A three-phase model of retirement decision making

The present article organizes prominent theories about retirement decision making around three different types of thinking about retirement: imagining the possibility of retirement, assessing when it is time to let go of long-held jobs, and putting concrete plans for retirement into action at present. It also highlights important directions for future research on retirement decision making, including perceptions of declining person-environment fit, the role of personality traits, occupational norms regarding retirement, broader criteria for assessing older workers' job performance, couples' joint decision making about retirement, the impact of self-funded and self-guided pension plans on retirement decisions, bridge employment before total withdrawal from the work force, and retirement decisions that are neither entirely forced nor voluntary in nature.     

Variable pay as a risky choice: Determinants of the relative attractiveness of incentive plans

This paper presents an experimental investigation of risk preferences in the context of compensation. In five studies, participants indicated their preference between a job offering a fixed salary and one having a lower certain component but the potential to earn a higher amount contingent on performance. Results demonstrate that people are not generally risk averse in this context, as found in earlier research, but rather that risk preferences depend on the nature of the variable pay plan. In particular, in both between- and within-subjects designs, variable pay was preferred more often when incentives were based on individual rather than collective (team or organizational) performance, and participants were more optimistic about the likelihood of receiving incentives as individuals. The effects of individual differences such as self-efficacy and preference for group work were contingent on the format of the variable pay plan. Implications for designing compensation plans and employee recruitment and retention are discussed.     

Value Commitment,Resolute Choice,and the Normative Foundations of Behavioural Welfare Economics

Given the endowment effect, the role of attention in decision-making, and the framing effect, most behavioural economists agree that it would be a mistake to accept the satisfaction of revealed preferences as the normative criterion of choice. Some have suggested that what makes agents better off is not the satisfaction of revealed preferences, but ‘true’ preferences, which may not always be observed through choice. While such preferences may appear to be an improvement over revealed preferences, some philosophers of economics have argued that they face insurmountable epistemological, normative, and methodological challenges. This article introduces a new kind of true preference – values-based preferences – that blunts these challenges. Agents express values-based preferences when they choose in a manner that is compatible with a consumption plan grounded in a value commitment that is normative, affective, and stable for the agent who has one. Agents who choose according to their plans are resolute choosers. My claim is that while values-based preferences do not apply to every choice situation, this kind of preference provides a rigorous way for thinking about classic choice situations that have long interested behavioural economists and philosophers of economics, such as ‘Joe-in-the-cafeteria.’     

问题启动对跨时选择的影响研究

本研究采用2×3混合实验设计,通过控制时间距离和表征的建构水平,对不同问题启动下的跨时选择进行对比研究。实验结果显示,问题启动是影响跨时选择的重要因素,不同问题启动下的未来结果价值折扣存在显著差异。Why问题启动使个体的时间距离敏感度降低,How问题启动使个体的时间距离敏感度提高。     

Employee Stock Options: Are They Indeed Superior to Other Incentive Compensation Schemes?

Although employee stock options are gaining in popularity as a compensation plan aimed at improving work performance, there is neither theoretical nor empirical evidence that they are indeed superior to other incentive schemes, such as profit sharing and gain sharing. This paper examines, from a theoretical perspective, the possible effects of four incentive plans on employee motivation and performance: merit pay, profit sharing, gain sharing, and employee stock options. The analysis relies on two behavioral theories, Expectancy and Equity, and a conceptual financial framework. The different approaches yield incongruent predictions as to which of the four schemes can be expected to most enhance employee motivation. While the managerial theories favor stock options over profit or gain sharing, financial theory makes the case that all plans are identical in a competitive labor market, whereas if stock options are restricted and the labor market exhibits some degree of imperfection, gain and profit sharing plans may prove superior.     

Influence of prior involvement on employees' ratings

Surveys show that the majority of firms provide merit pay to outstanding employees. Despite the widespread use of merit pay programs, there is no consensus as to their effectiveness. While some plans have been successful in motivating employees to achieve higher performance, others have caused employees' dissatisfaction and discouragement. One previously unexplored area in the implementation of merit pay systems is the effect of the decision-maker's prior involvement with the employee on the decision to grant merit. The purpose of this paper was to examine whether hiring an employee leads to larger merit allocations despite evidence that the standards for merit were not met. 101 accounting students participated to assess the influence of hiring on subsequent merit allocations. Analysis indicated that prior involvement does bias ensuing merit decisions.     

What care should be covered?

The answer to the question of what health care services should be covered by a managed care plan is straightforward; the plan should cover whatever the consumer is willing to pay for. From the plan's perspective, the consumer is the payer, that is, the employer who negotiates the plan; not the individual patient whose personal preferences and interests may be quite different. Since managed care organizations contract with payers to arrange for health care services within a defined set of benefits, there is a broader question as well: Within the benefits chosen by the payer, what actually is covered? Criteria for determining "medical necessity," which managed care plans frequently use as the basis for coverage, are discussed.     

