Open Access Open Access  Restricted Access Subscription Access

Bio-Social Foundations of Work-Performance of Urban Non-Manual Employees: Study of Faculty Members in Utkal University


Affiliations
1 Department of Analytical and Applied Economics, Utkal University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha-751004, India
 

Objectives: To explore whether the biological and social contexts have a bearing on the work-performance of the workers in an urban non-manual setting (and which among the two has a predominant impact).

Methods/Statistical analysis: The study uses primary data collected from the faculty members of Utkal University, Bhubaneswar, India. Descriptive statistics and Karl Pearson correlation coefficient have been adopted for profiling and study of the linkages between indicators of work performance and those of biological and social aspects; Independent sample t-tests have been conducted to study the significance of the differences in work performance between the groups as per social and biological stratification.

Findings: Conventional economics associates work performance with factors such as technology, physical and human capital, and quality of materials used in the production process. However, some recent studies highlight the influence of socio-psychological aspects and biological differences among workers as a defining feature of performance diversity. The present study establishes that in case of non-manual work environment like academics, socio-psychological factors such as gender, caste, etc. have a greater bearing (than biological factors like body mass index, some other health anomalies, biologically determined sex, etc.) on work performance.

Application/Improvements: The understanding of these linkages could pave way towards organizations taking care to create good social ambience at work place and the people in their public and private lives in general, which could lead to optimum utilization of individual capacity and collective efforts at the workplace.


Keywords

Biosocial Impact, Work-Performance, Urban Non-Manual Employees.
User
Notifications

  • K. Steen Carlsson, M. Landin-Olsson, L. Nyström, H.J. Arnqvist, J. Bolinder, J. Ostman, S. Gudbjörnsdóttir. Long-term detrimental consequences of the onset of type 1 diabetes on annual earnings – evidence from annual registry data in 1990-2005. Diabetologia. 2010; 53(6), 1084-1092.
  • M.K. Jones. Disability and the labour market: a review of the empirical evidence. Journal of Economic Studies. 2008; 35(5), 405-424.
  • A. Mitra. Effects of physical attributes on the wages of males and females. Applied Economics Letters. 2001; 8(11), 731-735.
  • W. Gao, R. Smyth. Health human capital, height and wages in China. The Journal of Development Studies. 2010; 46(3), 466-484.
  • K. Anguita Lessard. Obesity and its impact on job quality. An Honours Thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for Graduation with Distinction in Economics in Trinity College. Duke University, North Carolina, United States. 2016; 1-42.
  • S. Shimokawa. The labour market impact of body weight in China: a semiparametric analysis. Applied Economics. 2008; 40(8), 949-968.
  • S. Huffman, M. Rizov. Body weight and labour market outcomes in Post-Soviet Russia. International Journal of Manpower. 2014; 35(5), 671-687.
  • S. Anger, M. Kvasnicka. Does smoking really harm your earnings so much? Biases in current estimates of the smoking wage penalty. Applied Economics Letters. 2010; 17(6), 561-564.
  • T.C. Neumann. The effect of drinking and smoking on the labour market outcomes of low-income young adults. Applied Economics. 2013; 45(5), 541-553.
  • C. Pfeifer. Physical attractiveness, employment and earnings. Applied Economics Letters. 2012; 19(6), 505-510.
  • S. Karimi, L. Mohammadinia, M. Mofid, M. Javadi, R. Torabi. The relationship between sociability and productivity. Journal of Education and Health Promotion. 2014; 3(104).
  • Tze Leong C, Rasli A. The realtionship between innovative work behaviour on work role performance: an empirical study. Procedia – Social and Behavioral Sciences. 2014; 129, 592-600.
  • N.M. Ferry. Factors influencing career choices of adolescents and young adults in rural Pennsylvania. Journal of Extension. 2006; 44(3).
  • P. Eggenhofer-Rehart, M. Schiffinger. Do career aspirations change, and why? Cohort differences and effects of age and economic context over time. Proceedings of 31st EGGOS Colloquium, Athens, Greece. 2015; 1-19.
  • L. Steiniger. The relationship between body-mass index and academic achivement in third-grade white females. A Post Graduation Thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the Degree of Master of Science with a Major in Dietetics in Department of Nutritional Sciences in the Graduate College. University of Arizona, Arizona, United States. 1997; 101.
  • J.J. Sabia. The effect of body weight on adolescent academic performance. Southern Economic Journal. 2007; 73(4), 871-900.
  • D.D. Franz, S.A. Feresu. The relationship between physical activity, body mass index, and academic performance and college-age students. Open Journal of Epidemiology. 2013; 3, 4-11.
  • W.G.D.S. Wehigaldeniya, P.A.L. Oshani, I.M.N.S. Kumara. Height, weight, body mass index (BMI) and academic performance (AP) of university students in Sri Lanka: with special reference to the University of Kelaniya. International Journal if Scientific and Research Publications. 2017; 7(2), 1-4.
  • K.A. Alswat, A.D. Al-shehri, T.A. Aljuaid, B.A. Alzaidi, H.D. Alasmari. The association between body mass index and academic performance. Saudi Medical Journal. 2017; 38(2), 186-191.
  • L.M. Dodsworth. Student nutrition and academic achievement. A Post Graduation Thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the Degree of Master of Science in Mathematics, Science and Technology Education in the School of Arts and Sciences. St. John Fisher College, New York, United States. 2010; 1-40.
  • N. Zuman, K. Ilias, K. Anuar Md. Isa, A. Danis. Relationship between eating behaviours, self esteem and academic achievement among lower secondary school students in Meru Klang, Malaysia. Asian Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 2012; 4(4), 132-141.
  • N. Arshad, U. Ahmed. Impact of breakfast habits on education performance of university students (A study conducted on University of Sargodha, Pakistan). International Journal of Acdemic Research in Progressive Education and Development. 2014; 3(1), 255-270.
  • J.D. McIsaac, Sara F. L. Kirk, S. Kuhle. The association between health behaviours and academic performance in Canadian elementary school students: a cross-sectional study. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2015; 12, 14857-14871.
  • J.C.G. Gaona, E.R.V. González. Relationship between reading habits, university library and academic performance in a sample of psychology students. Revista De La Educación Superior. 2011; XL (I) (157), 55-73.
  • Micheal Owusu-Acheaw. Reading habits among students and its effect on academic performance: a study of students of Koforidua Polytecnic. Library Philosophy and Practice. 2014; 1-23.
  • S. Foen Ng, R. Zakaria, S. May Lai, G.J. Confessore. A study of time use and academic achievement among secondary-school students in the state of Kelantan, Malaysia. International Journal of Adolescence and Youth. 2016; 21(4), 433-448.
  • P. Ramsden. Describing and explaining research productivity. Higher Education. 1994; 28(2), 207-226.

