Showing papers in "Journal of Applied Psychology in 1990"

Perceived Organizational Support and Employee Diligence, Commitment, and Innovation

Abstract: Two studies report a positive relationship of employees' perception of being valued and cared about by the organization with (a) conscientiousness in carrying out conventional job responsibilities, expressed affective and calculative involvements in the organization, and (e) innovation on behalf of the organization in the absence of anticipated direct reward or personal recognition. In Study 1, involving six occupations, positive relationships of perceived support with job attendance and perforrnance were found. In Study 2, using manufacturing hourly employees and managers, perceived support was positively related to affective attachment, performance outcome expectancies, and the constructiveness of anonymous suggestions for helping the organization. These results favor the extension and integration of emotion-based and caleulative theories of organizational commitment into a social-exchange approach. The concept of organizational commitment has attracted considerable interest as an attempt to understand the intensity and stability of employee dedication to work organizations. Two major views of employee dedication focus on affective attachment and calculative involvement, respectively, which are usually considered to be conceptually and empirically distinct (McGee & Ford, 1987; Meyer, Paunonen, Gellatly, Gotiin, & Jackson, 1989; Morrow, 1983; Penley & Gould, 1988; Reichers,

Employee Theft as a Reaction to Underpayment Inequity: The Hidden Cost of Pay Cuts

Abstract: Employee theft rates were measured in manufacturing plants during a period in which pay was temporarily reduced by 15%. Compared with pre- or postreduction pay periods (or with control groups whose pay was unchanged), groups whose pay was reduced had significantly higher theft rates. When the basis for the pay cuts was thoroughly and sensitively explained to employees, feelings of inequity were lessened, and the theft rate was reduced as well. The data support equity theory's predictions regarding likely responses to underpayment and extend recently accumulated evidence demonstrating the mitigating effects of adequate explanations on feelings of inequity.

Personality, affect, and behavior in groups.

Abstract: Building from an attraction-selection-attrition framework (Schneider, 1987) and the socialization literature, this study views personality, affect, and behavior as group-level phenomena

Bad apples in bad barrels: A causal analysis of ethical decision-making behavior.

Abstract: Les auteurs proposent et testent dans cet article un modele dans lequel l'apprentissage social, le stade du developpement moral cognitif et le locus of control sont supposes influencer la prise de decision ethique

Understanding prosocial behavior, sales performance, and turnover: A group-level analysis in a service context.

Abstract: Une justification theorique est apportee pour analyser le comportement prosocial et le turnover volontaire au niveau du groupe. Selon l'hypothese, la cohesion du groupe et l'humeur positive du dirigeant seront correlees positivement a l'incidence du comportement prosocial dans les groupes de travail et negativement aux taux de turn over volontaire. De plus, l'importance accordee au comportement prosocial durant la socialisation initiale dans les groupes devrait accroitre l'apparition de ce type de comportement. Le service des consommateurs etait aussi sense etre positivement relie aux performances de vente

Affective and continuance commitment to the organization: Evaluation of measures and analysis of concurrent and time-lagged relations.

Abstract: Examen des liens causaux reliant l'implication affective et la continuation de l'implication dans une organisation. Etude de la structure factorielle des echelles d'evaluation de ces 2 concepts (ACS et CCS, Meyer et Allen, 1984). 3 echantillons d'employes nouvellement embauches dont 1 repondant a 3 occasions durant la premiere annee d'exercice (etude longitudinale). Analyses factorielles confirmatoires, tests de modeles causaux non recursifs

Influence tactics and objectives in upward, downward, and lateral influence attempts.

Abstract: Two studies were conducted to replicate and extend previous exploratory research by Kipnis, Schmidt, and Wilkinson (1980) on influence tactics and objectives in organizations. A new questionnaire was developed that included measures of important influence tactics and objectives omitted in the earlier research. Whereas the earlier research used only agent self-reports of influence behavior, the present research used both agent and target reports. Differences in downward, lateral, and upward influence attempts were replicated more for data from agents than for data from targets. Direction of influence had a stronger effect on influence objectives than on influence tactics. Despite some differences due to data source and direction of influence, the relative frequency of use for the 8 influence tactics was remarkably similar across conditions. Consultation and rational persuasion were the tactics used most frequently, regardless of the direction of influence.

