Unwrapping the organizational entry process: disentangling multiple antecedents and their pathways to adjustment

This 4-wave longitudinal study of newcomers in 7 organizations examined preentry knowledge, proactive personality, and socialization influences as antecedents of both proximal (task mastery, role clarity, work group integration, and political knowledge) and distal (organizational commitment, work withdrawal, and turnover) indicators of newcomer adjustment. Results suggest that preentry knowledge, proactive personality, and socialization influences from the organization, supervisors, and coworkers are independently related to proximal adjustment outcomes, consistent with a theoretical framework highlighting distinct dimensions of organizational and work task adjustment. The proximal adjustment outcomes partially mediated most of the relationships between the antecedents of adjustment and organizational commitment, work withdrawal, and turnover.     

THE AVAILABILITY AND HELPFULNESS OF SOCIALIZATION PRACTICES

This study reports on the socialization practices most available to new employees and the extent to which these practices are seen by newcomers as being helpful in becoming effective organizational members. The results showed that socialization practices are differentially available to newcomers, and perceptions of their helpfulness vary. The helpfulness of various socialization practices as reported by newcomers appears to affect their feelings of subsequent job satisfaction and commitment.     

Justice and employee attitudes during organizational change: The mediating role of overall justice

IntroductionSeveral studies have investigated the mediating role of overall justice (OJ) in the relationships between specific dimensions of justice and employee attitudes. However, prior research has neglected to examine OJ during the process of organizational change, as suggested in fairness heuristic theory (FHT).ObjectiveThis study aims to replicate the results of previous studies and expand them by examining, in two contexts of organizational change implementation, the mediating role of OJ in the relationships between procedural, interpersonal, and informational justice (PJ, ITJ, and IFJ, respectively) and employee attitudes (job satisfaction, turnover intentions, and organizational commitment).MethodologyWe surveyed 537 employees experiencing a company reorganization (Study 1) and 188 employees experiencing a merger (Study 2).ResultsEach dimension of justice is related to OJ, which in turn is associated to employee attitudes. Furthermore, bootstrap results indicated that OJ mediates the effects of PJ, ITJ, and IFJ on job satisfaction and turnover intentions (in both studies), and on affective, normative, and continuance commitment (in Study 2).ConclusionOur findings show the importance of fairness during organizational change. Treating employees fairly in times of change is crucial for managers.     

Predicting OCB Role Definitions: Exchanges with the Organization and Psychological Attachment

Purpose  To investigate the relationship between trust in the organization and employees’ exchange beliefs (i.e., exchange ideology) and both psychological attachment and role definitions. Design/Methodology/Approach  A field study based on data from 204 line and supervisory employees examined the relationships between the predictors and work role boundaries. Two important mechanisms, psychological attachment (organizational commitment) and job satisfaction were examined as mediator and moderator, respectively, to the relationship between trust and exchange ideology and role definitions. Findings  Results indicate that both relation- and exchange-based variables predict enlarged roles (i.e., employees’ perceived organizational citizenship behaviors as in-role). Additionally, organizational commitment mediated the relationship between the predictor and the outcome. Job satisfaction moderated the relationship between trust and role definition. Implications  Work role boundaries are important in the contemporary workplace, where employees are oftentimes required to enlarge their behavioral set. We provide evidence for the importance of managing the relationship with the organization (through high levels of trust) and making sure employees construe their exchanges with the organization as more open. Such knowledge may help design interventions to increase employee trust, and select employees with favorable exchange ideologies. Originality/Value  This is one of the first studies examining both relationship- and exchange-based variables as predictors of role definitions, and clarifies possible mechanisms (mediation through psychological attachment) and the role of job satisfaction as moderator.     

Linking Individual Value Orientations to Employee Attitudes: An Exploratory Analysis

This study tested the relationships of individualism, power distance, and mastery orientation to 2 employee attitudes (organizational trust and organizational commitment) that are associated with employees’ psychological benefits within the organization. Results from university employees (N = 706) showed that individualism negatively, whereas mastery positively, related to trust and commitment. Power distance positively related to trust only. The moderating role of mastery was also identified. These findings can help employment or organizational counselors to appreciate value‐related factors that facilitate employees in psychologically integrating into the organization and to explore new ways for employers to foster employees’ positive attitudes.     