顾客攻击行为的概念、影响因素及应对策略

顾客攻击是由当时或之前接受组织服务的顾客实施的, 针对该组织员工所进行的一系列不可接受的敌意行为, 如恐吓、威胁、攻击, 并且这些敌意行为会对该组织员工的工作业绩产生消极影响。顾客攻击是工作场所攻击行为在服务业的集中体现; 本文从个体因素和情景因素两个角度分析了顾客攻击的风险因素, 从心理/情感反应、人身伤害、与工作相关的消极结果三个角度探讨了顾客攻击的消极影响; 相应的顾客攻击的应对策略包括个体应对策略和组织应对策略; 最后对当前顾客攻击行为研究的开展进行了有针对性的评价与展望。     

内隐自尊和风险偏好对大学生职业决策的影响

为研究影响大学生职业决策的影响因素和决策有效性,实验一、二分别从决策者心理特征（内隐自尊与风险偏好）和职业方案特征（框架效应与风险水平）入手,考察二者对大学生职业决策行为的影响。结果发现：内隐自尊和风险偏好的高低显著影响大学生择业倾向性;大学生对风险水平不同的职业方案的选择倾向由低到高依次为冒险、折中、保守方案;职业决策存在明显的框架效应。研究表明,大多数大学生倾向于选择保守的职业方案;高风险偏好的大学生倾向于选择冒险的职业方案;高内隐自尊大学生倾向于主动择业;积极表述的职业方案更受大学生所青睐。     

The relationship between work status congruence and work-related attitudes and behaviors

Research investigating differences in attitudes among full-time and part-time employees has a long history. Unfortunately, the empirical results have been mixed and conflicting. To resolve inconsistencies in prior research, the authors conducted 2 studies. In the 1st study, the authors developed a measure of work status congruence, which measures the degree to which employers match employee preferences for full-time or part-time status, schedule, shift, and number of hours. The authors hypothesized that a match or congruence between worker preferences and organizational staffing practices would be associated with positive employee attitudes and behaviors. In the 2nd study, the authors tested these hypotheses. The results indicate that work status congruence is positively associated with job satisfaction, organizational commitment, employee retention, as well as in-role and extra-role performance.     

Reinforcement uncertainty enhances preference for choice in humans

Under concurrent‐chains schedules of reinforcement, participants often prefer situations that allow selection among alternatives (free choice) to situations that do not (forced choice). The present experiment examined the effects of reinforcement probability on choice preferences. Preferences for free versus forced choice were measured under a condition in which participants' choices were always reinforced (reinforcement probability of 1.0) and a condition in which outcomes were uncertain (reinforcement probability of 0.5). Forty‐four college students participated and preferences were examined under a concurrent‐chains schedule of reinforcement. Participants preferred free choice under uncertain reinforcement, but a bias toward free choice was not observed when reinforcement was certain. These results align with previous findings of preference for free choice under conditions of uncertainty, but suggest that preference may be dependent upon probabilistic reinforcement contingencies in the terminal links of the concurrent‐chains arrangement. Thus, reinforcement probability is an important variable to consider when conducting similar studies on the value of choice.     

Individual differences in perception of appropriate pay differentials in the U.S.A. and Sweden

The present research investigates the relationships between demographic characteristics and employees' perceptions of appropriate pay-differentials (APD's). In order to investigate this relationship, we examined organizations in two different countries with different social philosophies. The dependent variable (APD's) is defined as what is felt and/or perceived by the individual to be the appropriate pay-differentials among positions with different responsibilities and at different organizational levels. Two different subject groups were used: 137 salaried employees from an automotive engineering company in the U.S.A., and 107 salaried employees from an engineering company in Sweden. Questionnaires constructed in English and Swedish included: (1) questions about individual demographics; (2) job factors; and (3) perception of appropriate pay-differentials using eight organizational charts. Results indicated that the influence of social philosophy, as expressed by organizational socialization processes, was limited in scope. Individual differences associated with employees' perceptions of appropriate pay-differentials should be taken into account when determining pay and compensation policies. These considerations may encourage employee participation in decision making and lead to better organizational outcomes.deceased.     

HEALTHY, WEALTHY, OR WISE: PREDICTING ACTUAL ACCEPTANCES OF EARLY RETIREMENT INCENTIVES AT THREE POINTS IN TIME

Using a sample of several thousand faculty members and multiple measures of health, wealth, and productivity, this study examines the predictors of actual acceptance of 3 successive early retirement incentive offers. Consistent with previous research, the results here suggest that poorer health, lower salary, and higher pension benefits were significantly related to early retirement decisions. In addition, the results suggest that faculty members who planned on working part time after retirement and who expected there would be no future incentive programs were more likely to accept early retirement offers, while those with higher productivity and with spouses still in the workforce were less likely to do so. Implications for future research on early retirement and for the design of early retirement programs are discussed as well.     

Effects of Two Selection Batteries on Decoy Effects in Job-Finalist Choice1

The decoy effect occurs when manipulation of an inferior option influences preferences between two superior options. Although this phenomenon has been demonstrated for choices among job finalists, it has not been tested in situations in which candidates enter the final stage of selection on uneven ground. The results of the present investigation suggest that information from the first stage of selection interacts with manipulation of the decoy's characteristics to influence choice. Specifically, the frequency with which the targeted option was chosen for a job depended on whether the target was also the highest ranked candidate entering the final stage of selection. Results also suggest significant effects of nondominated decoys on choice. Practical implications and suggestions for future research are discussed.     

