STUDIES OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN COMMUNICATION APPREHENSION AND SELF-ESTEEM

This paper reports research conducted as a part of a continuing program designed to provide empirical delineation of the communication apprehension construct. Five studies are reported which indicate a substantial correlation (r =?.52 to r =?.72) between oral communication apprehension and self-esteem. Results from two college student samples (N = 192 and N = 272), two samples of elementary and secondary teachers (N = 202, N = 384), and a sample of federal employees (N = 211) indicate highly consistent relationships across age groups and occupational types.     

Mindfulness Can Make You Happy-and-Productive: A Mindfulness Controlled Trial and Its Effects on Happiness,Work Engagement and Performance

A controlled trial of a Mindfulness Based Intervention (MBI) was conducted on a big Spanish public hospital. The intervention program was offered to the staff as an initiative to promote psychosocial health of workers. Nineteen employees participated of the program, which consisted in three 150-min sessions and other fifteen employees acted as a control group in a waiting-list format. Pre–Post evaluations of Mindfulness, Work Engagement, Happiness and Performance where taken and the data analysis suggests that the intervention program was successful in boosting the existing levels of all the evaluated variables. The practical implications of these findings suggest that shorter versions of traditional MBI programs could be an effective Healthy Organizational Practice to boost happiness and performance among healthcare professionals.     

A follow-up of a media-based,worksite smoking cessation program

Described an examination of data collected 2 years following the onset of a media-based, worksite smoking cessation intervention. Thirty-eight companies in Chicago were randomly assigned to one of two experimental conditions. In the inital 3-week phase, all participants in both conditions received self-help manuals and were instructed to watch a 20-day televised series designed to accompany the manual. In addition, participants in the group (G) condition received six sessions emphasizing quitting techniques and social support. In the second phase, which continued for 12 months, employees in G participated in monthly peer-led support groups and received incentives, while participants in the nongroup (NG) condition received no further treatment. Twenty-four months after pretest, 30% of employees in G were abstinent compared to only 19.5% in NG. This study is one of the few experimentally controlled worksite smoking cessation interventions to demonstrate significant program differences 2 years following the initial intervention. Our thanks to Lori Klett and Libby Yeager-Turner for their help in data collection. Work on the project was supported in part by National Institute on Drug Abuse grant DA-04406-01 and a grant from the Chicago Lung Association to the second author.     

Recruiting Through Employee Referrals: An Examination of Employees’ Motives

As previous research focused on the outcomes of employee referrals, not much is known about its determinants. This study examined employees’ intrinsic, prosocial, and extrinsic motives for encouraging versus discouraging others to apply with their employer. In a sample of 232 employees from two organizations, job satisfaction, the desire to help job seekers find good fitting jobs, the desire to help the organization find good fitting employees, and rewards predicted positive referrals. Negative referrals were motivated by job dissatisfaction and the desire to help job seekers avoid bad fitting jobs. Moreover, in the organization rewarding employees for making referrals, more positive and less negative referrals were made than in the organization without referral program.     

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.     

The Viability of Organizational Wellness Programs: An Examination of Promotion and Results

Wellness programs in contemporary organizations are increasing in number, but attendance is low and results often are difficult to track. We examined participant and program characteristics in 2 organizations that offered extensive wellness activities. One organization considered its program successful and had been in operation for 10 years, while the other organization's program ran for 2 years and ended because of a lack of funding. In the successful program, wellness program attendance showed a relationship to time employees took off for sick days, and improved fitness produced similar results. In the less successful operation, interviews were held with mangers and employees regarding promotion and program support. Suggestions are provided for future wellness programs.     

A Worksite smoking cessation intervention involving the media and incentives

This study evaluated an attempt at 38 workplaces to help employees stop or reduce their levels of smoking. In past research, worksite support groups, in combination with a media smoking cessation program and self-help manuals, were found to be effective in helping employees quit smoking. Unfortunately, recidivism was found at the follow-up evaluations. The present study replicated the results of the previous worksite smoking cessation program with support groups, a television intervention, and self-help manuals. At this postpoint, 42% of employees provided groups plus incentives were abstinent compared to only 15% who were only provided self-help materials. An important difference in this study was that there were also monthly follow-up support groups and incentives. Work settings can be a source of stress and conflict, which can precipitate relapse. At a 12-month follow-up, 26% of those participants who were provided support and incentives were abstinent compared to 16% who were only provided the self-help materials.     

Joint Effects of Corporate Positions and Prospects on Perceptions of Business Ethics Among Japanese Students: A Reflection of Collectivistic Cultures1

This study was designed to account for inconsistencies between past research indicating that executives in general are more ethically oriented than employees. The reality in Japan's society is that it has been mostly top executives who violate business ethics. Japanese students (N = 201) assumed that they were “executives” or “employees” in a manufacturing company, and their company had “high” or “low” financial prospects. The high‐prospect executives were most ethically oriented, while the low‐prospect executives were least ethically oriented. Ethical orientation did not change across the two prospect conditions for the employees. The findings are interpreted in terms of ethical dissonance created by dual pressures from acceptance of Western global ethical standards and strength of indigenous collectivistic ethical standards.     

