Industrial and Organizational Psychology Commons^™

Employee Engagement, Megan Paul

Umbrella Summaries

What is employee engagement?

Consensus on the exact definition of employee engagement is still evolving, but commonalities involve attitudes and behaviors related to high personal investment in one’s work. One definition is “a relatively enduring state of mind referring to the simultaneous investment of personal energies in the experience or performance of work” (Christian, Garza, & Slaughter, 2011, p. 95). The most commonly used measure of engagement, the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale, assesses engagement through three factors: vigor (high energy levels and persistence), dedication (enthusiasm and inspiration), and absorption (high concentration and engrossment) (Schaufeli, Salanova, Gonzalez-Roma, & Bakker, 2002; Schaufeli, …

Three Lenses Of Contrapower Sexual Harassment, Michael L. Ekema

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Contrapower sexual harassment refers to sexual harassment incidents where the perpetrator has less formal power within the organization than the person being victimized. Although the potential for inverse power dynamics were already identified in the early stages of sexual harassment research, the prevalence and antecedents of contrapower sexual harassment have rarely been examined. In addition, prior sexual harassment research has overwhelmingly prioritized gender as the focal variable of interest. This dissertation seeks to contribute to the literature on workplace incivility, organizational deviance, and counterproductive work behaviors by looking at contrapower harassment through three different lenses: The perspective of harassment targets, …

Intelligence Testing In The New (Langu)Age: Effects Of Item-Type And Assessment Medium Features On Fluid Intelligence Test Linguistic Group Score Differences, Paige R. Alenick

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

As fluid intelligence tests are an integral part of modern employee selection protocols, assessment designers are tasked to ensure the construct is measured accurately for all test-takers regardless of their demographic traits. Disparities in bilingual and monolingual working memory capabilities, which are critical for successful fluid intelligence test performance, might make it challenging for test designers to accomplish this goal. Best design practice in such cases is to identify assessment conditions that allow for equitable expression of the test construct. Thus, the purpose of this study was to examine whether the content of items present on a fluid intelligence test …

The Bright And Dark Sides Of Upward Social Comparison: Knowledge Sharing And Knowledge Hiding Directed At High Performers, Soohyun (Ashley) Lee

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The present research investigated when and why employees might share or hide their work information from coworkers who perform better than themselves. Drawing from social comparison theory (Festinger, 1954) and social exchange theory (Blau, 1964), I predicted that upward social comparison would lead to both pleasant reactions (inspiration, perceived gain of work resources) and unpleasant reactions (envy, perceived loss of work resources), which in turn would differentially affect knowledge sharing/hiding behaviors targeting high-performing coworkers. I further predicted that individual differences in directing behaviors toward goals (goal orientation) and task structures requiring reliance on coworkers (task interdependence) would moderate the relationships …

Avatar: The New Employee? Creating Online Employment Personas May Benefit Stigmatized Employees, Esenaman Batirov, Larry R. Martinez

Psychology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Although we appreciate and agree with the conclusions that (Wilcox et al., 2022) come to in their review of the literature related to cybervetting, our intention in this response is to discuss the potential utility of cybervetting in a post-COVID world in which fully remote employment is much more prevalent. Specifically, we draw parallels to other contexts in which individuals interact completely remotely successfully and highlight how such arrangements can actually be beneficial —rather than detrimental—to employees with stigmatized identities or characteristics.

Contextualizing The Organizational Mindset, Joseph A. Carpini, Burak Oc

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Although Schneider and Pulakos (2022, p. 2) call for scholars to adopt an “organizational mindset,” which includes “an increased organizational frame of reference on variables of interest,” the authors have overlooked the importance of contextualizing such a mindset. Contextualizing “entails linking observations to a set of relevant facts, events, or points of view that make possible research and theory that form part of a larger whole” (Rousseau & Fried, 2001, p. 1). Contextualizing is essential because it provides a common vernacular that facilitates the valid and reliable extension of the industrial-organizational (I-O) mindset to the study of organizational differences and …

Employee Fit, Sarah Stepanek, Megan Paul

Umbrella Summaries

What is employee fit?

