The Interactive Effects of Role Conflict and Role Ambiguity on Job Satisfaction and Attitudes Toward Organizational Change: A Moderated Multiple Regression Approach

This study investigates the joint effects of both role conflict and role ambiguity on job satisfaction and three dimensions of attitudes toward organizational change, namely affective, cognitive, and behavioral tendency in a multicultural work setting. The study used a sample of 397 employees from several manufacturing and service organizations in the United Arab Emirates. Results of the moderated regression analysis revealed that role conflict and role ambiguity have no interactive effects on job satisfaction and the three dimensions of attitudes toward organizational change. Results of the moderated regression analysis revealed that role conflict and role ambiguity independently and negatively affect job satisfaction, cognitive attitudes, and behavioral tendency attitudes toward organizational change. Results further pointed out that role ambiguity affected attitude toward organizational change independently and negatively. Implications, limitations, and lines of future research were discussed.     

Role Conflict and Role Ambiguity of Employment Counselors

The relationship of role conflict and role ambiguity to job satisfaction and other variables was examined in a national sample of 506 employment counselors. A survey was mailed to USES counselors in ten states. Regression analysis showed that the 11 personal and organizational variables included in the study accounted for only a small amount of the variance in role conflict or role ambiguity. On the other hand, role conflict and role ambiguity were negatively and significantly related to job satisfaction of the counselors. These stress variables were related positively and significantly to counselors' propensity to leave the agency. Privacy of counseling facilities and time spent in counseling activities were two variables contributing most to explaining variance in role stress. Both related negatively and significantly to role conflict and role ambiguity.     

Job Satisfaction as a Mediator of the Relationship Between Job Stressors and Affective, Continuance, and Normative Commitment: A Path Analytical Approach

This article investigates the potential mediating role of job satisfaction between job stressors—namely, role overload-quantitative, role overload-qualitative, and lack of career development—as sources of stress on the one hand, and various facets of organizational commitment—namely, affective, continuance, and normative—on the other hand. A sample of 361 employees in a number of organizations in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) was used. Path analysis revealed that role overload-quantitative directly and negatively influences both job satisfaction and affective commitment and that lack of career development as a source of stress directly and negatively influences job satisfaction. Findings also suggest that job satisfaction mediates the influences of role overload-quantitative on various facets of organizational commitment. Implications, future lines of research, and limitations are discussed.     

The impact of role stress on workers' behaviour through job satisfaction and organizational commitment

Dysfunctions in role performance have been associated with a large number of consequences, almost always negative, which affect the well-being of workers and the functioning of organizations. An individual's experience of receiving incompatible or conflicting requests (role conflict) and/or the lack of enough information to carry out his/her job (role ambiguity) are causes of role stress. According to previous theory, role ambiguity and conflict decrease workers' performance and are positively related to the probability of workers leaving the organization. Job satisfaction refers to a positive evaluation of a job, while organizational commitment refers to an employee's attachment to the organization. The affective dimensions of organizational commitment and job satisfaction are considered to be important predictors of turnover intention, absenteeism, and job performance. In the literature, role conflict and ambiguity have been proposed as determining factors of workers' job satisfaction and their commitment towards the organization. The role of job satisfaction and organizational commitment were analysed as variables that should mediate between role ambiguity and conflict and employees' behaviour. The hypotheses were confirmed by means of path analysis carried out with data obtained from a sample of Spanish blue-collar workers employed by a bus company and a water supply company. Role stressors were negatively related to affective commitment mediated through job satisfaction. Affective commitment to the organization exerted a positive influence on performance and reduces the withdrawal behaviour analysed— intention to leave and absenteeism—although the strongest predictor of intention to leave was, in this study, job satisfaction.     

Mothers' subjective employment experiences and the behaviour of their nursery school children

Most research on the effects of maternal employment on children has followed the ‘maternal deprivation’ hypothesis, which focuses on differences in the behaviour of children of employed and non-employed mothers. Yet this framework may have impeded an examination of a more relevant question, namely the impact of mothers' employment-related experiences. Accordingly, this study assesses the influence of mothers' job satisfaction, job involvement and role conflict on the behaviour of their nursery school sons and daughters (n=46 and 45 respectively). The effects of maternal employment on their nursery school children were found to be mediated by (a) the nature and quality of the employment experience (i.e. positive or negative), (b) the type of child behaviour assessed, and (c) the sex of the child. Mothers' job satisfaction was positively associated with daughters' self-control and negatively with conduct problems; their role conflict was negatively related to sons' and daughters' self-control, and positively associated with sons' conduct problems and daughters' immaturity. These results support the hypothesis that the quality of the maternal employment experience influences nursery school children's behaviour.     

