Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

The Impact Of Role Conceptualization On The Process And Outcomes Of Decision Making In An Educational Context, Scott Richard Turner

Doctoral Dissertations

Research has shown that the traditional conceptualization of Organizational Citizenship Behaviors (OCBs) is not tenable because some employees perceive OCBs to be part of their job or in-role behaviors (Morrison, 1994). Conceptualizing behaviors as in-role has been shown to increase the frequency of the behaviors but no study has investigated whether conceptualization of these behaviors influences the manner in which they are conducted. This study combined findings from OCB research with the Judgment and Decision Making literature in order to identify the impact that role conceptualization had on an ambiguous decision making exercise where the act of making the decision …

A Quantitative Review And Analysis Of The Constructs Underlying Assessment Center Ratings: What Are We Measuring?, John P. Meriac

Doctoral Dissertations

The overarching goal of this study was to clarify what constructs are being measured by assessment centers (ACs). ACs have been used and studied for years, yet have measurement problems that generally center on the use of information at the dimension-level. However, a necessary step in examining this issue has been neglected: a proper delineation of what constructs ACs actually measure. In an attempt to address this issue, this study‟s primary purpose was to explore the factor structure of AC dimensions. Several a priori models from both the AC and job performance literature were examined as frameworks for explicating the …

Effects Of Practice And Feedback On Interview Performance, Kate Williams

All Theses

Performing well in an interview is of crucial importance to a job seeker. While much advice and training exists regarding interview performance, little is known about what parts of training successfully improve interview skills. This study proposes the following research question: does interview performance improve with practice alone or is some type of feedback required? Participants were split into four treatment groups that either 1) did not practice an interview, 2) practiced an interview, 3) practiced an interview and generated their own self-feedback or 4) practiced an interview and received feedback from a counselor. The study isolates the effects of …

Proximal And Longitudinal Outcomes Of Person-Environment Fit: A Positive Psychological Approach, Tiffany Greene-Shortridge

All Dissertations

The current study proposed a model that incorporated a positive psychological approach into the person-environment fit domain. Within a longitudinal investigation, person-organization fit, person-job fit, and person-supervisor fit were examined in relationship to both organizational and employee outcomes through direct and indirect paths. Psychological empowerment and specific positive psychological states were examined as sequential moderators of the various proposed relationships. This study's sample consisted of 174 patient health care employees, excluding nurses and practitioners. In addition, supervisor ratings of performance were collected for the sole purposes of this study. Structural equation modeling techniques were used to test the proposed measurement …

Organizational And Family Resources As Predictors Of Well-Being,Family Functioning, And Employee Performance: A Longitudinal Study, Heather Odle-Dusseau

All Dissertations

The current study was undertaken to better understand what resources individuals use in work and family domains that allow them to balance work and family responsibilities and the outcomes associates with these resources. Hospital employees of a metropolitan area hospital (N = 174) completed surveys at two time periods (4 months separation) on perceptions of resources in work and family domains, as well as organizational, family, and well-being outcomes. In addition, supervisors rated employees' performance at Time 2. Structural Equation Modeling techniques were utilized in order to assess theoretical models. Results revealed that perceptions of availability of family-friendly benefits at …

Conceptualizations Of Teamwork And Leadership: A Cross- Cultural Analysis, Ioana Mot

Doctoral Dissertations

The present study investigated differences in the conceptualization of teamwork and leadership in two countries with culturally diverse backgrounds, Romania and the United States. We expected to find between-culture differences in the conceptualizations of teamwork and leadership based on cultural antecedents (collectivistic societal and in-group values). We also investigated a potential cultural shift in the Romanian nation, based on age. The conceptualizations of teamwork and leadership were examined and compared using Pathfinder.

