Organizational Behavior and Theory Commons^™

Aligning Strategy And Execution: The Role Of Senior Leaders In Project-Driven Organizations, Kenneth J. Boff

M.S. in Leadership

Strategic alignment remains a persistent challenge in project‑driven organizations, where shifting priorities and distributed execution often create gaps between strategic intent and project‑level action. This study examined how Senior Leadership Communication Practices influence Strategy–Execution Alignment and tested whether Organizational Culture for Alignment and Change Management Readiness mediate that relationship. A quantitative, cross‑sectional survey was administered to 54 senior leaders in project‑driven environments. All constructs demonstrated strong reliability, and correlation & regression analyses confirmed significant positive relationships among leadership communication, cultural alignment, readiness, and strategic alignment. Leadership communication significantly predicted culture (R² = .444), readiness (R² = .431), and alignment (R² …

Popular Protest And Corporate Reputation: Exploring The Impact On Recruitment And Retention, Heather Miller

Dissertations

In today’s sociopolitical climate, popular protest has become a powerful force shaping how organizations are judged and how people decide where to work. This qualitative study took place during a period of heightened sociopolitical activity and public unrest in the United States, when organizational responses to contested issues were especially visible and consequential. This study explored how popular protest affects corporate reputation (CR) and, in turn, influences employee recruitment and retention. Drawing on stakeholder theory (ST), corporate social responsibility (CSR), and corporate social advocacy (CSA), the study situated popular protest as an external pressure that exposes alignment or misalignment in …

The Perceived Cultural Intelligence Of Leadership And Its Impact On Employee Organizational Commitment And Workplace Well-Being, Melinda Bowens

Dissertations

In today’s continuously evolving workplace, the role of leadership has expanded beyond traditional management competencies to encompass the ability to recognize, navigate, and leverage cultural differences. This quantitative study examines the relationship among perceived leader cultural intelligence, employee workplace well-being, and organizational commitment. Recognizing that workplace well-being and organizational commitment are critical to the overall health and success of organizations, it is essential to gain a greater understanding of the factors that influence these constructs. Accordingly, this study collected from 410 participants to investigate the relationship between perceived cultural intelligence of leadership, employee organizational commitment, and workplace well-being. Employing a …

Generations At Work: Examining Differences In The Nonprofit Sector, Cory J. Bergeron

Dissertations

This non-experimental quantitative dissertation examined generational differences among non-management employees in the United States nonprofit sector, where multiple generational cohorts work side by side. The problem addressed is that nonprofit leaders’ limited understanding of how distinct generational experiences shape employees’ work-related attitudes and preferences can contribute to conflict, reduced engagement, and costly turnover in already resource-constrained organizations. Grounded in Mannheim’s generational theory and Becker’s human capital theory, the study conceptualized generational cohorts as groups whose shared formative experiences influence what they value in their work context and how those values translate into human capital that affects organizational outcomes.

Using a …

The Effects Of Private Equity Ownership Of Acute Care Hospitals On Patient Experience, Abigail M. Huffman

Theses and Dissertations

In 10 years, private-equity firms' share of hospitals has grown from 2-3% to 8%.  Using data from two sources: the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) patient surveys and the Private Equity Stakeholder Project (PESP), I demonstrate a causal effect of private-equity ownership on patient satisfaction using difference-in-difference methods.

Unlocking Innovation: The Impact Of Psychological Safety, Organizational Structure, And Rigidity On The Pursuit Of Innovation Within The Firm, Robert Kyle Rudd

Theses and Dissertations

Innovation is often a competitive advantage generator, growth, and organizational success. However, there is relatively little empirical literature that describes how organizations may be designed such that employees also feel significant freedom to innovate. This dissertation investigates the role of psychological safety and organizational design conditions, perceived organizational structure and perceived organizational rigidity as joint predictors of perceived freedom to innovate (PFTI) of employees.

The quantitative, cross-sectional survey design was used to gather data of 425 full-time U.S.-based employees who were recruited through CloudResearch. Respondents undertook validated scales of psychological safety, perceived organizational structure, perceived organizational rigidity and perceived freedom …

A Phenomenological Study: Examining Organizational Change Initiatives Within The U.S. Army To Influence Racial Climate, Reginald Gerald Dash Ii

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This research study was aimed at examining organizational change initiatives influencing the racial climate among African American soldiers in the United States (U.S.) Army. African Americans comprise a significant portion of the U.S. Army. However, African Americans’ significant contributions do not readily translate into “equal treatment”, which includes proportional representation at the highest levels of leadership. African Americans in the U.S. Army face career navigation challenges rooted in systemic racial division. The goal of this qualitative phenomenological study was to add African American soldiers’ voices to the existing literature by interviewing African American soldiers with at least five years of …

Building Collaborative Capacity For Coexistence With The Montana Beaver Working Group, Shane Randle