The determinants of employee absenteeism: An empirical test of a causal model*

LISREL estimates of the parameters of a causal model of absenteeism are reported for a sample of 425 full-time employees of a 327-bed medical centre. The model modifies and extends the conceptual framework of Steers & Rhodes (1978) and includes routinization, centralization, pay, distributive justice, work involvement, role ambiguity, conflict and overload, kinship responsibility, organizational permissiveness, job satisfaction, job involvement, organizational commitment, health status and alcohol involvement as the determinants of absenteeism. Based on self-report measures of absence frequency, significant positive direct effects of kinship responsibility, organizational permissiveness, role ambiguity and alcohol involvement, and negative direct effects of centralization, pay and job satisfaction yielded an R² for absenteeism of 21.6. Job satisfaction completely mediated the effects of routinization and work involvement, and partially mediated the effects of centralization and role ambiguity.     

工作家庭两不误为何这么难？基于工作家庭边界理论的探讨

为探讨工作家庭冲突对员工工作态度和行为倾向的影响, 以国内某大型制造企业集团位于北京、杭州、西安等地7家分公司的545名员工为样本, 采取问卷调查法在两个不同时段获取数据, 考察了角色压力(角色冲突、角色模糊和角色超载)在工作干涉家庭和家庭干涉工作这两种对偶冲突模式与员工工作满意度和离职意向之间的中介作用机制。结果显示：角色压力在工作家庭冲突与工作满意度和离职意向之间起到完全中介作用, 工作满意度在角色压力和离职意向之间起到部分中介作用。结论有助于分析工作家庭冲突的深层原因并采取恰当的干预策略, 降低工作家庭冲突对员工工作态度和行为倾向的负面影响。     

Neglected Burnout Dimensions: Effect of Depersonalization and Personal Nonaccomplishment on Organizational Commitment of Salespeople

As boundary spanners, salespeople experience stressful situations on a regular basis. Prolonged exposure to stress is known to lead to burnout. This research focuses on two neglected dimensions of burnout, namely, depersonalization and personal nonaccomplishment, specifically as they relate to salespeople. A sample of 221 French salespeople is used to explore the link between depersonalization and personal nonaccomplishment on a salesperson’s organizational commitment after controlling for emotional exhaustion, role conflict, and role ambiguity. Results from structural equation modeling indicate that role conflict positively influences depersonalization, whereas decision latitude has a negative influence. Decision latitude also negatively influences personal nonaccomplishment and role conflict moderates this relationship. Both depersonalization and personal nonaccomplishment negatively influence organizational commitment. Managerial implications are provided.     

Clergy Role Stress and Satisfaction: Role Ambiguity Isn’t Always Bad

This study examined relationships between role conflict and role ambiguity and clergy satisfaction with their church appointment. Questionnaire data obtained from 293 United Methodist clergy suggested that role conflict and role ambiguity each have a negative relationship with appointment satisfaction. However, when considered together, they displayed a more complex relationship with appointment satisfaction. Contrary to conventional wisdom, results indicated that although these stressors operate together to influence appointment satisfaction, their combined effect is not simply cumulative. That is, when role conflict is low, clergy report the most satisfaction when role ambiguity is high. However, when role conflict and role ambiguity are both high, appointment satisfaction is low. These findings are interpreted in light of clergy influence strategies. And, recommendations for remedying clergy role stress are offered. Furthermore, it is suggested that interactive models of role stressors could lead to more in-depth understanding of organizational stress as well as advances in role stress theory.     