A Test of a Model of New Salespeople’S Socialization and Adjustment in a Collectivist Culture

Drawing largely on organizational socialization theory and its derivations, such as uncertainty reduction and sense-making theory, the authors propose and test empirically a process model of newcomer salesperson socialization in the South Korean context. The results indicate that both organization-initiated and newcomers’ proactive socialization tactics (i.e., seeking performance feedback and information seeking, building relationships and networks) significantly influence newcomers’ perceived level of accommodation (i.e., role clarity and social integration) and thus their adjustment to the new work environment (i.e., level of organizational commitment, job performance, and job satisfaction). The authors discuss the theoretical and managerial implications and present future research directions.     

Effects of scheduling perceptions on attitudes and mobility in different part-time employee types

Recent research supports the existence of a typology of part-time employees with demographic and behavioral differences. This research suggests that part-timers should not be viewed as one homogenous group and that certain part-time employee groups have fixed external role attachments, while others have more flexible attachments. Applying the part-time typology and the classification of fixed versus flexible attachments from previous research, the current study examines differences in the relationships among scheduling perceptions, job attitudes, and employment mobility for part-timers. Consistent with Partial Inclusion Theory, we found that part-time workers classified as having more fixed outside role attachments have lower organizational commitment, job satisfaction, employment mobility, work status congruence, scheduling control, and scheduling satisfaction than those classified as having more flexible outside role attachments. Additionally, the flexibility of external role attachments moderates the relationship between scheduling variables and job attitudes and employment mobility. Implications for management and research are discussed.     

The effects of newcomer proactive behaviours on socialization outcomes: A meta-analysis

Organizational researchers and practitioners have shown increasing interest in how newcomer proactivity contributes to socialization. This meta-analysis synthesizes the existing empirical research that examines the relationships between frequently performed newcomer proactive behaviours (sensemaking, relationship building, positive framing and job change negotiation) and proximal and distal socialization outcomes. Proximal outcomes include role clarity, task mastery and social integration; distal outcomes include job performance, job satisfaction, organizational commitment and turnover intention. Based on 45 independent samples (N = 11,508), proactive behaviours were found to be generally beneficial for newcomer socialization. Relative weight analyses identified positive framing as the strongest predictor of five of the seven reviewed outcomes while relationship building accounted for the greatest part of the variance in social integration. Job change negotiation was the weakest predictor of socialization outcomes. The study also explored the impact of boundary conditions, including culture, study design and sample type, on the magnitude of these effects. The paper concludes by discussing the theoretical and practical implications of these findings, along with the study's limitations and suggestions for future research.     

Supervisor Support for Employee Performance in Australia: Mediating Role of Work‐Life Balance,Job, and Life Attitude

Drawing on the job‐demands resources model, we investigated the relationship between supervisor support and employee performance and the mediating effects of work‐life balance (WLB), job and life satisfaction, and organizational commitment in a sample of 305 financial‐sector employees in Sydney, Australia. Results reveal that supervisor support is positively related to employee performance, WLB, job and life satisfaction, and organizational commitment. In turn, WLB, job and life satisfaction, and organizational commitment are positively linked to employee performance. The findings indicate a significant mediation between supervisor support and employee performance only through WLB and organizational commitment. Implications for theory and practice are discussed.     

ORGANIZATIONAL SOCIALIZATION AS A LEARNING PROCESS: THE ROLE OF INFORMATION ACQUISITION

This study investigated newcomers'information acquisition about organizational contextual domains from different sources, the relationship between information acquisition and knowledge of domains, relationships between information acquisition from sources, knowledge of domains and socialization outcomes, and shifts in these processes over time. Questionnaires assessing information acquisition strategies, knowledge and socialization outcomes were completed by 151 new organizational members across a variety of organizations, after an average of 17 weeks on the job and again several months later. Results of the study indicated that newcomers differentially relied on sources to gather information, that different sources were of varying importance for gaining knowledge, and that supervisors, coworkers, task and role mastery were related to the assimilation process of new employees. Research and practical implications of these findings are discussed.     

