Category Archives: Job Attitudes
Assessing idiosyncratic deals (IO Psychology)
When people are being hired or negotiating the terms of their employment, they often make idiosyncratic deals, also known as i-deals. I-deals are informal, nonstandard agreements between the employee and the employer that lead to beneficial outcomes for both parties. For example, they might negotiate compensation or work hours.
In a recent series of studies, Christopher Rosen and his colleagues set out to determine what exactly i-deals are, develop a measure of i-deals, and then establish that measure’s validity.
According to the authors, i-deals have four distinguishing characteristics. They are individually negotiated, heterogeneous (in other words, they’re not the same for everyone), mutually beneficial, and vary in scope. The authors proposed four main dimensions of i-deals: schedule flexibility, location flexibility, financial incentives, and task and work responsibilities. They then developed a measure that can be used to assess to what extent an employee reports negotiating i-deals.
Using the measure that they developed, the authors found that employees with better exchange relationships with their supervisors or who have more political skill are more likely to negotiate i-deals. Schedule flexibility i-deals and task and work responsibilities i-deals were positively related to job commitment and job satisfaction.
As a result of this work, we have a reliable and valid measure to assess i-deals. In addition, we now better understand what i-deals are, what may influence their occurrence, and what they may lead to. I-deals are related to employee satisfaction and commitment, so they are an important part of the negotiation process with employees.
Predicting Turnover? You Might Want to Measure This (IO Psychology)
Topic: Job Attitudes, Turnover
Publication: Journal of Applied Psychology
Article: When and How Is Job Embeddedness Predictive of Turnover?
A Meta-Analytic Investigation
Authors: Jiang, K., Liu, D., McKay, P. F., Lee, T. W., & Mitchell, T. R.
Reviewer: Neil Morelli
Have you ever had a job where you felt like you were stuck? Like if in a perfect world you might leave, but your work obligations, salary, family needs, or community ties didn’t allow you to? If you’ve ever felt this way you’ve demonstrated what researchers call job embeddedness, or the integrated reasons employees become stuck or caught in a job. This idea is important when it comes to understanding turnover.
When it comes to predicting turnover, Jiang and colleagues expected that it’s not just how an employee thinks or feels about his or her job, it’s also the degree of on- and off-the-job embeddedness that an employee experiences.
The researchers visualized turnover like this: depending on the employee’s national culture, type of organization, and gender, on- and off-the-job sources of embeddedness will influence turnover intentions. These turnover intentions, also influenced by job attitudes and possible job alternatives, will then directly and indirectly influence actual turnover.
Did the authors find evidence to support this idea of turnover? After using 65 independent samples in a meta-analysis, the authors found that as job embeddedness increased the intention to turnover decreased. What’s more interesting is that this relationship was observed when job attitudes and alternatives were controlled, indicating that job embeddedness is a unique piece of the pie when it comes to understanding turnover. Jiang et al. also found that on-the-job sources of embeddedness had stronger relationship to turnover intentions in public organizations and when the employees came from a female-dominated sample.
So overall, job embeddness can decrease an employee’s intent to turnover, which often times directly or indirectly lowers their chances of actually turning over. Thus, while being “stuck” might have a negative connotation for employees, organizations might want to consider bolstering employee job embeddedness in positive ways to keep turnover levels low. The authors suggest investing in career development opportunities or helping subsidize home purchases in favorite neighborhoods. Either way, in addition to measuring employee engagement and job satisfaction, surveying levels of job embeddedness could be a useful tool in predicting future levels of employee turnover.
human resource management, organizational industrial psychology, organizational management
Talkin’ ‘bout my generation: Does it affect work-related attitudes?
Topic: Job Attitudes, Organizational Commitment, Job Satisfaction, Turnover
Publication: Journal of Business and Psychology (in press)
Article: Generational differences in work-related attitudes: A Meta-analysis
Authors: D. P. Costanza, J. M. Badger, R. L. Fraswer, J. B. Severt, & P. A. Gade
Reviewed by: Alexandra Rechlin
Do generational differences predict work-related attitudes, like job satisfaction and commitment? Although many organizations base training programs and interventions on the belief that there are generational differences, research has found mixed results. David Costanza and his colleagues recently conducted a meta-analysis using the available research findings to determine if there really are generational differences in work-related attitudes.
