Harnessing demographic differences in organizations GUILLAUME, YVES R.F.; DAWSON, JEREMY F.; OTAYE-EBEDE, LILIAN ...
Journal of organizational behavior,
February 2017, Volume:
38, Issue:
2
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Open access
To account for the double-edged nature of demographic workplace diversity (i.e,. relational demography, work group diversity, and organizational diversity) effects on social integration, performance, ...and well-being-related variables, research has moved away from simple main effect approaches and started examining variables that moderate these effects. While there is no shortage of primary studies of the conditions under which diversity leads to positive or negative outcomes, it remains unclear which contingency factors make it work. Using the Categorization-Elaboration Model as our theoretical lens, we review variables moderating the effects of workplace diversity on social integration, performance, and well-being outcomes, focusing on factors that organizations and managers have control over (i.e., strategy, unit design, human resource, leadership, climate/culture, and individual differences). We point out avenues for future research and conclude with practical implications.
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BFBNIB, FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NMLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
This article presents a critical review of the use of cognitive ability testing for access to graduate and higher professional occupations to promote further debate and reflection in both the ...academic and practitioner community. The main contentions are that the practice of applying cognitive ability testing in these contexts has strong potential to both maintain and exacerbate social inequality in access to higher occupations and professions, and that validity evidence does not justify this to the extent that has previously been presumed. Five critical observations are examined, namely (1) evidence of adverse impact in test outcomes; (2) the tendency to position cognitive ability testing early in selection processes in high‐volume recruitment; (3) recent evidence challenging the meta‐analytic validity of cognitive ability tests; (4) weaknesses in historical primary validity studies; (5) conceptually flawed examination of differential validity evidence in the literature. Implications for practice are discussed, contrasting strategies that involve modifying selection systems that include cognitive testing, versus removing and replacing cognitive tests.
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This study presents a meta‐analysis synthesizing the existing research on the effectiveness of workplace coaching. We exclusively explore workplace coaching provided by internal or external coaches ...and therefore exclude cases of manager–subordinate and peer coaching. We propose a framework of potential outcomes from coaching in organizations, which we examine meta‐analytically (k = 17). Our analyses indicated that coaching had positive effects on organizational outcomes overall (δ = 0.36), and on specific forms of outcome criteria (skill‐based δ = 0.28; affective δ = 0.51; individual‐level results δ = 1.24). We also examined moderation by a number of coaching practice factors (use of multisource feedback; type of coach; coaching format; longevity of coaching). Our analyses of practice moderators indicated a significant moderation of effect size for type of coach (with effects being stronger for internal coaches compared to external coaches) and use of multisource feedback (with the use of multisource feedback resulting in smaller positive effects). We found no moderation of effect size by coaching format (comparing face‐to‐face, with blended face‐to‐face and e‐coaching) or duration of coaching (number of sessions or longevity of intervention). The effect sizes give support to the potential utility of coaching in organizations. Implications for coaching research and practice are discussed.
Practitioner points
Our meta‐analysis supports the positive effects of workplace coaching as an approach to employee learning and development in organizations, with a variety of criteria.
Our findings indicate that coaching was more effective when conducted by internal coaches and when multisource feedback was excluded.
Workplace coaching was effective whether conducted face‐to‐face or using blended techniques (i.e., blending face‐to‐face with e‐coaching).
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Contextually dynamic expressions of personality traits were examined in this study to understand their effects on work performance criteria. A concept of contextualized trait resources was developed ...to explain the dynamic deployment of traits across specific social contexts to deal with the demands that people face (e.g., work demands). A sample of 111 managers provided multiple contextualized ratings of the Big Five reflecting key social domains, and operationalized as role‐identities and metaperceptions, and also participated in a 1‐day assessment center (AC). Analyses showed that metaperceptions of the Big Five from the perspective of a work supervisor, and to a lesser extent metaperceptions averaged across contexts, predicted performance criteria at the AC after controlling for the effects of general ratings of the same traits. It was concluded that both the social domain, and specific interpersonal context of trait expressions are potentially informative in understanding the effects of contextually dynamic representations of personality. Implications for recruitment and selection are discussed.
Practitioner points
Personality is increasingly conceptualized in research as a dynamic system.
Personality traits are examined as dynamic across contexts in the present study.
A new concept of contextualized trait resources is developed.
Metaperceptions of traits predict assessment centre performance after controlling for general ratings.
Criterion validities for personality traits may be improved by considering contextual dynamics.