Broadly defined, fit is said to be the “compatibility between individuals and organizations” (Kristof, 1996, p. 3). Early theories of fit proposed that alignment between individuals’ personalities and their environment would lead to greater personal success and happiness; for example, those with social personalities would find the greatest fulfillment in work roles involving helping people, such as a social worker or nurse (Holland, 1985). Since then, the idea of fit has been expanded to include not just alignment of personality, but also attitudes, values, preferences, needs, goals, knowledge, skills, and abilities (Kristof-Brown et al., 2005). Fit …

Relationship Building In E-Negotiation: Dyadic Effects On Subjective Negotiation Outcomes, Mounica Reddy

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

E-negotiation is a critical activity that is becoming a new reality (Sokolova et al., 2006), however, the e-negotiation environment lends itself to fewer informative cues than the face-to-face environment. The ability to maintain relationships with parties and negotiate with them in the future increases the negotiator’s bargaining power and could be important beyond economic outcomes (Curhan & Brown, 2011). This study investigates the link between relationship-building and subjective values in negotiation, and how the negotiation medium may change this relationship. Subjective values of rapport, trustworthiness, and interest in future interaction were predicted to both differ by e-negotiation and face-to-face negotiation …

How Relevant Is The Apa Ethics Code To Industrial-Organizational Psychology? Applicability, Deficiencies, And Recommendations, Logan L. Watts, Joel Lefkowitz, Manuel F. Gonzalez, Sampoorna Nandi

Cambridge University Press Open Access Agreement Publications-Archive

Opinions have been divided regarding the relevance of the APA Ethics Code to non-mental health specialties and even whether the code should attempt to encompass all psychology specializations. However, these opinions have crystallized without the benefit of any appreciable empirical data, until now. This study investigates the applicability of the ethical principles and standards of the code to 398 first-person narratives of ethical incidents reported by industrial-organizational (I-O) psychologists. On average, 2.8 (of the 5) principles enumerated in the code were deemed applicable to each incident, and each principle was applicable to more than half the incidents provided. Of the …

Applying Visual Methods To Document The History Of Psychological Testing: A Qualitative Approach, Analay Perez, Janet F. Carlson, Buros Center For Testing At The University Of Nebraska-Lincoln

Buros Center: Professional Staff Publications

The history of psychological testing is critical to many areas of applied psychology. Assessment forms a mainstay of clinical practice, second only to psychotherapy (Meyer et al., 2001). In industrial/organizational psychological practice, employee selection depends on testing to assess applicant qualifications. In educational contexts, testing is central to the evaluation of academic performance and college readiness, in addition to determining eligibility for various types of special educational services.

The history of testing is deeply rooted in myriad psychological specialties (Carlson & Geisinger, 2021). This fact prompted a qualitative examination and integration of three distinct historical threads identified by the proposal …

Disability Inclusion, Quality Improvement Center For Workforce Development

Workforce Analytics Resources

The following resources provide information to help agencies create disability-inclusive workplace policies and practices. The Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) is a non-regulatory federal agency that promotes policies and coordinates with employers and all levels of government to increase workplace success for people with disabilities. The Employer Assistance and Resource Network on Disability Inclusion (EARN) is an ODEP technical assistance center that provides resources to help employers recruit, hire, retain, and advance individuals with disabilities and comply with their responsibilities under the ADA. Inclusion@Work: A Framework for Building a Disability-Inclusive Organization allows organizations to explore strategies for creating disability-inclusive …

Talent Management And The Impact Of Dark Triad Personalities In The Workplace, Joseph A. Rosendale, Eliot Mastrovich, Leann Wilkie

International Journal of Applied Management and Technology

This study examines links between the Dark Triad of personality types (Machiavellianism, psychopathy, and narcissism) and workplace behaviors. The research objective seeks to confirm the relationship between the Dark Triad and several negative behaviors while investigating positive externalities that have not been previously explored. A literature review covers the background of the Dark Triad, instruments that have been used to measure it, and ongoing research streams in the field. The Short Dark Triad (SD3) survey was administered to 142 working professionals and data collected were quantitatively examined using a variety of statistical tools in SPSS. Corresponding results provide additional evidence …

Two Essays On The Effects Of Ceo Social Activism, Habib Islam

Theses and Dissertations in Business Administration

The first essay theorizes and quantifies the effects of CEO activism on firms’ financial performance. We examine this relationship within the framework of screening theory. We find that CEO social activism generally leads to adverse investor reactions. This negative effect is most prominent when there is interdimensional incongruence in CEO social activism messages. In addition, we find that the negative effect of CEO social activism is moderated by organizational characteristics that resolve incongruence caused by disparate signals.

