Psychological Climate,Organizational Commitment and Morale: Implications for Army Captains' Career Intent

The purpose of this research was to examine how work experiences contribute to junior officers' intentions to leave the Army. Specifically, we hypothesized that psychological climate perceptions have direct and indirect effects on intent to leave through affective commitment and morale and that affective and continuance commitment interact to predict intent to leave the Army. The sample for this study was 649 captains who responded to an Army-wide survey, the Fall 2002 Sample Survey of Military Personnel. Results demonstrate support for full mediation, indicating that psychological climate impacts intent to leave the Army by influencing captains' affective commitment and morale. The psychological climate dimension of leadership had the largest impact on affective commitment, morale, and intent to leave the Army. Affective commitment did not interact with continuance commitment to predict intent to leave. Implications for Army retention policies and leadership are discussed.     

Employee recognition: A procedure to reinforce work attendance

An employee recognition program to improve work attendance was conducted for one year in 1986 as part of a 3-year study using the awarding and posting of attendance certificates as the primary method of employee recognition. Compared to sick leave usage during 1985, those employees in the recognition group decreased their use of sick leave by 28%. In 1987, the year following the end of the recognition program, the average sick leave returned to a level higher than the 1986 level. In addition, the sick leave of a nonintervention control group of employees showed a sequential increase each year from 1985 to 1987, with their use in 1986 being 16% greater than those employees in the employee recognition group.     

Effects of cognitive behavioural therapy and return-to-work intervention for patients on sick leave due to stress-related disorders: Results from a randomized trial

The aim of this study was to evaluate specific effects for patients with adjustment or exhaustion disorder, the Stress subgroup (n = 152), regarding symptom severity and sick leave after CBT, a return-to-work intervention (RTW-I), and a combination of them (COMBO), using data from a randomized trial. In the original study, primary care patients on sick leave (N = 211) were randomized to CBT (n = 64), RTW-I (n = 67), or COMBO (n = 80). Blinded Clinician Severity Rating (CSR) of symptoms and sick leave registry data were primary outcomes. Subgroup analyses showed that for the Stress subgroup, CBT led to greater reduction of symptoms than RTW-I posttreatment, but COMBO did not differ from CBT or RTW-I. Regarding sick leave, there was no difference between treatments in the Stress subgroup. An exploratory analysis of the treatment effects in a subgroup of patients with depression, anxiety or insomnia indicates that RTW-I reduced sick leave faster than CBT. We conclude that CBT may be promising as an effective treatment of stress and exhaustion disorder.     

Is no feedback perceived as a risk in online reviews?

Online reviews are critical in consumer decision-making regarding making online purchases. Given that reviews allow consumers to leave personal feedback about a product or service, it is unclear why some choose not to. This study is an examination of whether consumers tend to perceive no feedback as a sign of risk in online product listings along with the effects of no feedback on purchase intention. Regulatory focus theory is also applied to elucidate the differences in perceived risk between offerings with either high or low numbers of transactions accompanied by no feedback. Through online survey, data were gathered with 450 participants who had used any online marketplaces within 3 months. Consumers with a focus on both prevention and promotion perceive higher risk when there are many transactions with no feedback (high number of no-feedback condition), whereas consumers with a promotion focus perceive significantly lower risk when there are few transactions with no feedback (low number of no-feedback condition). From the analyses of regression and structural equation modeling, perceived risk negatively affected purchase intention in both the high and low number of no-feedback condition. Also in both the promotion and prevention focus groups, purchase intention is significantly higher in the low no feedback condition than the high no feedback. This study's findings confirm that consumers perceive offerings with high no feedback as high risk.     

Citizenship and withdrawal in the workplace: relationship between organizational citizenship behavior, intention to leave current job and intention to leave the organization

This study investigates the relationship between organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) and employee intention to leave the organization and current job using a sample of French employees. A survey was sent to 1,200 alumni of a business school in France. Participation in the study was voluntary. The participants were 355 working adults with French citizenship. This paper provides several interesting findings. While no relationship was found between altruism and intention to leave both the organization and the current job, sportsmanship, civic virtue and helping others emerged as the strongest predictors of intention to leave the organization and intention to leave the current job. Results are discussed.     

Leader–member exchange and turnover before and after succession events

We conducted two studies that investigated the role of leadership succession as a moderator of the relationship between LMX and turnover in organizations. In a sample of 330 employees in 45 veterinary hospitals, high-LMX employees were less likely to leave the organization prior to a succession event but in nine hospitals that experienced a succession event, high-LMX employees were more likely to leave than low-LMX employees following the event. In the second study, we used a between subjects repeated measures simulation of leadership succession in a survey of 496 employed adults across different organizations. We found LMX is predictive of affective and cognitive reactions to succession events, and that these reactions mediate the relationship between LMX and turnover intentions after a simulated succession event. We discuss the implications of finding that succession events can be disruptive to organizations and groups because high-LMX employees may subsequently leave.     