PROMOTING REGULAR EXERCISE IN ORGANIZATIONAL FITNESS PROGRAMS: HEALTH-RELATED DIFFERENCES IN MOTIVATIONAL BUILDING BLOCKS

Hypotheses are proposed about relations among "building block" components of the motivation to attain exercise goals in an organizational fitness program, as well as about health-related individual differences in those components. The hypotheses are tested in a longitudinal field study involving questionnaire, physiological, and behavioral data from 107 participants in such a program. In support of the componential hypotheses, goal attainment was a positive function of goal commitment. Goal commitment was an additive function of goal attractiveness and goal-specific self-efficacy/perceived control. In support of the individual difference hypotheses, physiological variables were associated with work- and health-related perceived barriers to goal attainment. Employees with high health risks ranged from .5 to 1.2 SDs higher in perceived barriers than employees with low risks. Evidence suggests that for goal setting to succeed as a program intervention, managers must concentrate on reducing the perceived work- and health-related barriers to exercise participation and goal attainment, especially for employees with high health risks.     

age,experience, and learning on the job: crossing the boundaries between training and workplace

A case study of a tailor‐made apprenticeship training program for experienced employees is presented. The existing and aspiring heads, managers, and experts in a single enterprise were offered apprenticeship training for special vocational qualification in engineering. The aim of the case study was to discover participants' views about age, experience, tacit knowledge, and workplace counseling. Considering the age and experience of employees and the personalization of adult learning creates a challenge for workplace counseling.     

Stress intervention programs for reducing medical costs and accident claims in a hospital

Job stress is an important area for study among Industrial/ Organizational Psychologists. Previous studies have noted the relationship of stress to psychological, physiological and behavioral functions among employees. Little research has been done to intervene and reduce the effects of stress on workers, and to document the impact of reduced stress on corporate level outcomes. The present case evaluates a comprehensive hospital stress intervention program designed to reduce losses that have been associated with stress, such as accidents and associated medical costs. An organizational stress survey, theHuman Factors Inventory (HFI), was administered and the results compiled, followed by the implementation of organization-wide stress intervention programs. The purpose here is to assess changes from pre-intervention to post-intervention in insurance losses due to accidents.     

SELF-INTEREST,CREDIBILITY, AND MESSAGE SELECTION IN ORGANIZATIONAL COMMUNICATION: A RESEARCH NOTE

This paper reports the findings of a recent survey to determine the effectiveness of efforts by the Library of Congress to communicate with its employees about the Library's Affirmative Action program. Results indicated relatively low levels of employee information about the program. While the perceived credibility of the source was positively correlated with the amount of information absorbed, perceived self-interest in the Affirmative Action program was not.     

Employee Attitudes Toward an Internal Employee Assistance Program

To assess attitudes toward the effectiveness of an employee assistance program (EAP), a survey was sent to a random sample of 16,603 employees and adult dependents of a large, multinational company. Four groups were surveyed: employees who had used the EAP, adult dependents who had used the EAP, employees who had not used the EAP, and adult dependents who had not used the EAP. The findings indicated that both employee and adult dependent EAP users viewed the EAP more positively than did employee and adult dependent nonusers. Regression analyses indicated that factors including perception of EAP confidentiality, perceived support by other employees, and belief that the EAP would not negatively affect the career were related to positive views of the EAP among both EAP users and nonusers.     

A longitudinal assessment of the road to mental readiness training among municipal police

Police agencies increasingly implement training programs to protect mental health. The Road to Mental Readiness (R2MR) program was designed by the Canadian military to increase mental health resilience. A version of R2MR was adapted for municipal police by the Mental Health Commission of Canada (MHCC). The current research was designed to assess the R2MR program, as adapted and delivered by the MHCC, in a municipal police sample. Participants were 147 Canadian police agency employees (57% women) who received a single R2MR training session. Participants completed pre- and post-training self-report questionnaires, and follow-ups at 6 and 12 months. The questionnaires assessed mental health symptoms, work engagement, resiliency, mental health knowledge, and stigma. Multilevel modeling analyses assessed for within-participant changes over time. The results were consistent with other single session interventions; specifically, there were no significant changes in mental health symptoms, resilience, or work engagement (p > .05). There were small, but significant (p < .05), reductions in stigma at post-training that may facilitate help-seeking among police; relatedly, in open-ended response fields, participants commonly described the training as helpful for changing attitudes and improving communication. More engagement with the material may produce larger, sustained gains, but more published research is critically needed.     