The second essay seeks to understand how a CEO’s social activism influences corporate social performance. We hypothesize that CEO social activism will have …

What Is The Meaning In This? Teachers' Propensity To Search For Meaning In Life During Covid-19 And The Role Of Meaningful Work, Seterra D. Burleson

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

The global COVID-19 pandemic has presented notable challenges in teachers’ career paths. In the present study, Super’s life-span, life-space theory was applied to examine the interplay between K-12 teachers’ propensity to search for meaning in life and meaningfulness attributed to their work role (i.e., meaningful work) in predicting career-relevant outcomes in the face of challenging circumstances over the course of a semester. A model was proposed in which propensity to search for meaning in life led to better work and career outcomes, an effect moderated by meaningful work. Longitudinal data from a sample of 617 teachers over eight outcome measurement …

The Influence Of Motivation, Role Identity, And Perceived Meaningfulness Of Work On The Relationship Between Volunteer Satisfaction And Volunteer Contribution, Tonia Christine Caraveo

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Volunteering, the act of donating time and effort to contribute to society is a unique form of helping that includes deliberate non-obligated services given one time or long-term. Utilizing an integrated approach incorporating the functionalist perspective and role identity theory as framework, the present study re-examined factors that influence volunteer contribution. The sample consisted of 161 participants who have donated time volunteering. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to test the model. Results of the structural equation model indicated the hypothesized model was not a good fit. As such, no significance was found among the expected relationships between volunteer satisfaction, …

The Influence Of Work-Life Balance Directionality On Retirement Decisions, Joshua Craig

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

The retirement landscape is ever shifting and has become a dual-decision process more so now than ever before. Employees consider retirement through a family lens and particularly so when there is conflict between life and work domains. Researchers have suggested that work-life directionality does influence work-related decisions (Wiktorowicz, 2018). The impact of work-life directionality, however, on retirement choices has not been substantially examined. Further, socioeconomic status (SES) has been found to influence retirement decisions to some degree (Dushi et al., 2017). Therefore, in the present study, data from a total of 17,146 participants were used from the 2018 wave of …

A Comprehensive Examination Of The Cross-Validity Of Pareto-Optimal Versus Fixed-Weight Selection Systems In The Biobjective Selection Context., Wilfried De Corte, Filip Lievens, Paul R. Sackett

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

The article presents evidence for the cross-validity potential of fixed-weight (FW) versus Pareto-Optimal (PO) selection systems in biobjective selection situations where both the goals of diversity and quality are valued and the importance of the goals is undecided a priori. The article extends previous research by also studying the cross-validity potential of selection systems in the practically most important sample-to-sample cross-validity scenario. We address three research questions: (a) Do different PO systems show comparable levels of relative (i.e., proportional) achievement upon cross-validation? (b) Do PO systems achieve higher levels of relative achievement upon cross-validation than FW selection systems?, and (c) …

Approaches To Disagreements, David Chan

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Most people can recall encounters, episodes and experiences involving disagreements over an issue. The more important the issue, the more it affects interpersonal relationships negatively when there is strong disagreement. Disagreements often generate negative thoughts, feelings and actions that significantly influence attitudes, decisions and behaviours. These dynamics in dealing with disagreement is part of our human psychology. If the underlying psychology is understood, this knowledge can facilitate personal and workplace relationships. It can also help address disagreements between policymakers and citizens or advocacy groups.Several questions have become more salient in recent years, particularly amid COVID-19 challenges, as Singapore society underwent …