Contrary to popular belief, there were not meaningful differences in work-related attitudes (like job satisfaction or organizational commitment) due to the generation of the worker. Older workers were slightly more satisfied than younger workers, but this result was likely due to the difference in age or tenure of the employees and not due to generational differences. Also, older workers were less likely to leave their jobs; but again, this result is best explained by factors other than generational differences.
So what’s the takeaway message from this meta-analysis? Don’t just assume that there are generational differences that you have to deal with. The research doesn’t support the idea that workers’ attitudes are affected by their generation, so before implementing any interventions or programs based on mitigating generational differences, conduct a needs assessment of your employees. Find out if there are any differences that need to be addressed before just assuming that you need to develop an intervention.
human resource management, organizational industrial psychology, organizational management
Proactive Performance Increases Customer Satisfaction (IO Psychology)
Topic: Culture, Self-Efficacy, Job Attitudes, Citizenship Behavior
Publication: Journal of Applied Psychology (MAY 2012)
Article: Doing the right thing without being told: Joint effects of initiative climate and general self-efficacy on employee proactive customer service performance.
Authors: S. Raub, H. Liao
Reviewed By: Ben Sher
In the customer service division, men and women of the proactive service performance unit go above and beyond the call of duty. Their efforts often lead to increased customer satisfaction. These are their stories…
When customer service professionals follow established protocols and scripts during their interactions with customers, they are engaging in general service performance. Successfully meeting these standards is the mark of a good employee. Still, employees can do even better. One way to exceed expectations is to engage in proactive customer service performance. Employees who do this think about the future and have a long-term-oriented approach to anticipating and solving problems. They are also self-starters who do not wait to be told what to do. Instead, they take initiative to make decisions and do things that will help satisfy customers.
How can you get employees to engage in proactive customer service performance? Research by Raub and Liao (2012) has provided some clues. After conducting a large study involving dozens of service organizations, they found a positive relationship between initiative-climate and proactive customer service performance. What is initiative-climate? This is when an organization’s culture rewards and supports employees who show initiative. By doing so, they encourage employees to engage in behavior which is proactive.
The researchers also found that employee self-efficacy is positively related to proactive customer service performance. Why would this be? Employees with high self-efficacy, or the belief that they will be successful at work-related activities, are more likely to take a chance and be proactive. After all, they believe their actions have a high chance of leading to a successful outcome. Employees with low self-efficacy who do not believe they will be successful at work-related activities are less likely to be proactive. The researchers also found that the relationship between self-efficacy and proactive behavior is strengthened in an initiative-climate.
What happens when employees use proactive customer service performance? The authors found that this behavior is related to customer satisfaction, above and beyond general service performance. This means that it’s the extra, proactive behavior that is associated with the increase in customer satisfaction.
This study is important because it suggests a method for managers to increase customer satisfaction. It’s both the organization and the employee that make for a proactive environment. Organizations can create an initiative-climate that supports and rewards proactive behavior and recruit employees with high self-efficacy. Taking these steps can create an environment which is ripe for proactive service performance and customer satisfaction. And even if we are not in the service industry, don’t we all have customers whom we would like to satisfy?
Raub, S. & Liao, H. (2012). Doing the right thing without being told: Joint effects of
initiative climate and general self-efficacy on employee proactive customer service
performance. Journal of Applied Psychology, 97(3), 651-667.
human resource management, organizational industrial psychology, organizational management
Like Pulling Teeth: How to Get Greater Employee Feedback (Human Resource Management)
Topic: Feedback, Leadership, Job Attitudes
Publication: Personnel Psychology
Article: Ask And You Shall Hear (But Not Always): Examining the Relationship
Between Manager Consultation and Employee Voice
Authors: Tangirala, S., & Ramanujam, R.