The Romanian sample displayed higher collectivistic values than the U.S. sample. A cultural shift was observed in the Romanian nation, such that the younger participants reported lower collectivistic …

A Social Identity Framework For Examining Leadership Schema Congruence: A Multilevel Analysis, Joy T. Oliver

Doctoral Dissertations

Recent leadership research has focused on the importance of implicit leadership theory (ILT) for organizational outcomes (e.g., Epitropaki & Martin, 2005; Hains, Hogg, & Duck, 1997). Specifically, when followers perceive their leader’s trait profile to be closer to the ILTs they endorse (i.e., leadership schema congruence), this results in a number of positive outcomes (e.g., Epitropaki & Martin, 2005; Hains et al., 1997; Martin & Epitropaki, 2001). Although recent leadership research has highlighted the need for multilevel examinations of leadership (Hall & Lord, 1995; Lord & Hall, 1992), no multilevel models of leadership schema congruence have been examined to date. …

Stereotype Threat And Women's Perceptions Of Leadership Self-Efficacy, Phillip Lipka

All Theses

The following research examined the effects of stereotype threat on women's leadership self-efficacy. Previous research has demonstrated that women's leadership aspirations are negatively affected by the presence of stereotype threat, and the current research served to expand on this literature by examining possible factors that could moderate women's vulnerability to this threat. It was proposed that women with a weaker adherence to sexist beliefs, less investment in gender ideals, and higher self-esteem would be less susceptible to stereotype threat and would perceive themselves as more capable leaders. Participants completed a survey that primed their gender identity in order to invoke …

The Relationship Between Valuing Diversity And Implicit Racial Bias: A Construct Validation Study, Rebekka Althouse Gordon

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Two studies examined the construct validity of valuing diversity in relation to both explicit and implicit racial bias. In the first study, participants completed three measures: the Miville-Guzman Universality-Diversity Scale to measure valuing diversity; the Implicit Association Test to assess implicit racial bias; and the Symbolic Racism 2000 Scale to assess explicit racial bias. Results indicated there was a significant relationship between the valuing diversity and implicit racial bias measures as well as between the valuing diversity and explicit racial bias measures. The explicit and implicit racial bias measures accounted for unique variance in the valuing diversity construct. There was …

The Line In The Sand: Understanding Customer Sexual Harassment Through A Psychological Contract Framework, Valerie J. Morganson

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Research has demonstrated that customer sexual harassment (CSH) is a frequently occurring phenomenon and an apparent barrier to the career development of women (Gettman & Gelfand, 2007; Morganson & Major, 2008). The current study applies psychological contract theory toward understanding how CSH leads to adverse outcomes, which affect individuals and organizations. A sample of 420 working women including both students and full-time non-student workers from various organizations were recruited to participate in this online study. CSH and perceptions of employer obligation did not interact to predict psychological contract breach. As hypothesized, psychological contract breach and CSH interacted to predict affective …

Person-Supervisor Fit: Implications For Organizational Stress, Organizational Commitment, And Job Satisfaction, Hilary Schoon

All Theses

Traditional fit literature has focused on person-organization fit. However, Kristof-Brown, Zimmerman, and Johnson (2005) recently introduced the idea of person-supervisor fit in a meta-analysis on fit. Person-supervisor fit was hypothesized to be the degree of similarity between personality dimensions, values, and goals. This paper first defines fit and then reviews the literature on the topics that apply to person-supervisor fit. This study was conducted with supervisors (faculty members) and subordinates (graduate student teaching and research assistants) from different departments in one university to determine the relationship between person-supervisor fit with subordinates' organizational stress, subordinates' organizational commitment, and subordinates' job satisfaction. …

Work-Related Outcomes Of Financial Stress: Relating Perceived Income Adequacy And Financial Strain To Job Performance And Worker Well-Being, Lindsay Ellen Sears

Dissertations and Theses

With the onset of globalization, the economic contexts and working conditions within many countries are changing, presenting new challenges' for governments, organizations, and workers. Amid these challenges, concerns about personal finances are prevalent among employees and detrimental to workers' health, well-being, and families. Research on how this financial stress affects employees at work is lacking.

