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Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

Talk Matters At Work: The Effects Of Leader Member Conversational Quality And Communication Frequency On Work Role Stressors, Guowei Jian, Francis Dalisay Jul 2015

Talk Matters At Work: The Effects Of Leader Member Conversational Quality And Communication Frequency On Work Role Stressors, Guowei Jian, Francis Dalisay

Communication Faculty Publications

Although it is clear that leadership plays a significant role in followers’ psychological health, the specific mechanisms by which leadership effects may take place await further theorizing and investigation. We argue that communication practices may constitute such specific mechanisms. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to examine how leader-member conversational quality (LMCQ) and communication frequency are associated with members’ perception of work role stressors. Through an online survey, the study found that LMCQ has a significant predictive effect on work role ambiguity and role overload. However, LMCQ interacts with communication frequency in their effects on role conflict. These findings …


Conversation At Work: The Effects Of Leader-Member Conversational Quality, Guowei Jian, Francis Dalisay Jan 2015

Conversation At Work: The Effects Of Leader-Member Conversational Quality, Guowei Jian, Francis Dalisay

Communication Faculty Publications

Although research has made significant gains in understanding the constitutive nature of conversation in the process of organizing, its predictive effects on organizational outcomes are still uncertain. To contribute in this direction, based on social exchange theory and leader-member exchange (LMX) research, this study examined the predictive effects of leader-member conversational quality (LMCQ) on employee organizational commitment (OC), and the potential interaction effects of LMCQ with LMX quality. Using data from an online survey, this study found that above and beyond communication frequency and other control variables, LMCQ is significantly associated with employee OC. More interestingly, the effects of LMCQ …


Leader–Member Conversational Quality Scale Development And Validation Through Three Studies, Guowei Jian, Xiaowei Shi, Francis Dalisay May 2014

Leader–Member Conversational Quality Scale Development And Validation Through Three Studies, Guowei Jian, Xiaowei Shi, Francis Dalisay

Communication Faculty Publications

The continuing development of leadership research calls for measurement instruments that can tap into the communication process between leaders and members. The purpose of this present research is to develop and validate a Leader–Member Conversational Quality (LMCQ) scale—an instrument that measures the quality of conversations between leaders and members in the workplace. A series of three studies were conducted. Study I involved item generation and content validity assessment. Study II undertook the task of scale construction and reliability assessment. Study III tested the convergent, discriminant, and criterion-related validity of the scale. These studies resulted in a nine-item instrument with sufficient …


Understanding The Wired Workplace: The Effects Of Job Characteristics On Employees' Personal Online Communication At Work, Guowei Jian Jan 2013

Understanding The Wired Workplace: The Effects Of Job Characteristics On Employees' Personal Online Communication At Work, Guowei Jian

Communication Faculty Publications

As organizations increasingly embrace Internet technologies in daily work activities, an unintended consequence is the growing personal Internet use by employees. This study examines the association between job characteristics and a particular form of personal Internet use at work, personal online communication (POC). The study analyzes data of the 2008 Networked Workers Survey sponsored by the Pew Internet & American Life Project. The results demonstrate that job characteristics explain a large, significant portion of the variance of POC at work. The findings suggest that for jobs with high knowledge intensity, managing POC could be approached from a work–life balance perspective. …


Does Culture Matter? The Effects Of Acculturation On Workplace Relationships, Guowei Jian May 2012

Does Culture Matter? The Effects Of Acculturation On Workplace Relationships, Guowei Jian

Communication Faculty Publications

In spite of immigrants’ growing role in the workforce of the United States and other developed countries, organizational communication research about the experience of immigrant employees in the host culture is still very limited. Drawing on the bidimensional acculturation theory, the purpose of this study was to investigate the association of acculturation of immigrant employees with three types of workplace relationships: leader–member exchange (LMX), coworker, and mentoring relationship. Based on a survey of immigrant employees in a U.S. Midwestern city, the study reveals that the two dimensions of acculturation, adjustment to one’s host culture and retention of one’s original culture, …


Identity And Technology: Organizational Control Of Knowledge-Intensive Work, Guowei Jian Oct 2008

Identity And Technology: Organizational Control Of Knowledge-Intensive Work, Guowei Jian

Communication Faculty Publications

Much has been written about the functioning of managerial ideologies in identity-based organizational control. However, less attention has been given to the role of information and communication technologies (ICTs) and identity defined by a technological discourse in regulating knowledge-intensive work. The purpose of this research is to examine the roles of identity and ICTs in the control of knowledge-intensive work. A case study of a technology service organization reveals that the construction and consumption of a technologist identity operate as organizational control, and that ICTs enable the functioning of a dialectic of technological control. This study also demonstrates the paradoxical …


Unpacking Unintended Consequences In Planned Organizationalchanges: A Process Model, Guowei Jian Aug 2007

Unpacking Unintended Consequences In Planned Organizationalchanges: A Process Model, Guowei Jian

Communication Faculty Publications

The author develops a process model of the unintended consequences in planned organizational change that draws on the structuration, organizational change, and organizational tension literatures. The model depicts the communicative actions of both senior management and employees and reveals the dynamic through which unintended consequences unfold. The model extends theoretical understandings of planned organizational change and discusses how future research can build a dialectic and dialogic model of planned change focused on employee participation. The author illustrates the model with a case study of organizational change and its unintended consequences. The article concludes with insights on change management for practitioners …


Spanning The Boundaries Of Work: Workplace Participation, Political Efficacy, And Political Involvement, Guowei Jian, Leo Wayne Jeffres Jan 2007

Spanning The Boundaries Of Work: Workplace Participation, Political Efficacy, And Political Involvement, Guowei Jian, Leo Wayne Jeffres

Communication Faculty Publications

Based on the political spillover theory, this study examines the boundary-spanning aspect of workplace participation—the association between participation at work and in politics. A telephone survey was conducted using a regional probability sample. Results indicate that decision involvement at work is positively associated with political voting while work community participation is positively associated with involvement in local communities and political party and campaign activities. The study reveals that internal political efficacy mediates the relationship between job autonomy and political participation.


Understanding Employees' Willingness To Contributeto Shared Electronic Databases: A Three-Dimensional Framework, Guowei Jian, Leo Wayne Jeffres Aug 2006

Understanding Employees' Willingness To Contributeto Shared Electronic Databases: A Three-Dimensional Framework, Guowei Jian, Leo Wayne Jeffres

Communication Faculty Publications

Work organizations increasingly adopt shared electronic databases. However, employees' unwillingness to contribute to shared resources undermines the utility of such technologies. Current research is limited to either a utilitarian or normative perspective. To advance understanding in this area, this study proposes a three-dimensional framework. It includes the utilitarian and normative perspectives as two complementary dimensions in addition to a third collaborative dimension. Based on this framework, the study identifies three key organizational processes and advances an additive model to predict employees' willingness to contribute to shared electronic databases. An empirical test was conducted to assess the model in a large …


Review Of Resolving Environmental Conflict: Towards Sustainable Community Development, Wendy A. Kellogg Jan 1996

Review Of Resolving Environmental Conflict: Towards Sustainable Community Development, Wendy A. Kellogg

All Maxine Goodman Levin School of Urban Affairs Publications

Review of Resolving Environmental Conflict: Towards Sustainable Community Development by Chris Maser