Effects of resource-building group intervention on career management and mental health in work organizations: randomized controlled field trial

A resource-building group intervention was developed to enhance career management, mental health, and job retention in work organizations. The in-company training program provided employees with better preparedness to manage their own careers. The program activities were universally implemented using an organization-level, 2-trainer model with trainers from the human resources management and occupational health services. The study was a within-organizations, randomly assigned field experimental study; it investigated the impacts of the intervention on immediate career management preparedness and later mental health and intentions to retire early. A total of 718 eligible individuals returned a questionnaire in 17 organizations and became voluntary participants. The respondents were randomly assigned to either an intervention (N = 369) or a comparison group (N = 349). Those in the intervention group were invited to group intervention workshops, whereas those in the comparison group received printed information about career and health-related issues. The 7-month follow-up results showed that the program significantly decreased depressive symptoms and intentions to retire early and increased mental resources among the group participants compared to the others. The mediation analyses demonstrated that the increase in career management preparedness as a proximal impact of the intervention mediated the longer term mental health effects. Those who benefited most from the intervention as regards their mental health were employees with elevated levels of depression or exhaustion and younger employees, implying additional benefits of a more targeted use of the intervention. The results demonstrated the benefits of the enhancement of individual-level career management and resilience resources as career and health promotion practice in work organizations.     

Eyes on the road,hands upon the wheel? Reciprocal dynamics between smartphone use while driving and job crafting

Smartphones are essential tools for communications and information management in organizational settings. However, smartphone use is a risky behavior when used while driving to and from work. As work experiences have been found to influence risky commuting behaviors, we hypothesized that job crafting, i.e., a set of proactive work behaviors through which employees change their job demands and resources, influences and is influenced by risky commuting behaviors. We argued that employees' smartphone use during driving commutes is related to how employees proactively choose to transform their demands and resources at work. A quantitative diary study was designed to investigate the process linking smartphone use during driving commutes to and from work and job crafting. A sample of 128 office employees completed two short daily questionnaires for five consecutive workdays (N = 627 observations). Results from multilevel analyses showed that daily talking on the phone while driving to work was positively associated with the proactive optimization of job demands, while daily proactive pursuing of challenging stimuli at work (i.e., seeking challenges) was positively related to looking at the phone when employees drove back from work. Furthermore, on days when employees reduced their hindering job demands, they reported less frequent talking on the phone while driving back from work. Results provide practical implications for the prevention of distracted driving and other risky driving behaviors.     

The Relationship Between Immediate Turnover and Employee Theft in the Restaurant Industry

This paper explores the relationship between immediate turnover and employee theft. Study 1 examined turnover and theft data from a large fast-food chain. The results suggested a relationship between theft and turnover rates. In Study 2, a laboratory study designed to test the causation of the relationship, participants indicated that they would be more likely to steal when they were leaving in two weeks than when leaving in two years. There was no significant interaction with management control. Results suggest that managers might reduce theft by implementing specific strategies when they are aware that employees are terminating employment.     

La déférence : une norme sociale complémentaire de l’internalité en contexte de promotion professionnelle ?

Regarding evaluation, numerous researches highlighted the social valuation of the internality. From the end of 1990s, the diversification of the studied situations came to put in perspective the impact of this norm, while revealing the existence of others social norms. The present research was designed to investigate the phenomenon of social valuation of the deference in situation of annual performance review. The social valuation of the power of others was examined by two studies: one led from paradigm of autopresentation with employees and other one, conducted under legislator paradigm with Human Resources specialists (students in their final year of Institutes Business Administration). If the results indicate, in a classic way, important normative effects of the internality, the valuation of the deferential explanations is globally so obvious. These results question about the contextual expression of a norm of deference: employees and RH experts give weight to the power of others. The results show a convergent use of the internality and the power of others.     

行为经济学在养老储蓄领域的助推应用

“行为经济学之父”Richard Thaler因在行为经济学领域的突出贡献而获2017年诺贝尔经济学奖。Thaler利用行为经济学原理提出了“明日多储蓄”项目, 助推美国养老金储蓄率的提高。在初涉养老金储蓄领域时, Thaler提出采取“自动加入”的方式提高员工养老储蓄参与率; 接着提出采取“自动升级”的方式提高员工的储蓄率, 最终形成了“明日多储蓄”项目。“明日多储蓄”项目具有自由家长主义性质, 不仅能提高员工养老储蓄参与率、储蓄率, 还能优化资产投资配置。该项目产生了深远的影响：在应用层面上, 英国、新西兰等国家跟进推出了类似的养老储蓄政策; 在研究层面上, 一批后继研究者受此启发展开了个体养老金储蓄行为背后心理学机制的探索。结合中国养老储蓄三大支柱发展不平衡的现状, 我们提出可利用框架效应、心理账户、默认选项、将损失程数由双程变为单程等行为经济学手段助推中国养老储蓄的发展。国家可以考虑通过制度设计和政策制定助推全社会养老金参与率和缴纳水平的提高。     

Review of a Health Promotion Program for School Employees

Review of a health promotion program for school employees in Dallas, Texas is presented in this article. Several thousand teachers and other employees participated in a 10 week intensive intervention on health behaviors. Evaluation activities have documented important changes in several school employee health practices, in particular, increased exercise, weight loss, and blood pressure reductions. Teachers' job stress management skills apparently improved and an increase in general well-being was found. The authors' experiences in implementing, administering, and evaluating health promotion for school employeers are discussed.