Reviewer: Neil Morelli
Whether you’re a researcher, consultant, HR professional, or manager, you know that the best sources of information about a job or organization are the employees themselves. But, you also know that gathering open, honest, and constructive feedback can sometimes be difficult. This type of feedback is also called voice, or an employee’s expression of opinions, concerns, or suggestions, and is either increased or decreased by both external and internal factors.
Tangirala and Ramanulam were interested in testing the combined effect of both an external condition and an internal motivation for employee voice: manager consultation and perceived influence. Manager consultation is how much a manager asks for and listens to employee feedback. Employee perceived influence is how much he or she feels they influence work-related issues.
Examining surveys from 640 frontline nurses and their supervisors revealed that managers who solicit feedback from employees to a greater degree increase their direct reports’ perceived influence, which increases their voice. On top of that, these relationships are stronger for higher profile managers (those with higher status in the organization), employees with higher self-efficacy, and employees who are more satisfied with their jobs.
So, if you’re a manager looking to increase the input from your employees, realize that their
comfort with giving feedback depends on whether they feel like their words have any sway—a perception which depends on the extent you ask for and act on feedback. In addition to asking for this feedback, make sure that you have the requisite status to do something with the feedback and they have the requisite skills to give it.
human resource management, organizational industrial psychology, organizational management
IO Psychology:Organizational Culture: If the Shoe Fits
Topic: Job Attitudes, Turnover
Publication: Personnel Psychology (2011)
Article: Understanding newcomers’ adaptability and work-related outcomes: testing the mediating roles of perceived P-E fit variables
Authors: M. Wang, Y. Zhan, E. McCune, D. Truxillo
Reviewed by: Chelsea Rowe
When considering a new position at a new firm, we often try to predict how well we will fit with that company. We consider how well our own goals align with those of the company (Person-Organization Fit), how well we could get along with the people we’d potentially be working closely with (Person-Group Fit), and how well the demands of the actual position line up with our own unique skills and abilities (Person-Job Fit). These three considerations combine to formulate a more holistic picture of how well we will fit in within a potential work setting (Person-Environment Fit).
Finding a good-fit can be easier for some than for others. In a study of Chinese workers, Wang, et al. (2011) investigated how new employees’ adaptability influenced their likelihood of perceiving fit within organizations. Adaptability also isn’t a “one size fits all” concept: different types of adaptability were uniquely related to specific aspects of Fit. The more flexible & broad-minded someone is with new people, termed interpersonal adaptability, the more apt he or she is to experience Person-Group Fit. Cultural adaptability, describing active attempts to assimilate into various cultures, fostered greater Person-Organization Fit. Those who are willing to participate and adjust oneself to fit within the culture at his or her workplace seem to also feel more as though the organization’s goals represent some of their own goals.
Wang and his colleagues checked up on employees’ satisfaction, performance, and turnover two months after these newcomers began their new jobs. Perceived fit mattered for these work-related outcomes! When employees express greater Person-Environment Fit, not only did they experience greater satisfaction with their jobs, but also had better performance ratings (as assessed by their bosses), and were less likely to turnover.
Newcomers with greater adaptability may make the transition into new roles more easily. However, managers can’t hire on the sole basis of adaptability; more knowledge and skills may make the less adaptable candidate the better person for the job. In this case, managers can take active attempts to ensure that their new-hire experiences greater Person-Environment fit. The more an employee feels at home, the more satisfied & productive he or she will be and the less likely he or she will be to leave the company.
human resource management,organizational industrial psychology, organizational management
Job Satisfaction and Turnover…Now That’s Change We Can Believe In
Topic: Job Attitudes, Turnover
Publication: Academy of Management Journal
Article: The Power of Momentum: A New Model of Dynamic Relationships Between Job
Satisfaction Change and Turnover Intentions
Authors: Chen, G., Ployhart, R.E., Cooper Thomas, H., Anderson, N., & Bliese, P.D
Reviewer: Neil Morelli
Let’s say you’re interested in using a job satisfaction (JS) survey to help predict turnover. Which would you say is more important, the absolute value of JS or the change in JS from time 1 to time 2? After proposing that JS is especially salient to an employee when it has deviated from an earlier reference point, Chen et al. (2011) argued the latter.
