Web‐based corporate,social and video recruitment media: Effects of media richness and source credibility on organizational attraction

Despite the high use of social media in graduate recruitment campaigns, research has yet to examine how it compares with websites and videos in influencing job seekers’ reactions. Drawing from recruitment, media richness, and source credibility theories, we proposed that the media used to present recruitment material would influence organizational attraction via perceptions of media richness and source credibility. Results of a between‐subjects study, with 342 participants holding or working toward a degree, show that when a standardized recruitment message is delivered via Facebook, video, or text‐based webpage media, there are significant between‐media richness and source credibility differences. Furthermore, particular media richness features were positively related to perceptions of source credibility, and source credibility perceptions were positively related to organizational attraction. Implications for organizations’ online recruitment campaigns are discussed.     

E‐Recruitment: A study into applicant perceptions of an online application system

Little is known about applicant reactions to web‐based recruitment and selection procedures. This study examines applicant perceptions of web‐based procedures, based on a field study among 1360 applicants to a multinational financial services organization applying for jobs in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and Belgium. With respect to the personal characteristics it was found that external (as opposed to internal), Belgian (as opposed to Dutch), and Internet savvy (as opposed to less savvy) candidates were more satisfied with the online application procedure and its features. However, it was found that features of the website, perceived efficiency and user‐friendliness, were by far the most important determinants of applicant satisfaction. Implications for organizations and future research on E‐recruitment are discussed.     

Monitoring the Opinion of the Crowd: Psychological Mechanisms Underlying Public Opinion Perceptions on Social Media

Social media technologies offer several features that allow users to monitor other people’s opinions on public issues. Initial research showed that user-generated content can shape recipients’ perceptions of the majority opinion on societal problems. Still, it remains largely unexplored under which circumstances people gauge other users’ opinions through social media and whether perceived opinion climates affect people’s opinions and communication behavior in these environments. Results of a two-session experiment revealed that people’s fear of isolation sharpens their attention toward user-generated comments on Facebook which, in turn, affect recipients’ public opinion perceptions. The latter influenced subjects’ opinions and their willingness to participate in social media discussions. These findings are discussed in light of the spiral of silence theory and the social projection hypothesis.     

Group Communication During Resource Dilemmas: 4: The Effect of Group Size

Previous theory and research implies that increasing the size of groups facing resource dilemmas results in poorer outcomes, but no previous study has allowed for communication among group members. The present study relates group size with communication content, task outcomes, and participant perceptions of their experience. With communication, actual group size was irrelevant; to the extent that groups chose to cooperate, outcomes were more equal within groups and participants had more positive perceptions. Greater information exchange and negative maintenance talk was related with less equal outcomes and more negative perceptions; more discussion relevant to specific strategy was associated with more equal outcomes. Findings are instructive concerning the genesis and role of group cooperation.     

So what do you think of the organization? A contextual priming explanation for recruitment Web site characteristics as antecedents of job seekers’ organizational image perceptions

Although job seekers’ organizational image perceptions can influence attraction to recruiting organizations, little is known about how these perceptions are formed or modified. To address this research gap, the authors drew from research in social cognition theory and demonstrated that recruitment Web site characteristics influenced the development and modification of organizational image perceptions via a priming mechanism. Results of two studies showed that having technologically advanced Web site features and depicting racially diverse organizational members served as contextual primers and influenced participants’ organizational image perceptions. Results also revealed that participants’ familiarity with recruiting organizations moderated the effects of these Web site characteristics on several dimensions of organizational image such that effects were weaker for more familiar organizations. These findings suggest that organizations can manage job seekers’ organizational image perceptions through strategic recruitment Web site design; however, such attempts may be tempered by job seekers’ familiarity with the organization.     

The influence of ethnic identity on perceptions of organizational recruitment

This study adapts an information processing perspective and incorporates the construct of ethnic identity (Phinney, 1990) into research on perceptions of one method of organizational recruitment, the use of recruitment brochures. Based on theory in developmental and cross-cultural psychology, we posited ethnic identity moderates the impact of recruitment brochures on recruitment outcomes (i.e., inferences about the organization and job pursuit intentions). Quantitative and qualitative data provided moderate support for this proposition. Regardless of race, individuals with higher levels of ethnic identity made more positive socio-emotional inferences about the nature of work life in an organization (i.e., the organization’s treatment of employees and the relationships among employees) and had greater job pursuit intentions when recruited with a brochure that contained a diversity initiative than when recruited with a brochure without a diversity initiative.     

Investigating the Effects of Applicant Justice Perceptions on Job Offer Acceptance

Drawing on extant recruitment and organizational justice theory, this research examines the effects of justice perceptions on job acceptance decisions across 2 samples (n = 332 and 2,974) of applicants to jobs within the U.S. military. More specifically, we examine justice–job offer acceptance relations relative to other pertinent recruitment predictors including, organizational image, familiarity, person–organization (P–O) fit perceptions, and recruiter behaviors. Findings from both studies support the importance of justice perceptions in influencing job offer acceptance. Fairness perceptions accounted for 29.37% and 19.22% of the unique variance in job offer acceptance, in Studies 1 and 2, respectively. The results of this research provide much needed empirical evidence to the scant literature on actual job acceptance and highlight important practical implications for employers.     