New Employee Development Tactics: Perceived Availability, Helpfulness, and Relationship with Job Attitudes

This study examined the availability and helpfulness of twenty new employee development tactics and their relationship with seven job attitudes. Bachelor's graduates surveyed twelve months after graduation (n = 378) reported low availability of many tactics but high perceived helpfulness. Multiple regression analyses revealed strong correlations (R = .50–.58) with satisfaction, commitment, intent to quit, psychological success, and post-decision dissonance. The most important tactic was allowing new employees to fully utilize their skills and abilities. Implications for new approaches to new employee development in organizations and for human resource professionals are discussed.     

Trans-parency in the workplace: How the experiences of transsexual employees can be improved

Very little research has focused exclusively on the workplace experiences of transsexual employees. Studies that have been done are either qualitative case studies (e.g., Budge, Tebbe, & Howard; 2010; Schilt & Connell, 2007), or aggregate transsexual individuals with lesbian, gay, and bisexual employees (e.g., Irwin, 2002). The current study focuses on this underexamined population and examines general workplace experiences, and both individual and organizational characteristics that influence transsexual employees' job attitudes. Results reveal that organizational supportiveness, transsexual identity centrality, and the degree to which they disclose to individuals outside of work all predict transsexual employees' disclosure behaviors in the workplace. These disclosure behaviors are positively related to job satisfaction and organizational commitment, and negatively related to job anxiety. These relations are mediated by coworker reactions. This research expands knowledge about diverse employee populations and offers both theory and some of the first large-scale empirical data collected on the workplace experiences of transsexual employees.     

Trans-parency in the workplace: How the experiences of transsexual employees can be improved

Very little research has focused exclusively on the workplace experiences of transsexual employees. Studies that have been done are either qualitative case studies (e.g., Budge, Tebbe, & Howard; 2010; Schilt & Connell, 2007), or aggregate transsexual individuals with lesbian, gay, and bisexual employees (e.g., Irwin, 2002). The current study focuses on this underexamined population and examines general workplace experiences, and both individual and organizational characteristics that influence transsexual employees' job attitudes. Results reveal that organizational supportiveness, transsexual identity centrality, and the degree to which they disclose to individuals outside of work all predict transsexual employees' disclosure behaviors in the workplace. These disclosure behaviors are positively related to job satisfaction and organizational commitment, and negatively related to job anxiety. These relations are mediated by coworker reactions. This research expands knowledge about diverse employee populations and offers both theory and some of the first large-scale empirical data collected on the workplace experiences of transsexual employees.     

Extra‐Role Behavior among Mexican Employees: The Impact of LMX,Group Acceptance,and Job Attitudes

The current field study took place within a Mexican work setting, consisting of 100 white‐collar employees representing a variety of professional job categories. The study investigated the direct effect of the supervisor–employee relationship (leader–member exchange) quality and group acceptance on employees' propensity to engage in activities beyond their formal work roles (extra‐role behavior). The mediating influences of the employees' job satisfaction level and organizational commitment were also taken into consideration when accounting for extra‐role behavior. Results suggest that relationships Mexican employees share with their supervisor have a direct impact on their extra‐role behavior. Social exchange, key to both extra‐role behavior and leader–member exchange, is proposed as the operating mechanism associating the two constructs. Results also indicate that organizational commitment plays a partial mediating role between leader–member exchange and extra‐role behavior.     

Une analyse du leadership laissez-faire dans les organisations : le rôle des orientations d’objectifs des employés

Supervisors’ laissez-faire leadership has been scarcely studied in the management literature. Moreover, the role of individual differences in employees’ reactions to laissez-faire leadership remains unknown. In the present study (n = 248), we examine the relationship between supervisors’ laissez-faire leadership and employees’ (affective) commitment to the supervisor and the organization, and their job satisfaction, and consider employees’ goal orientations (learning, performance, and avoidance) as moderating variables of these relationships. The results of multiple regression analyses indicate that laissez-faire leadership is negatively associated with employee commitment to the supervisor and the organization and job satisfaction. In addition, the relationship between laissez-faire leadership and commitment to the supervisor and to the organization was more negative when performance orientation was high. In contrast, the relationship between laissez-faire leadership and commitment to the supervisor and the organization and job satisfaction was less negative when avoidance orientation was high. Learning orientation exerted no moderating effect. These results reveal that the undermining effect of laissez-faire leadership varies across levels of employees’ performance and avoidance orientations. We discuss the implications of these results for future research.     

