Aim: This study examines the predictors and outcomes of organizational employee friendliness. By doing this, this research helps in understanding the psychological relevance of organizational...Show moreAim: This study examines the predictors and outcomes of organizational employee friendliness. By doing this, this research helps in understanding the psychological relevance of organizational employee friendliness. Methods: The study used a cross-sectional survey design to collect data from 162 employees across various industries. Analysis included reliability analysis, factor analysis, correlation analysis to explore associations, and regression analysis to test for direct effects and mediation regression analysis to test for indirect effects. Results: The findings reveal that perceived organizational friendliness significantly predicts employee performance and well-being and reduces work-stress. Significant predictors of organizational friendliness included employee friendly leadership and employee friendly work climate, not significant predictors were employee friendly job content and employee friendly policies. The study also identified significant indirect effects of employee friendly leadership and employee friendly work climate on performance, well-being and stress mediated by perceived organizational friendliness. Key conclusions: Organizational employee friendliness plays an important role in enhancing employee performance and well-being and reducing stress. These results suggest that organizations, for instilling perceptions of organizational employee friendliness in employees, should focus on enhancing employee friendly leadership qualities and improving employee friendly work climate.Show less
In recent years, the Western world has experienced a heightened interest in addressing troublesome heritage, especially with the rise of global anti-racism movements. In relation to the public...Show moreIn recent years, the Western world has experienced a heightened interest in addressing troublesome heritage, especially with the rise of global anti-racism movements. In relation to the public space it means that monuments that are connected to racial oppression often have become the target of iconoclastic acts of activists. An example of such a contested monument is the statue of James Marion Sims. Instead of attacking the actual statue, which is usually done in iconoclastic acts, artist Doreen Garner responded to the controversies surrounding Sims by harming a replica of his statue in her performance Purge (2017). This research paper investigates how the usage of this replica problematizes the existing definitions of iconoclasm and to what extent it can shed a different light on iconoclastic practices. To answer this question, anthropological theories on voodoo will be used, as the creation of a representation with the purpose of harming it, reminds of voodoo practices. By investigating the concept of iconoclasm in relation to voodoo, this research reveals the significant overlap between voodoo and iconoclasm, as both concepts function on the basis that a representation is targeted for its similarities with the referent.Show less
This research examines the link between transparency and accountability, by adopting a Single Case-Study design. It studies how the Rijks ICT-dashboard, a transparency-platform listing all Dutch...Show moreThis research examines the link between transparency and accountability, by adopting a Single Case-Study design. It studies how the Rijks ICT-dashboard, a transparency-platform listing all Dutch governmental IT-projects that cost over 5 million Euros, affects and is affected by, the relationships that together make political accountability. Political, civil service and oversight interviews as a main source have been supplemented by examining parliamentary records. We conclude that the Rijks ICT-dashboard generally does not succeed in leading to more accountability. Members of Parliament lack the time and knowledge to structurally and actively monitor IT-based policy execution through using the Dashboard, rather depending on external ‘fire-alarms’ for their information, and as such tend to focus on failing IT-projects. When using the Dashboard’s data, MPs tend to question its validity and trustworthiness instead of using it to ask substantive questions. Civil servants fear failure-related consequences instigated by this incident-driven political debate, and tend to use a wide array of strategies to ‘dodge’ reporting on the Dashboard. This leads to a further distrust amongst both parties, and to MPs demanding more transparency out of principle, with little understanding of its practical and structural use. It can be expected that this leads to further dodging. As such, the Dashboard is a product of negative characteristics of the relationship of political accountability, and in turn further reinforces these characteristics. To mitigate this negative cycle, we advise a higher update-frequency, and a major shift in emphasis from quantitative to qualitative transparency on the Dashboard, focusing on linking IT-projects to the political debates, actively showing projects’ successes and societal value, and aiming to keep the barriers to use the information as low as possible.Show less