Analysis of role conflict and role ambiguity in a structural equations framework

Abstract: In this study a confirmatory methodology was implemented to analyze a model that uses the Rizzo, House, and Lirtzman (1970) scales of role conflict (RC) and role ambiguity (RA; i.e., the Bedeian and Armenakis, 1981, model). The validity of the RC and RA scales were examined through structural equations analysis, and a nested models approach was used to compare the Bedeian and Armenakis model with a model suggesting a more parsimonious representation of the data. Furthermore, path estimates from models incorporating random measurement error were compared with estimates from a model not incorporating the effects of random measurement error

Confusion of confidence intervals and credibility intervals in meta-analysis.

Abstract: A review of 30 meta-analyses that have been conducted in organizational behavior and human resource management using procedures described by Hunter, Schmidt, and Jackson (1982) suggests that there is confusion regarding the use and interpretation of confidence intervals and credibility intervals. This confusion can lead to conflicting conclusions about the relationships between variables

Dimensions of conflict frame: Disputant interpretations of conflict.

Abstract: This research was conducted to uncover and define disputant cognitive interpretations of conflict. In Study 1, 31 disputants and 9 mediators were asked to describe a conflict with which they were currently associated. Study 2 replicated the multidimensional scaling findings of Study 1 using a different subject population(i.e., undergraduate students)

An alternative selection procedure: The low-fidelity simulation.

Abstract: Creation d'un test de simulation de faible fidelite pour selectionner a l'entree les dirigeants de l'industrie des telecommunications. La simulation montre des postulants en diverses situations de travail et 5 alternatives de reponse pour chaque situation. Les sujets choisissent la reponse qu'ils feraient le plus volontiers et le moins volontiers dans chaque situation. Correlations avec les evaluations de la performance des superviseurs

Measuring person-job fit with a profile-comparison process

Abstract: Utilisation d'un processus de comparaison de profils (base sur une technique de type Q procurant une evaluation isomorphique des prerequis du travail et des competences individuelles) pour evaluer l'ajustement homme-travail sur 7 petits echantillons de population representant divers metiers et organisations

On the meaning of Maslach's three dimensions of burnout

Abstract: The dimensionality of Maslach's (1982) 3 aspects of job burnout--emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and personal accomplishment--was examined among a sample of supervisors and managers in the human services. A series of confirmatory factor analyses supported the 3-factor model, with the first 2 aspects highly correlated. The 3 aspects were found to be differentially related to other variables reflecting aspects of strain, stress coping, and self-efficacy in predictable and meaningful ways. Implications for better understanding the burnout process are discussed.

Climate and culture : interaction and qualitative differences in organizational meanings

Abstract: Etude de la relation entre l'appartenance des individus a des groupes d'interaction sociale et les significations qu'ils donnent aux evenements dans l'organisation. Selon l'hypothese, les individus qui ont interagis ensemble interpreteraient qualitativement de facon similaire les evenements de l'organisation tandis que differents groupes d'interaction interpreteraient differemment les memes evenements organisationnels. Entretien et questionnaire. N=64. Analyse de structure et echelle multidimensionnelle

Coping, negative affectivity, and the work environment: Additive and interactive predictors of mental health.

Abstract: The present study tested the hypothesis that direct coping would moderate relations between work stress and mental health outcome, whereas suppression (a form of emotion-focused coping) would show an overall effect on outcome. Data on coping, perceived work demand and support, and affective symptoms were obtained from trainee teachers (N = 157). The results supported the hypothesis. Gender differences also were observed; men reported more use of suppression than did women. In addition, negative affectivity (NA) was examined as a confounding variable and as an index of reactivity in stress-outcome relations. NA acted to inflate associations between work perceptions and affective symptoms, but it was also a significant moderator variable; high NA subjects showed greater reactivity to work demand than did low NA subjects.

Influence tactics used by subordinates: A theoretical and empirical analysis and refinement of the Kipnis, Schmidt, and Wilkinson subscales.

Abstract: The research of Kipnis, Schmidt, and Wilkinson (1980) is critiqued and their subordinate influence subscales examined in four studies. In the first, the subscale items were given to 34 judges, who rated each item for dimensionality. In the second, the 27 items plus several additions were administered to a sample of 251 employed MBA students, and exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were conducted. A third study used a similar sample (N=281) and the same analyses

Individual differences in output variability as a function of job complexity.