Human Resource Officer's Perspectives On Recruitment And Hiring Practices Of Diverse Candidates, Tara Kelton Mcdaniel

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Theses & Dissertations

A wealth of research supports the positive impact minority teachers have on all students, but especially minority students. Benefits include an increase in academic achievement, an increase in educational engagement, and an overall sense of self-efficacy and autonomy. Unfortunately minority teachers and teachers of color are significantly underrepresented in the United States teaching workforce compared to their White counterparts. Challenges for diversifying the teaching workforce include historical factors of racism and suppression, the Whiteness of educator preparation programs as the prevailing ideology, and the presence of toxic work environment conditions during field placements and employment. While many historical and contemporary …

Pandemic Pressure: Race, Job Insecurity, And Stress During The Covid-19 Pandemic, David B. Taullahu, Jason S. Snyder, Alyssa R. Minton, Brooke Nyberg, Joseph A. Mikels

DePaul Discoveries

With the ongoing pressure of the COVID-19 pandemic, the working world has been drastically altered. Additionally, pandemic related pressures are not evenly distributed across racial groups–with negative outcomes being exacerbated as a byproduct of structural inequities for people of color (Seldan & Berdahl, 2020). Using the Perceived Stress Scale (Cohen et al., 1983), and Job Insecurity Scale (Ashford et al., 1989), we aimed to determine how various work-related factors such as job insecurity, essential worker status, and race relate to overall perceived stress in daily life. Participants (n = 266; M_age = 50.56 years, SD = 7.83; age …

Role Stress, Sarah Stepanek, Megan Paul

Umbrella Summaries

What is role stress?

A work role consists of “a pattern of behaviors perceived by an employee as behaviors that are expected” (Tubre & Collins, 2000, p. 156). When perceived work role expectations are unclear, incompatible with other expected behaviors, or too much to handle, role stress is said to occur (Tubre & Collins, 2000). Role stress is typically broken down into three main types: role ambiguity, role conflict, and role overload. Role ambiguity refers to a situation in which employees are unsure about what their responsibilities are, what behaviors are expected of them, and what the standards are for …

The Space Between Stress And Reaction: A Three-Way Interaction Of Active Coping, Psychological Stress, And Applied Mindfulness In The Prediction Of Sustainable Resilience, Kait M. Rohlfing Phd

Industrial-Organizational Psychology Dissertations

Amid a global pandemic, data was collected to explore the extent to which resilience practices (active coping and applied mindfulness) under varying degrees of stress levels can promote sustainable resilience, defined as the ability to move through challenges in a way that leads to increased positive adaptation to meet present and future challenges. Results did not support the proposed three-way interaction; however, post-hoc analyses indicated that active coping (r = .316) and applied mindfulness (r = .250) were independently predictive of sustained resilience and, when combined, predicted approximately 20 percent (R² = .203) of sustained resilience …

Relationship Of Leader-Member Exchange On Role Stress And Burnout: A Public Accounting Perspective, Sammie Parsley

Dissertations

An issue that concerns public accounting firms, both large and small, is that of employee burnout within the workplace. As a service-oriented industry, accommodating client needs is pivotal to long-term success. With that in mind, meeting client demands often means accountants must work long and strenuous hours, an attribute inherent to the industry. Consequently, public accounting firms often find themselves struggling with voluntary turnover as a result of burnout and opportunity for increased financial incentives elsewhere. The busy season in public accounting can be especially difficult, as accountants can find themselves working very long hours for weeks on end. This …

Transformational Leadership, Sarah Stepanek, Megan Paul

Umbrella Summaries

What is transformational leadership?

Transformational leadership refers to leadership behaviors that transcend the basic employment contract and help motivate followers to achieve beyond expectations (Antonakis et al., 2003; Bass, 1999). Transformational leaders seek to “uplift the morale, motivation, and morals of their followers” (Bass, 1999, p. 9). Through the four facets of transformational leadership (idealized influence, inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, and individualized consideration), transformational leaders help followers create meaning, selfactualize, feel part of a collective, find greater self-worth, and achieve great things (Bass, 1999). The dimensions of transformational leadership are further detailed below.

