Industry, Thrift and Divine Reward: an Examination of the Ideology and Theology of Work in New Zealand (1840-1992)

<p>This study of the ideology and theology of work in New Zealand 1840 - 1992, is in response to political statements in 1991 regarding the lack of a work ethic in New Zealand. The concept of the Protestant work ethic as advanced by Max Weber is explored as a background supposition, and is augmented by an examination of the Victorian "gospel of work" which, it is argued, was the basis of the work ethic in New Zealand. Three time periods are explored within New Zealand history illustrating the contemporary work ideology among the politicians and the people, and reflecting on the churches' position in terms of work theology or ethics. The specific times examined in detail are the early colonial years (1840-1900), the Great Depression of the 1930s, and the period of the major restructuring of the New Zealand economy (1984-92). In each instance secular sources are explored, and some church records are examined, in particular those of the Presbyterian Church of New Zealand. A detailed survey undertaken in 1991 of a group of public servants who were at the centre of much of the Government's economic restructuring (1984-92), is taken as evidence of the existence of a work ethic ideology among a middle class professional group. The opinion is given that church in New Zealand has evolved from initially supporting the Victorian work ethic ideology of the capitalist system, to questioning its relevance in the late twentieth century but has contributed little to a contemporary theology of work. The conclusion is reached that historically New Zealanders have displayed a work ethic ideology which has been encouraged by the politicians.</p>

Industry, Thrift and Divine Reward: an Examination of the Ideology and Theology of Work in New Zealand (1840-1992)

<p>This study of the ideology and theology of work in New Zealand 1840 - 1992, is in response to political statements in 1991 regarding the lack of a work ethic in New Zealand. The concept of the Protestant work ethic as advanced by Max Weber is explored as a background supposition, and is augmented by an examination of the Victorian "gospel of work" which, it is argued, was the basis of the work ethic in New Zealand. Three time periods are explored within New Zealand history illustrating the contemporary work ideology among the politicians and the people, and reflecting on the churches' position in terms of work theology or ethics. The specific times examined in detail are the early colonial years (1840-1900), the Great Depression of the 1930s, and the period of the major restructuring of the New Zealand economy (1984-92). In each instance secular sources are explored, and some church records are examined, in particular those of the Presbyterian Church of New Zealand. A detailed survey undertaken in 1991 of a group of public servants who were at the centre of much of the Government's economic restructuring (1984-92), is taken as evidence of the existence of a work ethic ideology among a middle class professional group. The opinion is given that church in New Zealand has evolved from initially supporting the Victorian work ethic ideology of the capitalist system, to questioning its relevance in the late twentieth century but has contributed little to a contemporary theology of work. The conclusion is reached that historically New Zealanders have displayed a work ethic ideology which has been encouraged by the politicians.</p>

Effect of a Protestant Work Ethic on Burnout: Mediating Effect of Emotional Dissonance and Moderated Mediating Effect of Negative Emotion Regulation

This study examined the effect of the Protestant work ethic on burnout using a sample of 259 South Korean workers from a manufacturing firm. We also investigated the mediating role of emotional dissonance on this effect and addressed the moderating and moderated mediating roles of negative emotion regulation on the relationship between Protestant work ethic and emotional dissonance. Our empirical results indicated a significant direct negative effect of the Protestant work ethic on burnout, but there was no evidence of an indirect relationship between these. Results also found that negative emotion regulation changed the relationship between Protestant work ethic and emotional dissonance. In addition, negative emotion regulation changed the mediating role of emotional dissonance in the relationship between Protestant work ethic and burnout. The study is meaningful in that it grasped the importance of value as a major factor in job burnout, and it finally confirmed the antecedents of Koreans’ diligence.

Work ethos in American ceremonial discourse addressed to the young

The article discusses work ethos in American ceremonial discourse addressed to the young entering adult life. Its aim is to investigate whether the Protestant work ethic still pervades the American thinking about work. Through a qualitative analysis of the corpus of 100 randomly selected commencement addresses delivered during 2016 and 2017 graduation ceremonies in American universities, it is shown how work-related topics are employed by the speakers celebrating the graduates’ academic achievements and providing them with advice for the future. The Discourse-Historical Approach, committed to Critical Discourse Analysis, has been chosen as a methodological approach, integrating the interpretation of discourses and texts with sociological and historical research, studies on narration, stylistics, rhetoric and argumentation theory. As the discourse to be analyzed is culture-specific, I have decided to combine the Discourse-Historical Approach with Cultural Studies.

Riders on the Storm

This chapter explores how hitchhiking—with its promise of free, untethered, and spontaneous mobility—allowed youths of the late sixties and early seventies the ability to maintain a largely nomadic existence while living out the values of the hippie (or freak, as many self-identified) lifestyle. Within the national culture soliciting rides became closely connected to an increasingly politicized counterculture—one that sought to upend the Protestant work ethic and conventional sexual and gender norms. Notably, this radicalized youth culture and its dismissal of traditional values generated resentment among many, creating a deep cultural divide between young people and older, so-called straight Americans. Because of its association with the freak movement, the act of hitchhiking became a key point of confrontation. An increasingly mature regulatory state began cracking down on the practice, in part to reign in the counterculture and women’s liberation movement, but also to promote safer and more uniform traffic behavior. Still, these efforts did little to slow the growing popularity of the practice in the early 1970s.