Abstract: The hypothesis was tested that the standard deviation of employee output as a percentage of mean output (SD,,) increases as a function of the complexity level of the job. The data examined were adjusted for the inflationary effects of measurement error and the deflationary effects of range restriction on observed SDy figures, refinements absent from previous studies. Results indicate that SDT increases as the information-processing demands (complexity) of the job increase; the observed progression was approximately 19%, 32%, and 48%, from low to medium to high complexity nonsales jobs, respectively. SDP values for sales jobs are considerably larger. These findings have important implications for the output increases that can be produced through improved selection. They may also contribute to the development of a theory of work performance. In addition, there may be

Throwing Good Money After Bad: The Effect of Sunk Costs on the Decision to Escalate Commitment to an Ongoing Project

Abstract: Les relations fonctionnelles entre les couts et la decision de poursuivre un investissement dans un projet de recherche et de developpement sont examinees avec 407 etudiants en commerce. Les sujets lisent un scenario dans lequel 10%, 30%, 50%, 70% ou 90% d'un budget de 10 millions de dollars ont ete investis. Un groupe doit indiquer s'il est souhaitable d'investir les fonds restants pour finir le projet. Un second groupe indique s'il investirait volontiers un million de dollars de plus pour poursuivre le projet. Le troisieme groupe evalue si le projet donnera des profits

Dichotomization of continuous variables: the implications for meta-analysis

Abstract: In many studies included in meta-analyses, the independent variable measure, the dependent variable measure, or both, have been artificially dichotomized, attenuating the correlation from its true value and resulting in (a) a downward distortion in the mean correlation and (b) an upward distortion in the apparent real variation of correlations across studies. We present (a) exact corrections for this distortion for the case in which only one of the variables has been dichotomized and (b) methods for making approximate corrections when both variables have been artificially dichotomized