In deze scriptie wordt gekeken naar de representatie van een Westerse masculiene identiteit in de video-installatie Silent Spikes (2021) van Kenneth Tam door middel van literatuuronderzoek en een...Show moreIn deze scriptie wordt gekeken naar de representatie van een Westerse masculiene identiteit in de video-installatie Silent Spikes (2021) van Kenneth Tam door middel van literatuuronderzoek en een visuele analyse. In dit kunstwerk heeft Tam het Amerikaanse concept van de cowboy gebruikt, maar kijkt tegelijkertijd ook naar de Chinese arbeidersstaking uit 1867 in Amerika, waarbij Chinese spoorwegarbeiders betere werkomstandigheden eisten. Naast een video, heeft Tam ook dans en performance art gebruikt. Om de representatie van masculiniteit te onderzoeken, is gekeken naar de representatie van cowboys in westerns, en naar het belang van gender performativity. Hieruit is gebleken dat de cowboys in Silent Spikes juist het tegenovergestelde gedrag vertonen van de oorspronkelijke cowboys, en dat gender performativity een grote rol speelt in het interpreteren van hun gedrag. Vervolgens is het gebruik van videokunst en performance geanalyseerd om te onderzoeken hoe Tam de spoorwegarbeider zichtbaar heeft gemaakt en juist de masculiene eigenschappen aan de spoorwegarbeider toeschrijft in plaats van aan de cowboy.Show less
In recent decades, the political legitimacy of International Organisations has been heavily criticised, and the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is no exception. The purpose of this research...Show moreIn recent decades, the political legitimacy of International Organisations has been heavily criticised, and the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is no exception. The purpose of this research is to determine to what extent the United Nations (UN) member states consider the current UNSC as a legitimate organisation. The following research question is therefore formulated: How has the handling of the UNSC, with regard to the Syrian Civil War, affected the political legitimacy of the UNSC through the perception of UN member states? The concept of political legitimacy is divided into three different dimensions: legal legitimacy, procedural legitimacy and performance legitimacy. To answer the research question, a qualitative content analysis was carried out, examining all adopted and vetoed resolutions regarding the Syrian Civil War. Throughout the 42 resolutions, 55 different UN member states were present to vote and make statements on the case. These votes and statements were subsequently interpreted to measure the level of legal, procedural and performance legitimacy. The results have demonstrated that, with regard to the Syrian Civil Ware, the UNSC’s legal legitimacy has equally increased and diminished, its procedural legitimacy has diminished and that its performance legitimacy has not diminished through the perception of UN member states. Based on the results of the empirical analysis, this study recommends that the UNSC should reform its veto procedure to receive more procedural legitimacy. Regarding the legal and performance legitimacy, it is recommended that the UNSC should not reform. Additionally, possible further research should focus on different cases than the Syrian Civil War to ensure a more comprehensive solution for the UNSC’s political legitimacy debate.Show less
The present study investigated the Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) model in higher education and several exploratory hypotheses using a sample of 65 students from Leiden University. The JD-R proposes ...Show moreThe present study investigated the Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) model in higher education and several exploratory hypotheses using a sample of 65 students from Leiden University. The JD-R proposes (a) academic demands (role conflict, pace & amount of work, and mental workload) influence exhaustion and declining performance, (b) academic resources (autonomy, role clarity, feedback, relationship with peers and supervisors) influence engagement and academic performance success and (c) academic resources buffer the effect of academic demands on exhaustion. Exploratory hypotheses included an investigation of students’ perceived inclusivity as an academic resource in higher education – predicted to influence engagement and moderate the effects of demands on exhaustion. It moreover explored differences in the student experience using the JD-R model - predicting minority students to experience a higher degree of academic demands than majority students, and minority students with high perceived inclusivity to have higher engagement than minority students with low perceived inclusivity. Data collection was accomplished via questionnaires distributed at two points in time. At time1 – participants responded to measures related to all variables under study, with the exception of academic performance. Academic performance was assessed