Body dissatisfaction in married women: the role of spousal influence and marital communication patterns

Family factors and the media have been established as determinants of body satisfaction, yet little research has looked at the contribution of spousal influence in body dissatisfaction. Marital quality and satisfaction can be a protective factor in the health of women, while high rates of criticism have been associated with poorer health outcomes. The present study investigated the relationship between perceptions of family and spousal factors and body dissatisfaction in married women. Additionally, the impact of marital communication was investigated. Seventy-seven married women completed self-report questionnaires assessing familial body-focused comments, spousal evaluation of a wife’s body, marital communication patterns, and body dissatisfaction. After controlling for weight status, women’s perceptions of familial body-focused comments and spousal evaluation emerged as significant predictors of body dissatisfaction. It was also found that more destructive communication patterns moderated the effect of perceived spousal evaluation on body dissatisfaction. This study provides some context for understanding the impact of specific influences on women’s body dissatisfaction.     

Too Good to Be True? Using Realism to Enhance Applicant Attraction

Research that has examined the effects of realism on pre-hire outcomes has suggested that it does not harm recruitment. We present evidence that realistic information may, under certain circumstances, increase organizational attractiveness. Participants (N = 225) evaluated one of two recruitment messages, positive only or realistic, and reported their perceptions of organizational attractiveness, source credibility, and perceptions of the challenge inherent in the job. Consistent with our hypothesis, the realistic recruitment message led to higher organizational attractiveness than the positive only message. Contrary to expectations, however, this effect appears to be mediated through perceptions of challenge in the job, rather than perceptions of source credibility.     

Reactions to Recruitment Web Sites: Visual and Verbal Attention, Attraction, and Intentions to Pursue Employment

Purpose

We investigate job seeker visual and verbal attention, and perceptions regarding company web sites in the applicant generation phase of recruitment.

Design/Methodology/Approach

We report three studies using varied methodological approaches including eye-tracking, verbal protocol analysis (VPA), and survey data.

Findings

Eye-tracking results suggest Web-based job seekers focus visual attention on information containing hyperlinks and on text more than graphic images or navigation tools. VPA suggests Web-based job seekers focus verbal attention on content more than design, especially job opening information. Survey results suggest content, design, and communication features are all related to applicant attraction. Design explains the most incremental variance in web site evaluation, while perceptions of communication features explain the most incremental variance in attitude toward the organization and intentions to pursue employment.

Implications

We provide multi-method evidence concerning features that attract applicant visual and verbal attention, and influence attraction and intentions to pursue employment. The findings also provide practical implications for designing recruitment web sites.

Originality/Value

We report three methodologically distinct perspectives on an important and timely issue: Web-based recruitment. We are aware of no other psychomotor eye-tracking studies in the recruitment literature, and only one other VPA. Combining multiple methods in this way provides unique perspective.     

Relationships Between Politics, Supervisor Communication, and Job Outcomes

Perceptions of organizational politics (POPs) are ever present and have been shown to have many negative effects. This study investigated the influence of perceptions of politics on the consequences of turnover intentions and job frustration; 2 important outcomes in the organizational politics literature. Additionally, this study examined the role of supervisor communication as a moderator of these relationships. We investigated the relationships in a sample of 246 alumni from a midwestern university who were working in a wide range of occupations. Our results provide support for positive associations between POPs and intentions to turnover and job frustration; supervisor communication moderated these relationships. Managerial recommendations and suggestions for future research are offered.     

Information Suppression and Status Persistence in Group Decision Making The Effects of Communication Media

This experiment investigated the conditions under which a member with information critical for making the best group decision will positively influence the group's final choice. The impact of two factors on group decision quality, information exchange, and perceptions of influence was examined: (a) status differences among members (equal-status vs. mixed-status groups) and (b) communication media (face-to-face vs. computer-mediated communication). Three-person groups were composed such that the critical information required to make the best decision was given only to the low-status member in the mixed-status groups and randomly assigned to one member in the equal-status groups. The results indicated that the mixed-status groups made poorer decisions and made fewer references to critical information than equal-status groups, regardless of the communication medium. Computer-mediated communication suppressed information exchange and the perceived influence of group members, suggesting that the relation between status and communication media is more complex than proposed in past research.     