Voluntary turnover and alternative job opportunities

Abstract: Models of turnover specify important roles for both general labor market conditions and perceptions. There is consistent support for the role of general labor market conditions, but evidence on labor market perceptions is mixed. However, no empirical study has included both types of variables. Using a national sample of young adults, both types of measures were found to influence voluntary turnover, either directly or through other factors. However, the two constructs are not necessarily closely linked. For example, despite an intention to quit (based partly on perceived ease of movement), an employee may stay with the organization because general labor market conditions result in a generally low level of alternative job openings. Alternative Opportunities 3 Turnover and Alternative Job Opportunities A recurrent theme in the turnover literature is that the availability of alternative jobs influences turnover intentions and behavior. For example, March and Simon stated that: \"Under nearly all conditions the most accurate single predictor of labor turnover is the state of the economy When jobs are plentiful, voluntary movement is high; when jobs are scarce, voluntary turnover is small\" (1958, p. 100) . This view is consistent with the economic literature: \".. .when labor markets are tight (jobs are more plentiful relative to job seekers) one would expect the quit rate to be higher than when labor markets are loose (few jobs are available and many are laid off)...One ineasure of tightness is the unemployment rate\" (Ehrenberg & Smith, 1982, p. 285). March and Simon (1958), however, further argued that general labor market conditions influenced voluntary turnover through perceived ease of movement, which interacted with perceived desirability of movement to influence turnover. Their model suggests that certain factors (e.g. dissatisfaction) may \"push\" the employee to look for alternative employment, while other factors (e.g. the perception of attractive alternative job opportunities) may \"pull\" the employee to consider alternative employment. A subsequent model by Mobley, Griffeth, Hand, and Meglino (1979) similarly hypothesizes that \"economic-labor market\" factors (e.g. unemployment, vacancy rates) influence turnover indirectly through \"labor market perceptions.\" Perhaps because different types of employees are thought to face different tl~es of labor ~arkets, Alternative Opportunities 4 occupational and personal characteristics (e.g. aptitude, tenure) are also included as determinants of labor market perceptions. Finally, these latter perceptions are specified to interact with desirability of movement perceptions to influence intention to leave which, in turn, has a main effect on turnover. Other models, however, question whether the translation of intention into voluntary turnover behavior is so direct. For example, steers and Mowday (1981) and Michaels and Spector (1982) have argued that an intention to quit is more likely to result in voluntary turnover when labor market conditions are such that alternative jobs are more generally available. As Michaels and Spector suggest: \"If a person intends to quit a job, he or she most likely would quit when another job became available\" (p. 58). Similarly, Muchinsky and Morrow (1980, p. 276) argue that \"when the Economic Opportunity valve is 'open' (alternative means of employment are readily available)\", the relation between individual factors and turnover will be stronger than when the valve is closed. Thus, in contrast to Mobley et al. (1979a), these models hypothesize an interaction between general labor market conditions and intention in influencing turnover. Another potential deviation from the Mobley et al. (1979a) model is the possibility that general labor market conditions influence voluntary turnover directly, in addition to their effects through labor market perceptions and intentions. The argument is that most workers \"do not quit on the basis of probabilities estimated from alternatives available; they quit on the basis of certainties represented by jobs already offered\" (Hulin, Roznowski, & Hachiya, 1985, p. 244). The Alternative Opportunities 5 probability of an alternative offer is linked to general labor market conditions (Hulin et al.). An implication is that although a person may perceive ease of movement to be low, an attractive alternative job offer may nevertheless later arise that results in turnover, consistent with Granovetter's (1974) finding that job offers are often unexpected and unsolicited. On the other hand, because most people do not quit one job without first lining up another (Mattila, 1974), high perceived ease of movement without an alternative offer may fail to result in turnover. Finally, although general labor market conditions influence the probability of receiving an alternative job offer, the \"specific mix of skills and experiences of the person in question\" are at least equally important (Hulin et al., 1985, p. 239). At the extreme, one could think of a separate labor market existing for each person. Thus, although general labor market conditions should influence perceived ease of movement, the magnitude of the relation is limited to the extent that perceived ease of movement also reflects idiosyncratic differences in individual labor markets that stern from variations in skills, abilities, experience, and so on. Empirical Evidence Given that no study has included measures of both general labor market conditions and labor market perceptions, we do not know the nature of the interplay between the two in determining turnover. As a consequence, the hypotheses concerning labor market conditions described above (i.e. an indirect effect through perceptions, a direct effect, and the interaction with intention) have not been tested. Alternative Opportunities 6 Economic time series research demonstrates that more quits occur under tight labor market conditions (Eagly, 1966; Armknecht & Early, 1972; Parsons, 1977). However, because these results are based on aggregate level data (e.g. annual national turnover), it does not necessarily follow that a comparable relation with labor market conditions exists for individual level turnover data. (See Hammond, 1973 and Roberts, Hulin & Rousseau, 1978 for a discussion of aggregation issues.) Recent empirical work has, however, found support for the idea that general labor market conditions influence individual level turnover as well. For example, a meta-analysis by Carsten and Spector (1987) found that correlations between job satisfaction and turnover tend to be higher when unemployment is lower, suggesting an interaction such that job dissatisfaction is more likely to translate into turnover when the unemployment rate is low. Similarly, in direct studies of individual workers, Youngblood, Baysinger, and Mobley (1985) and Gerhart (1987) have found evidence of an interaction between the unemployment rate and job satisfaction (as well as a main effect for the unemployment rate) in predicting voluntary turnover. In contrast, there has not been consistent support for a relation between labor market perceptions and individual turnover. Bluedorn (1982), for example, concluded that there was evidence for a main effect of perceived ease of movement on voluntary turnover, but a lack of evidence for an interactive effect with job satisfaction. A metaanalysis by steel and Griffeth (1989) reported a correlation of .13 between perceived employment opportunity and turnover, also supportive Alternative Opportunities 7 of a main effect. The review by Hulin et al. (1985), however, questioned even the existence of a main effect. They noted that although zero-order correlations between perceived ease of movement and turnover are sometimes statistically significant, the relation rarely holds up in multivariate models. Like Bluedorn, Hulin et al. also found little support for an interaction between job satisfaction and perceived ease of movement. In summary, evidence suggests a main effect for general labor market conditions in both the economic and psychological literatures. The hypothesized interaction between individual factors (e.g., job satisfaction) and general labor market conditions in the psychological literature has also ~eceived tentative empirical support. However, the evidence on the role of ease of movement perceptions is more ambiguous. Because no study has included measures of both general labor market conditions and perceived ease of movement, it is not clear why the measures yield different results or how they operate vis-a-vis one another in the turnover process. Model and Hypotheses The purpose of the present study is to provide the first test of a voluntary turnover model that incorporates measures of both general labor market conditions and perceived ease of movement. Measures of general ability and experience are also included to help control for individual variations in opportunities. As a point of departure, the solid lines in Figure 1 represent a model consistent with ideas expressed by March and Simon (1958) and Mobley et al. (1979a). Voluntary turnover is a function of job Alternative Opportunities 8 satisfaction (or perceived desirability of movement) and perceived ease of movement (or \"labor market perceptions\"). In addition to these main effects, an interaction is specified such that low job satisfaction is most likely to be translated into actual movement when perceived ease of movement (e.g. Mobley et al.) or \"economic opportunity\" (e.g. Muchinsky & Morrow, 1980) is high. Moreover, Mobley et al. specify that the most immediate precursor to turnover is intention to leave/stay, which mediates the effects of other factors on turnover. -------------------------Insert Figure 1 about here -------------------------Of particular interest in the present study are the factors that affect perceived ease of movement. In their discussion, March and Simon (1958) included level of business activi