Work-family Conflict,Work-family Culture,and Organizational Citizenship Behavior Among Teachers

Two hundred three teachers completed measures of work-family culture, work-family conflict, organizational commitment, job satisfaction, and organizational citizenship behavior (OCB). Pearson correlations indicated that OCB was related negatively to work-family conflict, and positively to work-family culture, job satisfaction, and organizational commitment. Hierarchical regression analyses indicated that work-family culture predicts work-family conflict, and that various forms of work-family conflict predict OCB. Analyses also showed that work-family culture predicts both organizational commitment and OCB, and that organizational commitment does not mediate the relationship between work-family culture and OCB. The findings support the importance for schools to foster a positive work-family culture.     

Socialization tactics and newcomer adjustment: A meta-analytic review and test of a model

One of the most popular and often studied topics in the organizational socialization literature is Van Maanen and Schein’s [Van Maanen, J., & Schein, E. H. (1979). Toward a theory of organizational socialization. In B. M. Staw (Ed.), Research in organizational behavior (Vol. 1), pp. 209-264. Greenwich, CT: JAI Press.] theory of organizational socialization tactics. Over 30 studies on socialization tactics have been conducted in the past 20 years. In this meta-analysis, we examine the relationships between six socialization tactics and various indicators of newcomer adjustment as well as the moderating effects of study design (cross-sectional vs. longitudinal), measurement scale (use of complete vs. modified tactics scale), and type of newcomer (recent graduates vs. other newcomers). Our results indicate that institutionalized socialization tactics were negatively related to role ambiguity, role conflict, and intentions to quit, and positively related to fit perceptions, job satisfaction, organizational commitment, job performance, and a custodial role orientation. We also found that the social tactics (serial and investiture) were the strongest predictors of adjustment outcomes. The results also indicated that the relationships between the tactics and outcomes were stronger for recent graduates compared to other newcomers; cross-sectional designs compared to longitudinal designs; and when Jones’ [Jones, G. R. (1986). Socialization tactics, self-efficacy, and newcomers’ adjustments to organizations. Academy of Management Journal, 29, 262-279.] complete scales were used compared to modified versions. Support was also found for a mediation model of newcomer adjustment in which role conflict, role ambiguity, and fit perceptions partially mediate some of the relationships between the socialization tactics and distal outcomes of adjustment. The implications of these results for research and practice are discussed.     

Supervisor Support and Organizational Commitment: The Role of Work–Family Conflict,Job Satisfaction,and Work–Life Balance

Building on conservation of resources theory and social exchange theory, the author examined the relationship between supervisor support and organizational commitment through work–family conflict, work–life balance, and the job satisfaction of employees working in the financial sector in Australia. The study comprised 305 employees recruited through an online survey. Results indicate that supervisor support is negatively related to work–family conflict. In turn, work–life balance and job satisfaction are negatively linked to work–family conflict. The results further show that both work–life balance and job satisfaction are positively related to organizational commitment. Theoretical and practical implications, as well as limitations, are discussed.     

Relationships of role stressors with organizational citizenship behavior: a meta-analysis

Several quantitative reviews have documented the negative relationships that role stressors have with task performance. Surprisingly, much less attention has been directed at the impact of role stressors on other aspects of job performance, such as organizational citizenship behavior (OCB). The goal of this study was to therefore estimate the overall relationships of role stressors (i.e., role ambiguity, conflict, and overload) with OCB. A meta-analysis of 42 existing studies indicated that role ambiguity and role conflict were negatively related to OCB and that these relationships were moderated by the target of OCB, type of organization, OCB rating source, and publication status. As expected, role conflict had a stronger negative relationship with OCB than it did with task performance. Finally, we found support for a path model in which job satisfaction mediated relationships of role stressors with OCB and for a positive direct relationship between role overload and OCB.     

Work-Family Conflict,Locus of Control,and Women's Weil-Being: Tests of Alternative Pathways

Abstract

The author tested for the 3 possible pathways (i.e., direct, moderator, and mediator effects) in which locus of control can influence the relationship between work-family conflict and well-being. The author predicted that work-family conflict would be negatively correlated with well-being. In a sample of 310 Malaysian employed women with families, work-family conflict was a significant predictor of both job satisfaction and distress–negatively related to job satisfaction and positively related to symptoms of distress. More important, the results provided support for the effects of all 3 pathways of control on the relationship between work-family conflict and well-being, depending on the outcome measure: For job satisfaction, locus of control had direct effects, acted as a partial mediator, and played a significant moderating role. In contrast, only the direct effect of locus of control predicted distress. The author discusses those findings with reference to the literature on work-family conflict, locus of control, and the issue of stress-distress specificity.     