via questionnaire at time2, at Time2. Multiple and moderated linear regression was used to examine the JD-R model hypotheses and perceived inclusivity in the JD-R model framework, and independent sample t-tests the differences in student experiences. Findings revealed partial support of the JD-R hypotheses. Pace and amount of work predicted exhaustion, but the other demands did not. Role clarity was similarly the only resource to predict engagement. No support was found for a buffering effect of academic resources on the demands-exhaustion relationship. Contrarily, role clarity increased the effect of role conflict on exhaustion. Performance hypotheses were not investigated due to insufficient sample size. As predicted, perceived inclusivity influenced academic engagement. However, perceived inclusivity did not buffer demands effect on exhaustion as expected. Student experience hypotheses revealed no differences in the degree of demands between minority and majority students but did demonstrate minority students with high perceptions of inclusivity to be more engaged than those with low perceptions of inclusivity. The findings highlight the importance of future research on predictors of student well-being and the differences in student experiences. They provide educators, researchers and policy makers some insight into relevant factors in the success of all students – both minority and majority.Show less
The level of mental effort when performing everyday activities depends on many factors, and it is constrained by the working memory capacity. Factors such as the type of work, the work schedule,...Show moreThe level of mental effort when performing everyday activities depends on many factors, and it is constrained by the working memory capacity. Factors such as the type of work, the work schedule, and special events like exams, deadlines, or holidays may cause temporary increases or decreases to the cognitive load of daily routines. Given the dominance of circadian clocks in human behaviours and cognitive output, is mental effort also consistently influenced by the time of day? This study explored the possibility that cognitive load fluctuates in a consistent temporal pattern that is close to diurnal cycles observed in human behaviour and cognition. The approach was based on the assumption that smartphones tapping data can act as a proxy for cognitive load levels in order to capture the daily dynamic changes unobtrusively and in vivo. The sample data was collected from 64 healthy individuals, with a duration period on average of 33 days. A spectral analysis on the time-series of the tapping sessions revealed the existence of a diurnal cycle of 24 h in both low and high cognitive load measures, with no significant differences in the cycles’ amplitude. This suggests that people distribute their mental effort consistently across the day with similar intensity between activities that require low and high cognitive resources. This finding was again confirmed at the individual level by a cross correlation analysis. Interestingly, the participants exhibit barely visible weekly cycles with relatively weak signals, which could be a reflection of the time of the study during coronavirus lockdown; hence the influence of weekday/weekend rhythm may be diminished. Further research should examine the time of day when cognitive load peaks and declines, as well as the individual differences. The information can be valuable for various domains that are concerned with learning, performance and health.Show less
The adversity of heritage designation is one of the major topics discussed in the critical heritage discourse. Enlistment can become a competition, establishing a hierarchy for heritage based on...Show moreThe adversity of heritage designation is one of the major topics discussed in the critical heritage discourse. Enlistment can become a competition, establishing a hierarchy for heritage based on evaluation. The system is structured on exclusion, giving indeterminate criteria of values to phenomena to decontextualize its immediate surroundings and recontextualize them in reference to previous listings with the purpose of profit and attention to the notion of safeguarding. Especially in enlisting performative practices as intangible heritage properties, a problem can be seen in recording a fixed, standardized form of the performance in a certain moment in time. Following researchers responsible for providing descriptions in order to enlist properties, emphasis is placed rather on artistic aspects than on tracing original functionality and development. Well-intentioned but restrictive preservation efforts can result in shaping vibrant performative practices into “stale, taxidermized re-enactments” or highly staged performances. The repetition of a standard form is established in the process of nomination, fixed in designation, and consolidated and conveyed in transmission. Salpuri-chum, a spiritually functional dance, has been encapsulated in temporal stylistic descriptions and adapted to be performed by highly trained professional dancers for foremost representative and promotional purposes as a distinct display of Korean traditional culture.Show less