Abstract Views: 235

PDF Views: 134




  • Bio-Social Foundations of Work-Performance of Urban Non-Manual Employees: Study of Faculty Members in Utkal University

Abstract Views: 235  |  PDF Views: 134

Authors

Siba Sankar Mohanty
Department of Analytical and Applied Economics, Utkal University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha-751004, India
Annie Rath
Department of Analytical and Applied Economics, Utkal University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha-751004, India

Abstract


Objectives: To explore whether the biological and social contexts have a bearing on the work-performance of the workers in an urban non-manual setting (and which among the two has a predominant impact).

Methods/Statistical analysis: The study uses primary data collected from the faculty members of Utkal University, Bhubaneswar, India. Descriptive statistics and Karl Pearson correlation coefficient have been adopted for profiling and study of the linkages between indicators of work performance and those of biological and social aspects; Independent sample t-tests have been conducted to study the significance of the differences in work performance between the groups as per social and biological stratification.

Findings: Conventional economics associates work performance with factors such as technology, physical and human capital, and quality of materials used in the production process. However, some recent studies highlight the influence of socio-psychological aspects and biological differences among workers as a defining feature of performance diversity. The present study establishes that in case of non-manual work environment like academics, socio-psychological factors such as gender, caste, etc. have a greater bearing (than biological factors like body mass index, some other health anomalies, biologically determined sex, etc.) on work performance.

Application/Improvements: The understanding of these linkages could pave way towards organizations taking care to create good social ambience at work place and the people in their public and private lives in general, which could lead to optimum utilization of individual capacity and collective efforts at the workplace.


Keywords


Biosocial Impact, Work-Performance, Urban Non-Manual Employees.

References