► Idealized influence: This dimension of transformational …

Subtle Leadership: When Referent Power Is Subtly Powerful, Luz E. Quiñones-González

The Journal of Values-Based Leadership

The following research presents the construct of “subtle leadership” in a conceptual discussion as a new way of perceiving and studying leaders of the twenty-first century. Its core objective points toward the conceptualization of “subtle leadership,” sharing a basic definition to provoke discussion and emerging theoretical framework in order to better understand the current organizational reality. Some leadership styles such as servant leadership, shared leadership, and authentic leadership are discussed to compare and contrast them with “subtle leadership,” emphasizing that leadership is viewed as a process and not only as styles or personal traits. Subtle leadership is primarily based on …

Risk-Taking And Career Achievement: The Moderating Role Of "Getting Along" Personality Traits, John-Luke Mccord

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The current dissertation examined the moderating effects of personality traits on the relationship between risk propensity and career advancement. It was hypothesized that certain personalities that facilitate dependability and building support can impact the probability of successful risk-taking at work, resulting in greater career advancement. A nationally representative panel study of British households (n = 13,743) was used to examine the extent to which Big Five personality traits interact with risk propensity to predict career achievement. Results showed a strong, positive association between risk propensity and income growth over time. The “getting along” personality traits were not shown to have …

Gamifying An Assessment Method: What Signals Are Organizations Sending To Applicants?, Konstantina Georgiou, Filip Lievens

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Purpose: The paper aims to expand the authors' knowledge on gamification and the signals sent on behalf of the organization when gamified assessments are used. The authors examine the mechanisms through which the use of gamification into an assessment method may increase the attractiveness of an organization as a prospective employer. Design/methodology/approach: The first study examines, following a longitudinal design, the signals that an organization sends to applicants about the organization's symbolic traits (e.g. innovativeness), through the characteristics of a gamified assessment, in terms of enjoyment and flow and impact on organizational attractiveness. Upon clarifying this mechanism, the second study …

Values Assessment For Personnel Selection: Comparing Job Applicants To Non-Applicants, Jeromy Anglim, Karlyn Molloy, Patrick D. Dunlop, Simon L. Albrecht, Filip Lievens, Marty Andrew

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Some scholars suggest that organizations could improve their hiring decisions by measuring the personal values of job applicants, arguing that values provide insights into applicants’ cultural fit, retention prospects, and performance outcomes. However, others have expressed concerns about response distortion and faking. The current study provides the first large-scale investigation of the effect of the job applicant context on the psychometric structure and scale means of a self-reported values measure. Participants comprised 7,884 job applicants (41% male; age M = 43.32, SD = 10.76) and a country-, age-, and gender-matched comparison sample of 1,806 non-applicants (41% male; age M = …

Onboarding Program Eastern Band Of Cherokee Indians - Theory Of Change, Quality Improvement Center For Workforce Development

Other QIC-WD Products

During the needs assessment process facilitated by the Quality Improvement Center for Workforce Development (QIC-WD) three areas of need were discussed for possible intervention at Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI) Family Safety Program (FSP): 1) team cohesion across the various agency units, 2) unhealthy levels of employee stress and work overload, and 3) inconsistent onboarding practices. For each area, a problem statement was developed, and in-depth root cause analysis and theory of change discussions were conducted. Ultimately, one theory of change was developed to step through the “if, then” logic for implementation of an onboarding program to improve worker …

Frontline Job Redesign Louisiana - Needs Assessment Summary, Quality Improvement Center For Workforce Development

Other QIC-WD Products

Exploration of Need

The QIC-WD and the Louisiana Department of Child and Family Services (DCFS) Child Welfare Division (CWD) worked together to conduct a needs assessment. A variety of information was explored to learn about the current workforce and the agency’s child welfare workforce practices, including: 1) recruitment, hiring, and retention metrics and processes; 2) organizational culture and climate; and 3) other workforce processes and initiatives, such as onboarding, mentoring, supervision, performance management, and employee recognition.

More specifically, five major types of information were considered: 1) objective administrative data; 2) subjective perceptions of staff and supervisors, gathered through QIC-WD …