Expanding the link between core self-evaluations and affective job attitudes

The present study examined the differentiated relationship between core self-evaluations and affective job attitudes. In previous research, job characteristics were proposed to mediate this relationship. However, the facets of the job characteristics model have not yet been assessed separately. In the present study we tested which job characteristics (i.e., skill variety, task identity, task significance, autonomy, and feedback) mediate the relationship between core self-evaluations and job satisfaction as well as organizational commitment in a sample of 199 employees. Results revealed that core self-evaluations were related to job satisfaction and organizational commitment. Task significance was found to mediate these relationships. These findings are discussed with respect to the level on which people regulate their actions.     

The careless or the conscientious : Who profits most from goal progress?

Although research indicates that making progress on personal work goals predicts positive job attitudes, little is known about the role of conscientiousness in moderating this relationship. Congruence theories suggest that job attitudes will be more dependent on goal progress when employees are high in conscientiousness, whereas compensation theories suggest the opposite. We test these competing hypotheses in a three-wave, 4-month longitudinal panel study of 121 trainee teachers, who are at their early stages of career development. Conscientiousness moderated the relationships between progress on personal work goals and job attitudes according to the compensatory pattern, such that employees displayed stronger increases in job satisfaction and affective organizational commitment in response to goal progress when they were low rather than high in conscientiousness. Our results help to resolve conflicting findings about the relationship between goal progress and job attitudes and adjudicate competing hypotheses about the role of conscientiousness in moderating this relationship.     

Newcomer adjustment during organizational socialization: a meta-analytic review of antecedents, outcomes, and methods

The authors tested a model of antecedents and outcomes of newcomer adjustment using 70 unique samples of newcomers with meta-analytic and path modeling techniques. Specifically, they proposed and tested a model in which adjustment (role clarity, self-efficacy, and social acceptance) mediated the effects of organizational socialization tactics and information seeking on socialization outcomes (job satisfaction, organizational commitment, job performance, intentions to remain, and turnover). The results generally supported this model. In addition, the authors examined the moderating effects of methodology on these relationships by coding for 3 methodological issues: data collection type (longitudinal vs. cross-sectional), sample characteristics (school-to-work vs. work-to-work transitions), and measurement of the antecedents (facet vs. composite measurement). Discussion focuses on the implications of the findings and suggestions for future research.     

Employee Eldercare Responsibilities: Should Organizations Care?

The question "Should organizations be concerned with the eldercare responsibilities of their employees?" was addressed from several perspectives: (1) prevalence of need, (2) the relationships among eldercare responsibilities, satisfaction with eldercare arrangements, and workplace attitudes and outcomes, and (3) support for organizational eldercare programs. Our sample was predominately female and we defined eldercare responsibilities broadly; however, only 5 of 885 employees reported eldercare responsibilities. The majority relied on family arrangements and reported dissatisfaction with these arrangements. Dissatisfaction was related to interruptions at work, leaving early, and intent to quit. Eldercare-givers did not differ from other groups on job satisfaction and organizational commitment, but were absent from work significantly more often. There was strong employee support for employer-sponsored eldercare programs.     

THE EFFECTIVENESS OF AN ORGANIZATIONAL-LEVEL ORIENTATION TRAINING PROGRAM IN THE SOCIALIZATION OF NEW HIRES

This quasi-experimental field study examined the impact of attending a voluntary, organizational-level new employee orientation training program on organizational socialization. Six content dimensions of socialization were measured before and 1 to 2 months following orientation training for a sample of 116 new employees in a variety of occupations. Results revealed that employees attending the orientation training were significantly more socialized on 3 of the 6 socialization content dimensions (goals/values, history, & people) than employees who did not attend the training. Employees attending the orientation training also had significantly higher levels of affective organizational commitment than nonattendees, a relationship that was fully mediated by the socialization content dimensions, primarily goals/values, and history.