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

Despite beavers’ recent surge in popularity, prevailing negative attitudes and the persistence of beaver removal practices remain obstacles for those advocating living with beavers. The Montana Beaver Working Group (BWG) advances beavers’ role in ecological and community resilience through members’ collaborative efforts, including beaver-related restoration and conflict resolution projects. Bringing together people with diverse values and perspectives, the BWG builds collective understanding, develops a holistic vision for beavers in Montana, and supports members in pursuing it. As the group’s impacts and membership have grown, so too has their need to adapt. For my Civic Engagement Project, I strengthened the BWG’s …

From Reactive To Predictive: A Hybrid Trust-Mediated Adoption Framework For Data-Driven Maintenance In Distributed-Authority Aviation Environments, Dustin J. Foote

International Journal of Aviation, Aeronautics, and Aerospace

Modern aviation maintenance operates within increasingly data-intensive technological environments, yet the operational integration of predictive maintenance into routine decision-making remains inconsistent across sectors. Contemporary aircraft incorporate centralized maintenance computers and condition monitoring architectures capable of fault aggregation, exceedance capture, and trend-based data collection. Although prognostics and health management research continues to advance detection and prediction methods, implementation outcomes often depend on factors beyond analytical performance alone.

This paper examines predictive maintenance adoption in distributed-authority aviation environments and argues that constraints emerge less from sensing capability than from organizational structure, decision authority dispersion, and institutional trust dynamics. For purposes of analysis, …

Expanding Links Between Work Values And Occupations: Development Of The Occupational Values Inventory (Ovi), Nicholas F. Heimpel, Kevin Hoff, Zihan Liu, Federick L. Oswald, James Rounds

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

This research developed the Occupational Values Inventory (OVI), a 30-item measure that expands the content coverage of work values by linking into a broad range of O*NET occupational descriptors, including Work Activities and Work Contexts, along with salary data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The OVI assesses 11 work values—Interpersonal, Outdoor, Physical, Leadership, Salary, Prestige, Variety, Interest, Work Hours, Knowledge Utilization, and Autonomy—providing an updated and refined coverage of work values relevant to people and occupations in the modern labor market. Study 1 (N = 768) developed and refined the OVI’s scales using conceptual and psychometric criteria, also reporting …

Research: What Message Are Your Headphones Sending Your Coworkers?, Oguz Gencay, Michael Schaerer, Trevor A. Foulk

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Walk into almost any modern office, and you will see it: earbuds in, playlists on, and heads down. For many employees, music is an essential tool for focusing, mood regulation, and stamina. For most managers, it is a non-issue as long as performance stays strong. If it helps people concentrate, let them listen to music. At worst, it is a harmless preference, such as drinking coffee or using a standing desk.

Leading Ai Adoption In Organizations: Introducing A Behavioral Human-Centered Approach, Shane Schweitzer, Devesh Narayan, Jack Mcguire, David De Cremer

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Initiatives to implement AI technologies in organizations fail at an alarming rate. We argue that leading the adoption of AI is not a simple engineering exercise but rather represents a behavioral exercise where change management principles—the process by which organizations plan, implement, and embed changes in practices—are employed. However, many AI initiatives in business focus predominantly on the AI systems themselves, assuming humans will fall in line. To solve this, we integrate ideas from change management with scholarship on human-centered artificial intelligence to offer a behavioral approach that accounts for the impact of AI adoption on humans at all stages …

The Downside Of Generosity: How Rare Giving Fosters Stronger Social Connection, Minkwang Jang, Shereen J Chaudhry, Ayelet Fishbach

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Giving serves not only to benefit others and society but also to foster social connections between givers and recipients. However, more giving is not necessarily merrier. This research finds that social connection depends not only on the act of giving but also on how many others receive the gesture from the same giver. Rare givers—those who give to fewer recipients—are perceived as more socially connected to each recipient than broad givers—those who give to many (the rare giving effect). This effect emerges across diverse contexts, including interpersonal gift exchanges in both new and existing relationships and corporate donations. As a …

The Impact Of Job Satisfaction, Organizational Commitment, And Employee Engagement On The Intent To Leave The Law Enforcement Profession For Police Officers, Veronica Lynn Dougherty-Denny

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In today’s dynamic organizational environment, worker factors such as job satisfaction, employee engagement, organizational commitment, and psychological contract fulfillment are vital for organizational success. This study examined their perceived relationship with police officers’ intent to leave the law enforcement profession. The problem addressed worked to understand factors influencing retention, including psychological contract breaches and workplace outcomes. The purpose of this quantitative study was to investigate the perceived relationship between job satisfaction, employee engagement, organizational commitment, and intent to leave the law enforcement profession all housed within the psychological contract. Five research questions addressed these variables and demographic factors (gender, years …