Protestant Ethics in Academia

Academic ethics has recently become an important issue in Poland. With changes in the Polish law on higher education a new approach to ethics of students and academics has been presented. As a PhD student and young researcher, I am personally interested in the introduced changes. This article seeks to examine professional academic ethics in terms of two chosen theories, that is, the Protestant work ethic of Max Weber and its adaptation to the academic environment by Robert K. Merton. I situate both theories in the Polish context of shaping the academic ethos. In my deliberations I recall Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s works as fundamental for the Protestant work ethos values, which are honesty, reliability and diligence. Additionally I present their religious as well as non religious aspects. With such theoretical foundations, I attempt to evaluate the risks and violations in the ranks of Polish academics. The theoretical basis and the collected data enable me to put forward the claim that it is not feasible in Poland to follow the Western model of work ethics. Instead, it has to be built from scratch. To start this process, we need to consider the value of responsibility as a crucial category not only for the process of academic ethos formation, but also for everyday life from the early years.

Racial Prejudice, Racial Identity, and Attitudes in Political Decision Making

A great deal of work in the domain of race and politics has focused on two phenomena: racial prejudice and racial solidarity. Scholarship on racial prejudice has primarily examined the nature and consequences of white racial animus, particularly toward blacks. In the latter half of the 20th century, in the post-Civil Rights era, scholars argued that racial prejudice had been transformed, as most whites rejected the belief that there were innate, biological differences between racial groups. Instead, whites came to embrace the belief that blacks did not subscribe to particular cultural values associated with the protestant work ethic. While these attitudes profoundly shape public opinion and political behavior in the United States, we suspect that there has been a resurgence in the belief that consequential biological differences between racial groups exist, and that biological racism is a growing force in American politics. Most of the development of work on racial consciousness has examined the effects of racial solidarity among racial and ethnic minorities on public opinion. Individuals’ psychological attachments to their racial group are an important element in American politics, and their importance may increase as the country becomes more racially and ethnically diverse.

The Protestant Work Ethic and Attitudes Towards Work

In this paper we will present the concept of Protestant Work Ethics as conceptualized and measured by several authors, starting with its initiator, Max Weber, in order to emphasize the importance of work ethic on attitudes towards work. We will also analyze the four dimensions of work ethic - hard work, nonleisure, independence and asceticism, identified by Blau and Ryan (1997) among military students, trying to identify how they vary according to a series of socio- demographic data of military students.

Marie and Mr. Bee by M. Welwood

Welwood, Margaret. Marie and Mr. Bee. Illustrated by Coralie Rycroft. Bomars Ventures, 2016.Very few children in Canada’s towns and smaller cities can buy a “locally” published picture book of reasonable quality. Happily for them, young children living in tiny Beaverlodge, Alberta (population, 2,327 as of 2016) can do just that.Marie and Mr. Bee is locally produced. Its author, Margaret Welwood, has teamed with Beaverlodge artist, Coralie Rycroft, to produce an enjoyable work for young children. Its publisher, Bomars Ventures, (also known as “Grandma’s Bookshelf”) appears to operate from Welwood’s address. The book is printed in Canada. It is a paperback, its sturdy, glossy pages stapled to its soft cover along the central fold (technically, “saddle bound”).Because this appears to be a self-published book, Welwood’s professional credentials should be noted. She holds a BA in Psychology and a Diploma in Adult Education, both from the University of Alberta. She is a member of the Writer’s Guild of Alberta, and the Canadian Children’s Book Centre. For twenty years she has taught English as a second language at Grande Prairie Regional College. She edited Northwest Business Magazine; has contributed nonfiction articles to a variety of journals, e.g., The Alberta Report, New Trail, Christian Woman; and has reviewed books ranging from children’s picture books to Bible study materials. This experience culminates in a writing style well suited to engaging, entertaining, and instructing her intended audience.Her book is admittedly didactic in intent, but not in style. A “Note to Parents” [Inside front cover] identifies one of its themes, “…get your work done first, and then it’s time to play.” While this theme evokes the Protestant work ethic (and, indeed, the back cover of the book features an endorsement by the Christian Fellowship Assembly) Albertans of every faith would embrace it.Welwood’s storyline is simple but charming. Marie, like her small forest friends—the Squirrels, Little Bear, and Fox—is a model of industry until Mr. Bee corrupts her with his own carefree attitude to life: “I don’t have to make honey. The workers make the honey and I eat it!” [p.6] Ultimately, however, indolence proves painful for Mr. Bee, and tedious to Marie.A secondary theme is much more subtly explored. Marie is wheelchair-bound. No words allude to her situation; it is simply conveyed by the exquisite artwork of Coralie Rycroft. With ink and colour, Rycroft depicts Marie’s lifestyle in an idyllic log cabin surrounded by beautiful woodlands. Marie is independent, self-sustaining, and fully functioning; the concept is powerfully communicated.Beyond its intended messages, the book conveys a third by its very existence. Given a few individuals with gifts and initiative, a small community can develop its own “literary oeuvre”, enrich the lives of its citizens, and communicate its cultural norms in ways that the wider world can appreciate.Reviewer: Leslie AitkenRecommended: 3 stars out of 4Leslie Aitken’s long career in librarianship involved selection of children’s literature for school, public, special, and university collections. She is a former Curriculum Librarian at the University of Alberta.