Citizenship and Withdrawal in the Workplace: Relationship Between Organizational Citizenship Behavior,Intention to Leave Current Job and Intention to Leave the Organization

ABSTRACT

This study investigates the relationship between organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) and employee intention to leave the organization and current job using a sample of French employees. A survey was sent to 1,200 alumni of a business school in France. Participation in the study was voluntary. The participants were 355 working adults with French citizenship. This paper provides several interesting findings. While no relationship was found between altruism and intention to leave both the organization and the current job, sportsmanship, civic virtue and helping others emerged as the strongest predictors of intention to leave the organization and intention to leave the current job. Results are discussed.     

Intimacy motivation and psychosocial adjustment: a longitudinal study

Longitudinal data of 57 middle-aged men from the Grant Study Adult Development were analyzed in terms of nine indices of psychosocial adjustment and four social motives: achievement, power, affiliation, and intimacy motivation. The Thematic Apperception Test (TAT), administered in 1950-52, was scored for the four motives. Psychosocial adjustment, determined by ratings made primarily with reference to life history data gathered between 1950 and 1967, was comprised of scores on income level, occupational promotion, occupational enjoyment, days of sick leave, marital enjoyment, regular vacations, pastimes with friends, drug or alcohol misuse, and psychiatric visits. High intimacy motivation at age 30 was significantly associated with better adjustment 17 years later. The results are discussed in terms of contemporary theories of psychosocial adaptation.     

The Effect of Employee Assistance Services on Reductions in Employee Absenteeism

Personal and work-related stressors experienced by employees can result in substantial costs to employers in the form of employee absenteeism. Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) provide an important vehicle to assist employees with behavioral health issues, personal concerns, and work-related problems that impact employee absenteeism. This study tested the impact of EAPs on reducing employee absenteeism utilizing a well-matched control group and human resource timecard data. The study recruited employees from 20 areas of state government and used a prospective, quasi-experimental design with propensity score matching. EAP (n = 145) users were matched to non-EAP (n = 145) users on baseline demographic, psychosocial, and work-related characteristics that differentiate the groups. Hours of sick time recorded were provided by human resource offices. Differences in sick leave usage were tested using mixed model repeated measures. A steeper decline in sick leave usage for EAP than non-EAP employees was found, with estimates of 4.8 to 6.5% fewer hours lost per month to illness. Further analysis found that EAP services were most effective in helping clients move from moderate to low levels of sick leave rather than in reducing sick leave for those experiencing chronic absenteeism. Research on the effectiveness of EAPs rarely utilizes well-matched control groups and frequently relies on self-reported outcomes. Using an objective measure of work time lost, this study provides empirical evidence that users of EAP services tend to reduce their absenteeism at a faster pace than non-EAP users experiencing similar challenges to maintaining productivity.     

Testing multiple motives in feedback seeking: The interaction of instrumentality and self protection motives

Research indicates that information received from feedback seeking is valuable for both individual and organizational outcomes. Previous research examining the feedback seeking process has consistently suggested that individual's feedback behaviors are directly influenced by three motives. Specifically, individuals are instrumentally motivated to obtain valued information but are also motivated to protect and/or enhance their ego and to protect others' impressions of them (Ashford, Blatt and VandeWalle, 2003). The current study simultaneously examined these motives by testing the interactive effects of them on feedback seeking behavior. As predicted, they did significantly interact and the results present a deeper understanding of these motives and how employees weigh various factors in deciding whether to seek feedback within the organization.     

Psychosocial Functioning in Children and Adolescents with Gastrointestinal Complaints and Disorders

The current study examined the prevalence and presentation of psychosocial symptoms in pediatric patients and their parents presenting for first time appointments at a gastroenterology (GI) clinic compared to healthy controls (HC). One hundred GI patients, aged 8-17 years, and their mothers were compared to 100 age- and gender-matched HC on measures of child and parental behavioral/psychosocial functioning, depression, and anxiety. Results revealed significant correlations between mother- and child-reported internalizing behaviors and psychological symptoms. Significant group differences were observed in internalizing problems, adaptive and social skills, and leadership competency, as well as parental interpersonal sensitivity, depression, phobic anxiety, and number of psychological symptoms. GI patients are at increased risk for psychosocial and social dysfunction compared to healthy peers. Psychosocial factors should be considered when assessing patients in GI clinics. Patients might benefit from treatment plans that involve adjunctive behavioral intervention to assist patients in managing their conditions.     

Responding to JCAHO standards: everybody's business.

At this stage, JCAHO [Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations] site visitors simply want to know how the institution plans to respond to the organization ethics standard. In the near future, however, they will expect data on how ethical issues have been addressed that faced the organization in marketing, billing, managed care contracts, and so on. Pointing to an organizational code of ethics will not be enough. Examples of leadership utilizing the processes of the committee or an appropriate consultant or group, to the ends of education, policy studies, and consultation on specific choices will meet the standard. Organizations that evade or choose not to supply data along these lines will presumably be negatively evaluated. Noncompliance presumably means a risk to accreditation. The message to the clinical ethics committee is a serious one. We must engage in the regional planning and organization needed to provide education and training needed by ethics committees for these two tasks, within the constraints of realism, that is, that these are requirements that are primarily expected of the clinical community and the organizations that provide care to patients.     

