciting the opinions of the senior management level in companies. Finds women to be significantly under‐represented at the senior management level in West Midlands businesses. In a region which is characterized by heavy manufacturing industry, identifies differences in attitudes to women managers by the respondent’s industrial sector, size of company and by individual managers’ educational background. Concludes with a discussion of some of the policy implications of the findings.
Recent writing about the 'service encounter' suggests that high-quality service requires employee... more Recent writing about the 'service encounter' suggests that high-quality service requires employee commitment and this will involve a more developed and sophisticated approach to HRM than has traditionally characterised the sector. Through an in-depth study of a sample of high service level hotels in the US and UK this paper argues, in contrast, that commitment can be created through a workplace culture that draws on family discourses and practices. It explores the ways in which this culture is developed and endorsed by both management and employees. This approach to generating commitment has costs in terms of the time and priority employees can give to their 'real' friends and family. By drawing on the highly gendered and hierarchical organisation of the family, it is argued that culture also contributes to gender stereotyping and hierarchies within and outside the workplace in ways that limit women's career opportunities.
This collection of 16 articles aims to introduce a gender dimension into contemporary debates a... more This collection of 16 articles aims to introduce a gender dimension into contemporary debates about the development and impact of information and communication technologies. These authors are all engaged in theoretical and empirical research which address the absence of ...
The author is grateful to the UK Manpower Services Commission for sponsoring this research. Views... more The author is grateful to the UK Manpower Services Commission for sponsoring this research. Views expressed are not necessarily those of the Commission. Assistance with data collection and development work on the monitor was provided by John Newson.
The rise of large out‐of‐town stores has received attention in terms of concern about the viabili... more The rise of large out‐of‐town stores has received attention in terms of concern about the viability of town centres and local businesses and the environmental consequences of the increased car journeys generated by this change in shopping practices. This article explores whether the competitive pressures which small retailers are under have affected their employee relations. It is based on interviews with owner managers of butchers, greengrocers and newsagent shops in one location. Owner managers had different assessments of the nature of the competition they were facing and how they might continue to have a viable business. However, approaches to recruitment and selection and staff allocation seemed to have more to do with the limited labour market and the personal nature of the employment relationship than the approach taken to competition. Low wages, long hours and limited training remained the dominant features of both successful and unsuccessful businesses.
While there is a general awareness that the proportion of women in the workforce is gradually ris... more While there is a general awareness that the proportion of women in the workforce is gradually rising, some of the features of this increase in female employment are less well understood. For example, between 1951 and 1971 the proportion of women workers in the labour force rose from 34.7 to 43.0 per cent. However, this increase masks an important change in the composition of the female workforce. In the same period the percentage of married women in the female workforce rose from 38.2 to 63.1 per cent. This growth of married women within the workforce has been paralleled by a growth in part‐time work. In fact, since the early 1960s most of the increase in the number of women entering employment has been due to a growth in part‐time rather than full‐time employees.
HOW CAN scientific and technological research and develop-ment be redirected towards socialist ai... more HOW CAN scientific and technological research and develop-ment be redirected towards socialist aims? Our interest in this question led us to examine various political programmes for a transition to socialism, particularly the Alternative Economic Strategy, to see how they deal with ...
Gendered by design?: information technology and …, 1993
Chapter 6 Information Technology and Occupational Restructuring in the Office1 Sonia Liff Introdu... more Chapter 6 Information Technology and Occupational Restructuring in the Office1 Sonia Liff Introduction The introduction of new technology into an area of work as sexually segregated as the office raises important questions about the ways in which gender relations are reproduced and ...
The paper explores forms of 'real' and 'virtual' social capital within a geographical area of the... more The paper explores forms of 'real' and 'virtual' social capital within a geographical area of the UK comprising 65 'communities'. Measures of real social capital based on formal community organisations were compared with web-activity relating to the same communities. Three main types of websites were identified: first a local government scheme which created 'identikit' websites for each of the places which could then be taken up by local people; second a similar scheme operated by a private company and covering the whole of the UK; and third independent, bottom up sites created by social entrepreneurs or community groups. Numbers and forms of organisations and websites, and levels and forms of community web-based participation were measured for each community at two points in 2004. The analysis suggests no strong correlation between these measures of real and virtual social capital. The analysis further suggests that providing a ready made website rarely results in the creation of a developed community site-although it may provide outlets for more limited information exchanges. However bottom up sites which reflect the heterogeneity of real communities are also rare. Interviews with participants suggest the need to understand more about the social networks, practices and organisational forms that sustain community engagement with community websites.
Subscription rates for 2014 are € 30 for individual subscribers and € 60 for institutions. Rates ... more Subscription rates for 2014 are € 30 for individual subscribers and € 60 for institutions. Rates include overseas postage.
Page 1. Rocket science or social science? Involving women in the creation of computing by Ursula ... more Page 1. Rocket science or social science? Involving women in the creation of computing by Ursula Martin Sonia Liff William H. Dutton and Ann Light Oxford Internet Institute University of Oxford e-mail: [email protected] Forum Discussion Paper No. 3 ...
Two studies by Chinese researchers on technology strategy in industrial sectors in Tianjin in the... more Two studies by Chinese researchers on technology strategy in industrial sectors in Tianjin in the People's Republic of China (PRC) are compared and assessed. One uses the UN ESCAP Technology Atlas framework for technology content assessment and applies it to the steel ...
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Papers by Sonia Liff