Virtual team leadership: The effects of leadership style and communication medium on team interaction styles and outcomes

This study investigated the effects of transformational and transactional leadership styles and communication media on team interaction styles and outcomes. Teams communicated through one of the following three ways: (a) face-to-face, (b) desktop videoconference, or (c) text-based chat. Results indicated that transformational and transactional leadership styles did not affect team interaction styles or outcomes; that the mean constructive interaction score was higher in FTF than videoconference and chat teams, but not significantly higher in videoconference than chat teams; and that teams working in richer communication media did not achieve higher task performance than those communicating through less rich media. Finally, mean team cohesion scores were higher in FTF and videoconference than chat teams, but not significantly higher in FTF than videoconference teams. These results provide further evidence that communication media do have important effects on team interaction styles and cohesion.     

Linking Justice, Performance, and Citizenship via Leader–Member Exchange

While organizational justice continues to garner attention by researchers, why perceptions of justice influence a variety of outcomes is still in need of explanation. In this paper, we examine one type of social exchange process that may provide a better link between perceptions of fairness and important organizational outcomes. Specifically, we examine how leader–member exchange (LMX) affects the relationship between employee perceptions of fairness and supervisor-rated performance and organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs). Data from our study demonstrates that LMX fully mediates the relationship between interactional justice and performance and OCBs. In addition, the results demonstrate that LMX moderates the relationship between both distributive and procedural justice and OCBs.     

Object-Subject Distance and the Third Person Perception

Two studies demonstrate that third person perceptions are less dependent on ego-defensive mechanisms than previously thought. It is argued that people use intuitive notions of media dependency when they estimate the influence of media on different groups of others. Our results show that when the "others" that are the object of media influence are close to the subject of communication, people perceive less influence. This finding joins new research contrasting with the idea of the "social distance corollary."     

Impact of consumers' corporate social responsibility‐related activities in social media on brand attitude,electronic word‐of‐mouth intention,and purchase intention: A study of Chinese consumer behavior

This study examines how consumers' corporate social responsibility (CSR)‐related activities in social media affect their responses to brands. We defined consumers' CSR‐related activities in social media as the extent to which consumers use social media to engage in CSR communication by companies. An online survey was conducted to examine social media users in China, the largest consumer market in today's global economies. This study developed a theoretical model and empirically tested the relationships between consumers' CSR‐related activities in social media, identification with the brand, and three consumer behavior outcomes: electronic word‐of‐mouth (eWOM) intention, brand attitude, and purchase intention. The results suggested that consumers' CSR‐related activities in social media significantly impacted eWOM intention and purchase intention through enhancing identification with the brand and positive brand attitude. This study provides important insights on consumer behavior and CSR by investigating social media, an important and emerging marketing platform. Moreover, this study fills in the research gap about the association between consumers' CSR‐related activities in social media and their responses to brands. Theoretical and managerial implications for CSR strategies in social media are discussed.     

A Model of the Perceived Competence of Conflict Strategies

This study examines how strategic communication is linked to specific relational features. We hypothesize that perceptions of a communicator's competence mediate the effects of conflict strategies on the relational outcomes measured by trust, control mutuality, intimacy, and satisfaction. The components of competence were specific and general appropriateness, effectiveness, and global competence; these were included in LISREL analyses to investigate How the variables conflict, competence, and relational outcomes were linked. Participants reported on their partners’ conflict strategies, their own perceptions of the partner's competence, and relational variables. The results reveal that integrative strategies were positively linked to competence, whereas distributive and avoidant strategies were negatively linked to competence. The results support the view that competence perceptions mediate the link between conflict messages and relational outcomes.     

Nobody's perfect: A qualitative examination of African American maternal caregivers’ and their adolescent girls’ perceptions of body image

Using semi-structured interviews, we explored African American maternal caregivers’ and their adolescent girls’ (N = 25 dyads) perceptions about the adolescent's body using Grounded Theory. Caregivers and adolescent girls (M_age = 13.42) were asked what the adolescent girls liked most/least about their bodies and how peers and media may affect adolescent girls’ perceptions. While some adolescent girls reported overall body satisfaction, others described features they would like to change. Belief in God, body acceptance, and appreciation for average/moderate features helped the adolescent girls maintain their positive body image. The body-related messages that adolescent girls received from caregivers and peers included compliments, pressure to lose weight, teasing, and advice. Adolescent girls also reported being either influenced by or skeptical of the images presented in the media. Programs that promote caregiver–adolescent communication about body perceptions and that build on the adolescent girls’ media skepticism may prove useful for their health-related attitudes and behaviors.     

时间视角下的组织公正研究

组织公正的动态研究是在时间视角下分析组织公正的变化及其影响。根据研究中不同的时间跨度,可将该领域研究分为短期公正变化与长期公正变化研究。短期公正变化研究主要分析公正事件在日层次上的变化对组织内个体的影响。长期公正变化则分析组织内个体过往的公正经历如何影响他们当前的心理与行为。研究主要从自我调节资源的变化、长时社会交换、不确定管理及社会认知角度解释公正的动态影响。未来可从公正动态变化的特征、前因机制及其差异化影响机制开展研究。