Chen et al. introduced the idea of “job satisfaction momentum”, or the systematic change in job satisfaction over time, and tested if it would influence the nature of the JS to turnover intention relationship. Their results indicated that JS change is negatively related to turnover intention change; as JS increased (declined), turnover intention declined (increased). In other words, it was the systematic change in JS that helped determine the change in turnover intentions.
Using performance management practices to drive employee engagement
Topic: Engagement, Job Performance, Job Attitudes
Publication: Journal of Business and Psychology (JUN 2011)
Article: Performance management at the wheel: Driving employee engagement in organizations
Authors: Mone, E., Eisinger, C., Guggenheim, K., Price, B., Stine, C.
Reviewed by: Alexandra Rechlin
You’ve probably heard quite a bit about employee engagement lately, and you know that you want engaged employees. However, what can you do to increase levels of employee engagement? This article discusses ways in which performance management practices can be used to drive employee engagement and provides suggestions for future research.
Many different definitions of engagement exist. In this article, engaged employees are defined as those who feel committed, involved, passionate, and empowered, and they must demonstrate those feelings in their behavior. The authors use prior research and theory to support their argument for why each of five different performance management practices can lead to increased engagement. The performance management practices described are: (1) setting performance and development goals, (2) providing ongoing feedback and recognition, (3) managing employee development, (4) conducting mid-year and end-year appraisals, and (5) building a climate of trust and empowerment.
Following any of the above performance management practices should lead to increased levels of employee engagement, but the authors note that the relevant impact of the different practices remains to be studied.
human resource management,organizational industrial psychology, organizational management
Employee engagement: Wild goose chase or golden egg?
Topic: Job Performance, Job Attitudes
Publication: Personnel Psychology (SPRING 2011)
Article: Work engagement: A quantitative review and test of its relations with task and contextual performance
Authors: Christian, M.S. Garza, A.S., Slaughter, J.E.
Reviewer: Neil Morelli
Try this: pick your favorite search engine and type in the phrase “employee engagement.” A quick glance at the results would tell you that you’ve searched a phrase that has been on many of the minds in the business and HR worlds. Despite employee “engagement” becoming a popular buzz word with organizations, some important questions still remain: What is it? Is it substantively different from other work attitudes? Does it help us predict employee performance above and beyond other, more well-established constructs?
Christian, Garza, and Slaughter recently took on the task of answering these questions
using meta-analytic methods. They began by first defining engagement as having three
unique aspects: (a) a focus on the work tasks rather than on the aspects of the job, (b) a comprehensive rather than an isolated investment of an individual’s personal resources into the work, and (c) an investment of resources that represents “a relatively enduring state of mind.” Overall, Christian et al. argued that engagement, opposed to other job attitudes, represents how connected an individual feels to the tasks necessary for successful completion of his or her job on a day-to-day basis.
Thinking about age in employee engAGEment…
Topic: Job Attitudes, Diversity, Motivation
Publication: Journal of Organizational Behavior (JAN 2011)
Article:Predicting employee engagement in an age-diverse workforce.
Authors: J. B. James, S. McKechnie, & J. Swanberg
Reviewed by: Charleen Maher
A large portion of today’s working population consists of the Baby Boomer population. Although these individuals are becoming eligible for retirement, many remain employed for various reasons. As a result, research has picked up on the importance of examining job attitudes of older workers.
The present article examined differences in employee engagement among five age groups: emerging adults (age 24 and older), settling-in adults (25-39), prime-working years (40-54), approaching retirement (55-65), and retirement eligible (66 and older). Overall, the retirement eligible group reported the highest average engagement while the emerging adults reported the lowest average engagement.
The authors also examined job quality factors as predictors of engagement among each of the age groups. Supervisor support and recognition, schedule satisfaction (having flexibility and autonomy in one’s work schedule), and job clarity were significant predictors of employee engagement for all age groups. Specifically, supervisor support and recognition had the largest effect on employee engagement for the two older groups, approaching retirement and retirement-eligible.