Universal parent support groups for parents of adolescents: Which parents participate and why?

Leader‐led parent support groups, offered universally to parents of adolescents, are increasingly common, yet little is known of the parents who use this support. The study presented here explored the characteristics of parents of 10‐ to 17‐year‐olds (N = 192) who had enlisted in universal support groups and their reasons for enrollment. Sociodemographic factors (parents’ country of origin, educational level, long‐term sick‐leave or unemployment, and marital status) were compared to the general population (Statistics Sweden, 2012 ) and parents’ psychological health and children's psychiatric symptoms were compared to a control group (the BITA study). Results showed that support group parents reported more psychosocial difficulties, such as higher frequency of long‐term sick‐leave or unemployment, more symptoms of anxiety and depression and more psychiatric symptoms in their children than parents in general. While about a fifth of the parents had problem‐oriented (targeted) reasons for enrollment, most parents had general (universal) reasons. Thus, the universal approach does seem to reach its intended recipients.     

Toward an Inductive Theory of Stayers and Seekers in the Organization

This study takes a person-centered approach to enhance our understanding of job search and intentions to leave among currently employed individuals. Four categories of seekers and stayers in the organization were identified based on their unique patterns of turnover intentions, behaviors, and reasons: Embedded Stayers, Detached Stayers, Dissatisfied Seekers, and Script-Driven Seekers. We theorize that these prototypes are conceptually differentiated by two dimensions—the direction of action and the concreteness of plans. We also found meaningful associations between the probability of cluster membership and a variety of individual difference variables such as job satisfaction, motivational forces, and personality dispositions. Findings from the present study provide some useful insights for theory building and future empirical studies on individual differences in whether and why people intend to leave or stay in their jobs.     

中国组织情境下破坏性领导行为的诱因：一项追踪研究

破坏性领导行为的危害不容忽视, 然而, 学术界对于这一领域的探究尚处起步阶段。本研究首先在中国组织情境下, 采用质化研究与量化研究相结合的方式, 探讨破坏性领导的结构维度, 开发破坏性领导的测量量表; 然后以"管理者及其下属配对"为研究对象, 采用追踪研究设计, 收集"管理者－员工"配对数据, 运用结构方程模型、多元回归分析以及多层线性模型技术进行统计分析, 探讨破坏性领导行为的诱因。具体包括三个研究：(1)中国组织情境下破坏性领导的结构与测量研究; (2)破坏性领导行为的诱因：基于个体特质与组织情境视角的跨层次的追踪研究; (3)破坏性领导行为的诱因：基于下属特征视角的追踪研究。研究结果有助于澄清中国组织情境下破坏性领导的内涵与维度结构, 识别与测量中国组织情境下的破坏性领导行为, 揭示个体特质对破坏性领导行为的影响效应, 探明诱发破坏性领导行为的组织情境因素和下属特征因素。     

Leader Behavior,Work-Attitudes,and Turnover of Salespeople: An Integrative Study

Data were collected from the national field sales force of a major consumer goods manufacturer. The study develops a structural model of salespeople's perceptions of their supervisors' behaviors (i.e., leadership consideration and leadership role clarity), and the influence of supervisors' behaviors on the sales force's role perceptions, job anxiety, job satisfaction, propensities to leave and actual turnover. The study integrates previous research regarding sales force turnover to form the underpinning for the relationships between the constructs, and finds empirically that sales managers' leadership behaviors directly and indirectly influence job satisfaction, which influences salespeople's propensity to leave the organization and actual turnover.     

Correspondence of back pain patients' self-reports of sick leave and Swedish National Insurance Authority register

While self-reports of sick absenteeism days are often practical for research, it is not clear how accurate these reports are. 192 Swedish participants recorded the number of days they had been off work for all illnesses, as well as for back pain specifically, for each month during the past 6 mo. These data were then compared to records from the National Insurance Authority in Sweden. The similarity between the data sets was very high, with the correspondence for those reporting 0 to 30 days off being 98%. For those with more than 30 days of self-reported sick leave, the correspondence was 81%, but the reason for the discrepancy may have been a lack of clarity in the question. It is concluded that self-reports correspond well with recorded data and that their use in research is justified.     

Leader self-sacrifice and leadership effectiveness: The moderating role of leader self-confidence

The present research examined how self-sacrificial leadership predicts leadership effectiveness as a function of leader’s display of self-confidence. Results from a scenario experiment, a laboratory experiment, and a cross-sectional survey yielded consistent evidence that the effects of both leadership elements are stronger in conjunction than on their own. Moreover, the experimental studies also showed that the interactive effect on leadership effectiveness was mediated by collective identification. It is concluded that more research is needed focusing on the interactions between different leadership behaviors and the psychological processes underlying these effects.