Artistic practice today is uniquely situated to pose critical, alternative responses to contemporary ecological problems. A compelling example from Mexico City is the 2015 performance piece Plan...Show moreArtistic practice today is uniquely situated to pose critical, alternative responses to contemporary ecological problems. A compelling example from Mexico City is the 2015 performance piece Plan Acalote by contemporary art collective Plan Acalli, which reenacted the journey of a traditional acalli boat across Mexico City, crossing highways and avenues that were once canals. This thesis examines the ecological potential of this artwork by studying the performance and its context through a framework of materialist posthumanism. I argue that Plan Acalote crucially enabled human participants to develop environmental skills and awareness and involved ritual, pilgrimage-like encounters. I propose that, in this way, the acalli boat’s journey can thus be read as a material transformation or “becoming” of paved urban roads into an acalote, or Nahua waterway: a collaborative, situated and performative strategy towards research, environmental awareness and art. Therefore, Plan Acalote ultimately demonstrated the potential of a shift in cosmovision through art as a viable approach to furthering ecological goals.Show less
Taking Milton’s epic poem Paradise Lost (1667), Samir Calixto in his dance-theatre play of the same title offers a new interpretation of an old order. In his work, God is a vain tyrant, Satan a...Show moreTaking Milton’s epic poem Paradise Lost (1667), Samir Calixto in his dance-theatre play of the same title offers a new interpretation of an old order. In his work, God is a vain tyrant, Satan a tragic hero, Adam a weak marionette, and Eve a brave leader who, with determination and hope, guides Adam out of the Paradise towards enlightenment and a new beautiful world. This thesis aims to examine the difference in portrayal of gender roles in the two works. The main research question seeks to explore performance of gender roles in the background of gender studies and literary criticism on Milton. The sub-questions investigate how literature influences dance and what is the relationship between the two art forms; how the physicality of dance and lack of dramatic text affect possible interpretations; and whether Eve can be seen as the embodiment of the masculine. The emergence of modern dance, particularly understood as a form not based on narrative, is described along with the notion of intermediality and postdramatic theatre. A conceptual base regarding gender theory and adaptation studies is set out with examples from Milton's poem before an in-depth analysis of Calixto's performance.Show less
Zhang Dali en Zhang Huan, beiden behorend tot de chinese avant garde in de jaren 80 en 90 van de 20e eeuw nemen met hun werk 'Offspring' en '12 square meters'afstand van een eeuwenlange tradtie in...Show moreZhang Dali en Zhang Huan, beiden behorend tot de chinese avant garde in de jaren 80 en 90 van de 20e eeuw nemen met hun werk 'Offspring' en '12 square meters'afstand van een eeuwenlange tradtie in de chinese kunst waarin het lichaam merendeels verhuld aanwezig is. De verbeelding van het lichaam werd sterk beïnvloed door de waarden en normen die voortvloeiden uit het confucianisme, taoïsme en boeddhisme.Het waren deze opvattingen die bepalend waren voor de vraag: wat kan gedacht, gevoeld en gezegd worden in onze Chinese maatschappij. Als na de Culturele Revolutie in 1978 een nieuwe tijd aanbreekt wordt deze vraag door de avant garde anders beantwoord. Kunstenaars nemen de vrijheid om oude taboes te doorbreken, zoals het verbeelden van het naakte lichaam.Met de economische opening naar het westen die in de jaren 80 begon, werd ook de invloed van westerse kunstenaars groter.Het lichaam werd zowel als object en als subject ingezet om een nieuwe identiteit vorm te geven waarin oude tradities omvergeworpen werden, inclusief de moraal en het fatsoen.Tegelijkertijd zien we nog sporen van het verleden terug in de avant garde die bijvoorbeeld herinneren aan de opvattingen binnen het boeddhisme.Show less
After the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro installed an anti-western, one-party communist system. In Castro’s 'Speech to Intellectuals' in 1961 he spoke the famous words: “within the Revolution,...Show moreAfter the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro installed an anti-western, one-party communist system. In Castro’s 'Speech to Intellectuals' in 1961 he spoke the famous words: “within the Revolution, everything goes; outside the Revolution, nothing”. In the cultural sector this meant that artists, intellectuals, and writers had the freedom to express themselves, as long as it was in line with Castro’s ideology. I will look at the effect of this statement in the art world, taking the performance Tatlin’s Whisper #6 and its re-staging #YoTambienExijo by the Cuban artist Tania Bruguera as case studies. This thesis concludes that Cuban culture is used for two extremes: as political propaganda by Castro and as tool for political critique by Bruguera.Show less