In this thesis, I propose an appraisal-based model of financial stress whereby actual income and expenses are related to perceptions of income adequacy to afford wants and needs. These adequacy perceptions are, in turn, related to financial strain, representing a heightened negative affective state regarding …

A Comparison Of Three Training Methods On The Acquisition And Retention Of Automotive Product Knowledge, Rhiannon M. Fante

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of a traditional (non-fluency) web-based training program with and without study objectives with a web-based fluency-building training program on the acquisition and retention of automotive product knowledge. The effects of the training conditions were assessed by how accurately and quickly participants responded on a product knowledge test immediately after training, four weeks after training, and eight weeks after training. A three-group between subjects design was used with 20 college students in each group. Results indicated that participants in the fluency training group were more accurate and fluent immediately after training, …

Self-Solicited Feedback: Effects Of Hourly Pay And Individual Monetary Incentive Pay, Julie M. Slowiak

Dissertations

The frequency of feedback solicitation under hourly pay and individual monetary incentive pay conditions was examined. A two-group between-subjects design was used with 30 college students in each group. Participants attended three experimental sessions and entered the cash value of simulated bank checks presented on a computer screen. Results indicated that (a) participants who were paid individual monetary incentives did not self-solicit feedback more often than those who were paid an hourly wage, (b) feedback solicitation was not related to individual differences in levels of competition with one's self or competition with others, (c) task performance was higher for individuals …

Person-Organization Fit Perceptions And The Job Choice Process: The Impact Of Supplementary And Complementary Fit On Attitudes, Intentions, And Job Search Behaviors, Shawn Michael Bergman

Doctoral Dissertations

Although there has been a growing interest in studying the effects that Person- Organization fit perceptions have on the job choice process, at least two gaps exist in this literature. First, despite evidence suggesting that both the supplementary and complementary fit traditions should be used together, previous research efforts have focused almost exclusively on supplementary fit. Second, research in the job choice domain has focused mainly on global assessments of Person-Organization fit and has not examined if the different characteristics individuals consider when evaluating their fit with an organization impacts the job choice process. The current study helps to fill …

A Dispositional Model Of Leader Development: The Role Of Core Self-Evaluation, Narcissism And Goal Orientation, Carrie A. Blair

Doctoral Dissertations

Organizations are frequently investing time and money in preparing to develop the leaders within their organizations. Past research has shown that individual differences are generally related to participation in leader development activities, and past research has confirmed that individual difference factors are related to individual propensity to accept feedback. Furthermore, it has been demonstrated that participation and attention to feedback are important. The purpose of this dissertation was to explore two alternative measures of leader development effectiveness (e.g., the quality of leader development goals; correspondence between leader development feedback and leader development goals), and to examine potential dispositional antecedents of …

Evaluating Frame-Of-Reference Rater Training Effectiveness Via Performance Schema Accuracy, Charles A. Gorman

Doctoral Dissertations

Frame-of-reference (FOR) training has been shown to be an effective intervention for improving the accuracy of performance ratings (e.g., Woehr & Huffcutt, 1994). Despite evidence in support of the effectiveness of FOR training, few studies have empirically addressed the ultimate goal of FOR training, which is to train raters to share a common conceptualization of performance (Athey & McIntyre, 1987; Woehr, 1994). The present study tested the hypothesis that FOR-trained raters would possess schemas of performance after training that are more similar to an expert schema than would control-trained raters. It was also hypothesized that schema accuracy would be positively …

Emotional Intelligence: Comparisons Of Criterion-Related Validity Across Conceptual And Methodological Variants Of Measurement, Moira Hanna

All Dissertations

Emotional intelligence is a reasonably new construct that is little more than 15 years old within the research literature, but has existed in some form since the time of Darwin (Bar-On, Handley, & Fund, 2006). Although this concept has been around for quite some time, it has been conceptualized in a variety of ways. Therefore, the current study aimed to provide a clearer understanding of the construct and how to best measure emotional intelligence.
Using two samples of undergraduate students who were either currently employed or had been employed in the past we were able to test several hypotheses. More …

Social Dominance Orientation And Reactions To Affirmative Action Policies And Beneficiaries: A Test Of The Mediating Effects Of Perceptions Of Race-Based Inequities And Attitudes Toward Diversity, Ashanti Edwards