The Use of Social Bases of Power in Retail Sales

Abstract

Social power theory has been used to explain how a sales manager may influence sales personnel in an industrial sales setting. The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between retail sales managers' power bases and retail salespeople's job satisfaction, role conflict, role ambiguity, work motivation, organizational commitment, and job performance. Results of the study suggest that noncoercive sources of power have greater influence on these variables than does coercive power.     

Justice and politics: mechanisms for the underlying relationships of role demands to employees' satisfaction and turnover intentions

The present study examines the influence of ambiguity and conflict surrounding employees' job specifications on their dissatisfaction and withdrawal intentions in the workplace. A model is proposed, which introduces perceptions of organizational politics and procedural justice as key mediators in the relationship between role ambiguity and conflict, and the resulting supervisor satisfaction, pay satisfaction, and intention to quit. The model is tested using a sample of 782 full‐time employees of a national retail organization. Results supported the mediating role of procedural justice and perception of politics in the relationship between role ambiguity and conflict and the three outcome measures. Implications of the findings and future research directions are discussed.     

Self‐confidence,anxiety, and post‐purchase dissonance: a panel study

This study proposes an integrated conceptual model of the antecedents of post‐purchase dissonance. Data were gathered via a two‐stage panel study among consumers who made purchase of technology items. Study results demonstrate that consumer chronic characteristics (i.e., trait anxiety and generalized self‐confidence) not only directly influence post‐purchase dissonance positively and negatively but also are mediated by consumers' temporary feelings (i.e., state anxiety and specific self‐confidence) toward a purchase situation, and then indirectly influence post‐purchase dissonance positively and negatively. Trait anxiety positively influences state anxiety and that generalized self‐confidence and specific self‐confidence negatively influence state anxiety. Furthermore, trait anxiety appears to negatively influence specific self‐confidence, and generalized self‐confidence appears to negatively influence trait anxiety and positively influence specific self‐confidence.     

Relationships Among Conflict Management Styles,Levels of Conflict,and Reactions to Work

Abstract

Relationships among (a) conflict management styles, (b) levels of conflict, (c) two general reactions to work, and (d) four types of individual outcomes experienced by employees in the United States were assessed in two studies. In Study 1, subordinates using a high-obliging style with supervisors experienced more intrapersonal conflict, supervisors using a high-integrating style with subordinates reported more intrapersonal and intragroup conflict, and low-dominating supervisors reported significantly greater intragroup conflict. In Study 2, high-integrating subordinates experienced less intrapersonal, intragroup, and intergroup conflict than low-integrating subordinates did. The results of analyses also indicated that there was a strong relationship between integrating and all six organizational outcomes. Lower job satisfaction and fewer interpersonal rewards were associated with a high-dominating style. Both integrating and compromising were positively related to interpersonal outcomes, and dominating and avoiding were negatively related to interpersonal outcomes. Finally, the more conflict individuals experienced on the job, the lower their job satisfaction and their outcomes were.     

Health and turnover of working mothers after childbirth via the work-family interface: an analysis across time

This study examined organizational levers that impact work-family experiences, participant health, and subsequent turnover. Using a sample of 179 women returning to full-time work 4 months after childbirth, we examined the associations of 3 job resources (job security, skill discretion, and schedule control) with work-to-family enrichment and the associations of 2 job demands (psychological requirements and nonstandard work schedules) with work-to-family conflict. Further, we considered subsequent impact of work-to-family conflict and enrichment on women's health (physical and mental health) 8 months after women returned to work and the impact of health on voluntary turnover 12 months after women returned to work. Having a nonstandard work schedule was directly and positively related to conflict, whereas schedule control buffered the effect of psychological requirements on conflict. Skill discretion and job security, both job resources, directly and positively related to enrichment. Work-to-family conflict was negatively related to both physical and mental health, but work-to-family enrichment positively predicted only physical health. Physical health and mental health both negatively influenced turnover. We discuss implications and opportunities for future research.