This thesis studies theatrical elements in museums, particularly exploring the way performances and performative techniques are incorporated in three museum types: anthropological, archaeological...Show moreThis thesis studies theatrical elements in museums, particularly exploring the way performances and performative techniques are incorporated in three museum types: anthropological, archaeological and contemporary art. It aims to disclose the role and function of performative means within them and examine whether and in what ways performative means could foster museum’s social relevance. Could they for instance, assist each of these museum types in meeting the particular demands that arise regarding its current social mission? Subsequently, the differences and similarities between the performances and the perfomative methods used in anthropological, archaeological and contemporary art museums are pointed out and the inter-influences among them are explored. Several publications are reviewed in order to delineate museum’s social role over the years emphasizing its educational mission. Also, a theoretical framework concerning performance’s relationship with society is given and the integration of museum and theatre is outlined focusing on the emergence of museum theatre. An exploration of the official websites, the brochures and public programmes of various museums worldwide provides information about the performative means used and the purposes they tend to serve. In the case of the performative spaces in anthropology museums the emphasis is put on Nuno Porto’s concept of ‘ethnographic installation’. The particular demands regarding the role and mission of each of the three museum types in present-day society are explored in reference to the relevant literature. Moreover, three cases-studies are examined in the context of this thesis: the Mix- Max Brazil exhibition in Tropenmuseum Junior in Amsterdam -where I did my internship-, the staging of the theatrical play ‘Hyllos’ in National Museum of Antiquities in Leiden (RMO) by the group ‘Veenfabriek, and Aernout Mik’s retrospective, ‘Communitas, in Stedelijk in Amsterdam, where I participated as a performer. The special case of Tropenmuseum Junior is explored as an anthropological museum integrating museum and theatre in its programmes and space. Its philosophy and guiding principles are outlined and the way such a concept is organized and set up is explored revealing performative means’ potentials within museums. Additionally, the educational efficacy of its method is examined. In ‘Hyllos’ case particular emphasis is put on the creative way the performance brings antiquity closer to the present using the story of an ancient mythical figure to provocatively comment on the state of democracy today. In ‘Communitas’ the dynamic socio-political aspect of the work is stressed as well as the innovative way Mik has physically and intellectually engaged his viewers. For the purposes of this study the author has pursued the qualitative research of the semi-structured interviews. Several museum and theatre professionals of various ranks and tasks have been interviewed. The outcome of the study indicates that performative means in both anthropological and archaeological museums have, apart from an entertaining, a strong educational-interpretive function. Although contemporary art museums are also interested in their educational mission, they nevertheless present a big number of performative works –such as performance art pieces- which constitute exhibits by themselves. Performative means indeed seem to foster museums’ social relevance having the capability to help them fulfil their role and mission in contemporary world. Moreover, due to the antiquity of their exhibits archaeological museums seem to confront special difficulties in tracing a connection with the present-day visitor. Therefore, performative means can be particularly useful in the context of archaeology museums as a powerful tool able to enliven their long ago lost worlds.Show less
Bachelor thesis | Film- en literatuurwetenschap (BA)
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This thesis investigates three films by pre-revolutionary Russian director Yevgeni Bauer, in which men obsessed with portraits of dead women enter into relationships with female stage performers,...Show moreThis thesis investigates three films by pre-revolutionary Russian director Yevgeni Bauer, in which men obsessed with portraits of dead women enter into relationships with female stage performers, who die as a result of this relationship. I argue that the stasis and death invoked by the portraiture these men obsess over clashes with the kinetic nature of these women, which is indicated in part by their self-expression on the stage, in such a way as to introduce the necessity of female death into the relationships. Further, I argue that the construction of the films indicates a critical view of the male position in these relationships.Show less