All Dissertations

In the present study, social dominance theory (SDT) was used as a framework for understanding reactions to affirmative action policies and beneficiaries. Specifically, this study examined how social dominance orientation, perceptions of inequities, and attitudes toward diversity impact these reactions. The results of the study provide support for several of the predictions derivable from SDT. Social dominance orientation (SDO) had a direct influence on participants' endorsement of two legitimizing myths: perceptions of race-based inequities and attitudes toward diversity. Moreover, endorsement of these legitimizing myths was directly related to support for affirmative action and reactions to beneficiaries of affirmative action.

Situational Constraints And Personality As Antecedents Of Organizational Citizenship Behaviors, Jay Steffensmeier

All Dissertations

Current job performance research distinguishes between task performance and extra-role performance or organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs). While possible antecedents of OCBs have been studied, most research involves either personality variables or other employee characteristics (e.g., job satisfaction) while the environment within which an employee functions has been thus far overlooked. Such situational variables are aspects of the environment employees have little or no control over but impact performance nonetheless. The present study goes beyond prior research by investigating the role of situational variables on OCBs as well as their possible moderating effects on the personality - OCB relationship. Task identity …

Antecedents And Consequences Of Applicant Perceptions Within An Internet-Based Testing Context, Laurie Wasko

All Dissertations

The current study proposes and tests components of a model of applicant perceptions of Internet-based testing (IBT). Based on existing applicant reactions frameworks (e.g., Hausknecht, Day, & Thomas, 2004; Ryan & Ployhart, 2000), the model posits that actual test-taking conditions (e.g., presence or absence of a proctor, presence of absence of other test-takers), perceived test procedure characteristics (e.g., user-friendliness), and initial applicant perceptions (e.g., information privacy concerns) both directly and indirectly influence scores on a each of three composites of a selection test battery; Situational Judgment, Personality Fit, and Background Experience. Client-type (i.e., clients hiring entry-level applicants vs. clients hiring …

Resume Screening: A Policy Capturing Study Of Recruiter Judgments, Melinda Keith

All Theses

Previous research on the practice of rŽsumŽ screening has failed to yield consistent results that generalize to real life recruiting settings. The present study draws from previous research on rŽsumŽ evaluation and identifies the 5 most common variables on rŽsumŽs--Academic Achievement, Extracurricular Activity, Goal Statements, RŽsumŽ Presentation, and Work Experience. The structure comprising each of these 5 important elements was assessed. In this study, real rŽsumŽs submitted for actual entry-level positions posted through a college career center were used to determine which variables recruiters use in judgments of applicant suitability. Policy capturing was used to identify the judgment policies of …

Smile, But Don't Wear Yourself Out Doing So: Emotional Labor, Ego Depletion, Customer Anger, And Performance Over Time, Eric Mckibben

All Theses

The present study examined the motivational and performance consequences of emotional labor by having participants respond to multiple transactions in a simulated banking environment. Type of acting strategy (surface versus deep) and customer anger (high versus low) were manipulated to examine ego depletion and performance over time. Although prior research has examined these independent variables, no research has examined the relationships among the variables of interest over time. Study participants were randomly assigned to either one of four experimental groups (surface acting X angry customer, surface acting X non-angry customer, deep acting X angry customer, deep acting X non-angry customer) …

Antecedents Of Entrepreneurial Orientation: A Contingency Approach, Laurent Stephane Josien

Doctoral Dissertations

This research was created in order to offer a better understanding of the entrepreneurial orientation construct. Based on the literature review several antecedents of the entrepreneurial orientation construct were identified: risk, achievement, innovation, locus of control, self-esteem, opportunity, autonomy, proactiveness, and competitive aggressiveness. Relying on the contingency theory developed by Burns and Stalker (1961), it was decided to use the Carland's trichotomy of entrepreneurs as a moderator variable between the antecedents and the entrepreneurial orientation construct. As a result, three main areas of research were identified. The first area deals with determining which dimensions are underpinning the entrepreneurial orientation construct, …