Individual and group goals when workers are interdependent: Effects on task strategies and performance.

Abstract: The purpose of our research was to determine the appropriate goal-setting intervention for a task that requires people to work interdependently

Computer administration of questions: More desirable or more social desirability?

Abstract: Investigated the effect of computer vs. paper-and-pencil administration on 2 components of socially desirable responding (SDR), impression management (IM), and self-deception (SD). Ss' degree of anonymity was also manipulated. Independent variables were expected to affect only IM scores, with the computer anonymous condition resulting in the least amount of IM

Interrater reliability of job performance ratings: Growth to asymptote level with increasing opportunity to observe.

Abstract: The interrater reliabilities of ratings of 9,975 ratees from 79 organizations were examined as a function of length of exposure to the ratee. It was found that there was a strong, nonlinear relationship between months of exposure and interrater reliability. The correlation between a logarithmic transformation of months of experience and reliability was .73 for one type of ratings and .65 for another type. The relationship was strongest during the first 12 months on the job. Implications for estimating reliabilities in individual and meta-analytic studies and for performance appraisal were presented, and possible explanations of the reliability-variance relationship were advanced

Employee reactions to contextual and session components of performance appraisal

Abstract: Considerant que dans le domaine de la recherche sur l'evaluation des performances le contexte dans lequel a lieu le processus d'evaluation a ete particulierement neglige jusqu'a present, les auteurs proposent dans cet article de developper des mesures qui estiment les differentes composantes du contexte evaluatif

Countering the effects of destructive criticism: The relative efficacy of four interventions.

Abstract: Examined the effectiveness of four interventions in countering the negative impact of destructive criticism. Results agreed closely with those of the laboratory investigation: an apology and attributional information were rated as most effective by both groups. Both managers and employees viewed destructive criticism as a moderately important cause of conflict in their organizations. However, managers rated the negative impact of cristicism on motivation and working relationships as less severe than did employees

Predicting Sales Performance, Job Satisfaction, and Depression by Using the Achievement Strivings and Impatience-Irritability Dimensions of Type A Behavior

Abstract: Recent research suggested that two dimensions of Type A behavior, namely, Achievement Strivings (AS) and Impatience-Irritability (11), differentially predict physical health and performance outcomes. The present study extends this research and examines whether AS and II differentially predict work performance (number of insurance policies sold), work attitudes (job satisfaction), and depression in a sample of 117 life insurance salespersons. As hypothesized, after statistically controlling for relevant biographical variables and II, AS predicted the number of policies sold and job satisfaction but was not related to depression. After partialing out the effect of relevant biographical variables and AS, II was associated with depression but not with the number of policies sold. In addition, controlling for the same variables, 11 was negatively associated with job satisfaction. Implications for the prediction of sales performance, job satisfaction, and depression, and interventions designed to decrease the negative consequences of Type A by reducing II but not AS, are discussed.