Connecting Work And Family Life: The Effects Of Family-Related Moderators On Idiosyncratic Deals Of Employees And Work Outcomes., Tanushree Chatterjee

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Idiosyncratic deals (i-deals), which are customized work arrangements negotiated between employees and their organizations, have been increasingly recognized as a strategic mechanism for addressing the heterogeneous needs of today's diverse workforce. However, existing research has largely overlooked the role of employees' family backgrounds as a moderating context that shapes their effectiveness. Drawing on work-life border theory (Clark, 2000) and conservation of resources theory (Hobfoll, 1989), the study tests whether work-family conflict and work-family enrichment mediate the downstream effects of i-deals on turnover intentions and job performance through the moderation of four family-related characteristics (parent status, number of children, family support, …

Three Essays On Workplace Ethics And Ai: Conceptualizing, Scale Development, And Validation Of Self-Value Actualization, And Ai-Enabled High-Performance Work Systems, Mansura Nusrat

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation advances understanding of workplace ethics and responsible AI integration across three interconnected essays unified by social cognitive theory. My first essay introduces self-value actualization (SVA), a novel construct defined as the dynamic, integrated psychological process through which individuals continually strive to align and fulfill their core moral values through observable professional behavior. Drawing on social cognitive theory and emotional intelligence theory, I conceptualize SVA as a higher-order self-regulatory orientation comprising three mutually reinforcing processes: value congruence, moral reflection, and adaptive morality. I developed and validated a 9-item SVA scale across four studies using expert panels, exploratory factor analysis, …

A Human-Technology Centered Sustainability Framework For Digital Transformational Leadership And Ai In Indonesian Islamic Non-Profit Organizations, Ardi Ardi, Yohana Fcp Meilani, Margaretha Pink Berlianto, Sylvia Samuel Dr., Maureen Arthajaya Ms.

International Conference on Business and Management Research (ICBMR)

This study promotes a Human-Technology Centered Sustainability paradigm by examining how artificial intelligence (AI) and digital transformational leadership intersect within Indonesian Islamic non-profit organizations. It moves beyond viewing AI as a mere tool, instead assessing organizational readiness for adoption and identifying areas for strategic development. The research emphasizes aligning AI with human values, social equity, and individual dignity, advocating for ethical integration that respects humanistic principles. Using an exploratory methodology literature review, organizational report analysis, and publication trend mapping the study highlights the need for collaborative policy-making, ethical frameworks, and innovation to ensure sustainable human-technology interaction. Key ethical concerns include …

Organizational Justice And Perceived Organizational Support As Predictors Of Readiness For Change: The Mediating Role Of Psychological Capital Among Correctional Center Clients In Jakarta, Agam Ramadika, Budi Widjaja Soetjipto

International Conference on Business and Management Research (ICBMR)

Reintegration of correctional clients requires both access to formal employment and psychological readiness to adapt to change. Organizational Justice and Perceived Organizational Support are key factors that may strengthen Readiness for Change through the role of Psychological Capital. A quantitative design with purposive sampling was applied to 243 correctional clients on parole and employed in the formal sector in Jakarta. Data were gathered through structured questionnaires and analyzed using SmartPLS, including reliability, validity, and structural model testing. Organizational Justice significantly influenced Psychological Capital (β = 0.537) and Readiness for Change (β = 0.328). Perceived Organizational Support also showed positive effects …

A Forgotten Tool? Intellectual Property Rights And The Competitive Potential Of Micro, Small, And Medium-Sized Enterprises In Tanzania, Saudin J. Mwakaje

Business Management Review

This article offers a hybrid assessment of law and its impact on business by examining how intellectual property rights (IPR) promote business competitiveness by granting enterprises exclusive statutory rights over their innovations and creative ideas. The article situates the discussion in the Tanzanian context and focuses on Micro, Small, and Medium-Sized Enterprises (MSMEs). Using a qualitative approach, the discourse examines ongoing national and continental reforms and the evolving business and market environment that are driving MSMEs to adopt innovation to achieve market control and sustainability. Recent continental and regional regulatory developments, including the adoption of the Agreement on African Continental …

From Awareness To Action: Exploring The Behavioral Gap In Green Computing Among Surveyed University Students In Tanzania, Victor G. Wilson

Business Management Review

As digital technologies become increasingly embedded in higher education, promoting environmentally responsible computing practices has become an important sustainability and management concern. This study applies the Norm Activation Model (NAM) to examine green computing behavior among university students in Tanzania. Drawing on responses from 868 students across science, education, and business programs, the study investigates how Awareness of Consequences, Ascription of Responsibility, and Personal Norms influence green computing behaviors. Hierarchical regression analysis was used to assess both the explanatory power of the NAM variables and the selective moderating roles of gender and academic program. Findings reveal that both awareness and …