Proactive Behavior: A Selection Perspective, Laura Elizabeth Marler

Doctoral Dissertations

In the 15 years since Bateman and Crant (1993) formulated the construct of proactive personality, numerous researchers have devoted a significant amount of attention to proactive attributes and behaviors (e.g., Parker, Williams, & Turner, 2006; Crant, 2000; Frese & Fay, 2001; Parker, 2000; Erdogan & Bauer, 2005). Campbell's (1990) model of performance suggests that an organization's selection system may ultimately promote proactive behavior. Consequently, in this dissertation, I advocate a selection approach as the initial building block towards creating a workplace in which proactive behavior is a fundamental outcome.

One of the selection tools yet to be explored by researchers …

Effect Of Household Structure On Family-Friendly Benefit Utilization: Implications For Organizational Attraction And Workplace Withdrawal Behaviors Of Federal Government Employees, Sharyn J. Aufenanger

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

This study examined the effect of household structure on utilization of family-friendly benefits in organizations, as well as the impact that family-friendly benefit utilization has on organizational attraction and workplace withdrawal behaviors among Federal government employees with children. Results showed that alternative work arrangements (e.g., compressed and flexible schedules) were popular among all employees who have children. Family-friendly benefit utilization rates were highest among single parent employees and lowest among traditional family employees. Single parent employees were more likely to use flexible schedules, part-time, compressed schedules, telework, and sick and annual leave. Dual income employees were more likely to use …

Examination Of A Nomological Network Of Team Leadership: A Construct Validation Study, Kari R. Strobel

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

This study examined the construct-related validity evidence for team leadership measurement within the United States Navy. Drawing on literature from industrial/organizational, sport, and military psychology, the current research specified one nomological network for officer team leadership appraisal. The proposed model tested the idea that Naval team leaders engaging in transformational behaviors would be more likely to use and encourage the use of teamwork processes, increase cohesion among team members, and maintain superior mission readiness. The hypotheses were tested with performance appraisal data from 900 Commanders, Lieutenant Commanders, and Lieutenants from aviation, surface, and subsurface warfare communities. The relationships between the …

Characteristics For Success: Predicting Intervention Effectiveness With The Job Characteristics Model, Sallie Weaver

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The current study examines the effects of the five core job characteristics (skill variety, task significance, task identity, autonomy, and feedback) proposed by Hackman-Oldham (1974) at the team level by investigating whether the model variables are related to the effectiveness of a motivationally-based team-level productivity enhancement intervention. Previous literature has almost exclusively focused on the effects of these job characteristics at the individual level and their direct relationships with employee attitudes and subjective measures of performance. This thesis aims to further the job characteristics literature by exploring the effects of the characteristics at the team level, as well as the …

You Scratch My Back And I'Ll Scratch Yours: Mentor-Perceived Costs And Benefits And The Functions They Provide Their Proteges, Julia Fullick

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Mentoring relationships can have both costs and benefits for mentors and their proteges. The present research examined the degree to which mentors' perceived costs and benefits affect the functional and dysfunctional mentoring they provide to their proteges. Additionally, I investigated whether mentor-perceived costs and benefits were associated with the mentors' own goal orientation and the goal orientation of their proteges. Data were collected from 86 proteges and their current supervisory mentors. Consistent with expectations, when mentors reported greater costs of embarrassment associated with their relationship, the proteges reported receiving greater dysfunctional mentoring. Proteges who reported receiving greater functional mentoring tended …

Item And Person Characteristics As Predictors Of Faking, Nicholas Tyler Day

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

Applicants may be more motivated to fake than incumbents and may fake more on some items than others. The present study investigated both item and person characteristics as predictors of faking. At the item level, both item transparency and job-relevance were hypothesized to be associated with higher levels of faking. In contrast, item verifiability was hypothesized to be associated with lower levels of faking. At the person level, applicants were expected to have a higher prevalence of faking than incumbents. Data was taken from an existing pool of applicants (n = 507) and incumbents (n = 302) at a customer …