运动员退役过程的心理定性分析：成功与失败的个案研究

研究采用定性分析的方法,旨在探索我国运动员退役过程中为什么有的运动员能够顺利退役,重新开创新事业,而有的运动员却不能。研究以Torregrosa等的理论模式为设计思路,采用综合个案研究设计,选取4个成功和4个失败个案,通过访谈、文献和语言分析技术,对8个运动员退役过程中的意识和行为进行剖析。结果发现运动员在退役过程中,主要在心理状态、退役意识、退役计划、自我调节、社会支持和生活满意度6个方面,反映出成功退役的运动员与失败退役的运动员之间的不同特征。成功退役的运动员通常有一个良好的退役意识。主动计划选择退役后的事业发展;退役失败的运动员则表现为对退役问题消极回避的应对行为。文章就这些发现进行了讨论,并建议了进一步定量研究的方向     

Who is and who is not willing to use online employer‐provided retirement investment advice

This study used classification tree analysis to examine who is and who is not willing to use online employer‐provided retirement investment advice. Using data from the Retirement Confidence Survey (Employee Benefit Research Institute, 2004), the study focused on who was more likely to use online retirement investment advice when it was available from their employer. Results indicated that those who were younger, those who participated in a defined contribution retirement plan, and those who made joint (with someone else in their household) personal finance decisions were more likely to use online professional retirement investment advice.     

DIVERSITY IN CHILD CARE ASSISTANCE NEEDS: EMPLOYEE PROBLEMS, PREFERENCES, AND WORK-RELATED OUTCOMES

This research examines employee background variables moderating problems with child care arrangements and variance in work-related attitudes and behaviors. Gender, household employment configuration, dependents' care profile, managerial status, and use of familial care arrangements help explain variance in child care problems, attitudes toward managing work and child care responsibilities, and the absence behavior of working parents in a public utility. The relationship between employee backgrounds and preferences for child care assistance is also examined. The study demonstrates that employees' child care needs are diverse, multi-faceted, and changing. It is suggested that organizations consider developing several packages of child care assistance policies that can be responsive to changes in the mix of employees' assistance needs and their work forces' demographics over time.     

Dominant achievement goals of older workers and their relationship with motivation-related outcomes

The aim of this study was to increase our insight into older employees' achievement motivation by examining the prevalence of dominant achievement goals among a “unique” group of 172 Dutch workers who remained active after their post-statutory retirement age. Moreover, we investigated how their dominant achievement goals were linked to motivation-related outcomes (i.e., work engagement and meaning of work). Our results showed that, relative to younger workers, a significantly higher amount of older workers endorsed dominant mastery-avoidance goals. In addition, as expected, older workers with dominant mastery-approach goals scored highest, while the workers with dominant mastery-avoidance goals scored lowest in work engagement, social and personal meaning of work. Theoretical as well as practical implications of these results are discussed.     

Moving European research on work and ageing forward: Overview and agenda

This longitudinal retrospective study shows that when the results of an organizational development intervention are fed back properly and action plans are made, factors associated with leadership and commitments to organization are enhanced. The study compared the effects of survey feedback, including the making of action plans and survey feedback without action plans, to the effects of no feedback at all on several psychosocial factors and sick leave over a 3-year period. The data were derived from 1236 individuals for whom baseline data were available and who completed a 3-year follow-up. Applied statistics revealed that the feedback action plan group reported greater improvements regarding leadership factors and commitment to the organization. The results reveal no differences between the feedback groups in regard to sick leave. There is a need for further studies, preferably with a randomized control design, on how to enhance both the psychosocial work environment and employee health and also how to reduce sick leave in the workplace.     

Employee adjustment to stress: The role of coping resources, situational factors, and coping responses

Abstract The present study was designed to examine further the stress-adjustment relationship in employees. Specifically, the relations among employees' coping resources (self-esteem, generalized control beliefs, neuroticism, and social support), their appraisals of a recent stressful event experienced at work (appraised stress, self-efficacy, and situational control beliefs), the coping strategies (problem- and emotion-focused coping) used to deal with the event, and levels of employee adjustment (psychological well-being and job satisfaction) were examined. Data were collected from 153 male and female employees in a public sector department, employed in a range of middle-management administrative activities. The data provided support for a modified version of a model that proposed that both situational appraisals and coping strategies are mediating processes in the stress-adjustment relationship. There was evidence that employees' coping responses to the recent stressful event experienced at work were related to concurrent levels of adjustment. As predicted, the use of problem-focused coping, in general, had positive relationships with the measures of adjustment, whereas the effects of emotion-focused coping were generally negative (there was, however, some evidence that the effects of coping were dependent on event controllability). There was also evidence that coping resources had both direct and indirect effects (via coping and via situational appraisals) on employee adjustment. The latter effects were most marked for generalized control beliefs and self-esteem. Situational appraisals (in particular, efficacy expectancies) also had indirect effects on employee adjustment, through their effects on coping responses.