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BFBNIB, DOBA, FZAB, GIS, IJS, IZUM, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
This study examined self‐leadership, an integrative concept in organisational behaviour and psychology, that represents a person's ability to manage themselves and improve their own performance ...through a combination of behavioural, cognitive and motivational strategies, in the context of learning and development outcomes. Change in three aspects of self‐leadership (termed the Doing‐self, Thinking‐self and Energising‐self) following a short development intervention was examined in a sample of management school students in a pre‐intervention and postintervention design. The study also expanded upon the role of personality traits in moderating self‐leadership change. The data additionally provide evidence of the association of self‐leadership with learning attainment. The findings of this study underline the potential benefits of self‐leadership learning and development. Implications for theory and practice in organisations are discussed.
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DOBA, FZAB, GIS, IJS, IZUM, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
The hippocampus shrinks in late adulthood, leading to impaired memory and increased risk for dementia. Hippocampal and medial temporal lobe volumes are larger in higher-fit adults, and physical ...activity training increases hippocampal perfusion, but the extent to which aerobic exercise training can modify hippocampal volume in late adulthood remains unknown. Here we show, in a randomized controlled trial with 120 older adults, that aerobic exercise training increases the size of the anterior hippocampus, leading to improvements in spatial memory. Exercise training increased hippocampal volume by 2%, effectively reversing age-related loss in volume by 1 to 2 y. We also demonstrate that increased hippocampal volume is associated with greater serum levels of BDNF, a mediator of neurogenesis in the dentate gyrus. Hippocampal volume declined in the control group, but higher preintervention fitness partially attenuated the decline, suggesting that fitness protects against volume loss. Caudate nucleus and thalamus volumes were unaffected by the intervention. These theoretically important findings indicate that aerobic exercise training is effective at reversing hippocampal volume loss in late adulthood, which is accompanied by improved memory function.
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Innovative work behavior and personality traits Woods, Stephen A.; Mustafa, Michael James; Anderson, Neil ...
Journal of managerial psychology,
01/2018, Volume:
33, Issue:
1
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
PurposeThe literature on individual differences in innovative work behavior (IWB) reveals inconsistencies in the relations of personality traits and tenure on innovation at work. To provide greater ...clarity about the effects of these antecedents, the purpose of this paper is to report a study of the moderating effects of tenure on the associations of traits and IWB, and apply a theoretical lens based on the trait-activation theory.Design/methodology/approachIn all, 146 employees of a UK-based financial institution completed measures of conscientiousness and openness, and had three aspects of IWB (idea generation, promotion, and realization) rated by their line-supervisor. All participants were on graduate training programs. Hierarchical regression analyses were used to test the moderating effects of tenure on the associations of the self-reported traits with the supervisor-rated IWB outcomes.FindingsTenure moderated the effects of conscientiousness on IWB, with highly conscientious employees being less innovative with longer tenure. Tenure moderated the effect of openness with idea generation with highly open employees generating more ideas if they were longer tenured.Practical implicationsManagement of innovation requires differentiated strategies based on the personality traits and tenure of individual employees. Implications for recruitment, socialization and development are discussed.Originality/valueThis is the first study to examine empirically the interactions of traits and contextual factors (i.e. organizational tenure) on IWB, framed around a strong theoretical foundation (i.e. trait activation theory). The study also makes notable contributions by measuring innovative behavior using a supervisor-rated and multidimensional approach.
We present a targeted review of recent developments and advances in digital selection procedures (DSPs) with particular attention to advances in internet-based techniques. By reviewing the emergence ...of DSPs in selection research and practice, we highlight five main categories of methods (online applications, online psychometric testing, digital interviews, gamified assessment and social media). We discuss the evidence base for each of these DSP groups, focusing on construct and criterion validity, and applicant reactions to their use in organizations. Based on the findings of our review, we present a critique of the evidence base for DSPs in industrial, work and organizational psychology and set out an agenda for advancing research. We identify pressing gaps in our understanding of DSPs, and ten key questions to be answered. Given that DSPs are likely to depart further from traditional non-digital selection procedures in the future, a theme in this agenda is the need to establish a distinct and specific literature on DSPs, and to do so at a pace that reflects the speed of the underlying technological advancement. In concluding, we, therefore, issue a call to action for selection researchers in work and organizational psychology to commence a new and rigorous multidisciplinary programme of scientific study of DSPs.
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Within the context of the conservation of resources model, when a resource is deployed, it is depleted – albeit temporarily. However, when a ‘key’, stable resource, such as Conscientiousness, is ...activated (e.g., using a self‐control strategy, such as resisting an email interruption), we predicted that (1) another, more volatile resource (affective well‐being) would be impacted and that (2) this strategy would be deployed as a trade‐off, allowing one to satisfy task goals, at the expense of well‐being goals. We conducted an experience‐sampling field study with 52 email‐users dealing with their normal email as it interrupted them over the course of a half‐day period. This amounted to a total of 376 email reported across the sample. Results were analysed using random coefficient hierarchical linear modelling and included cross‐level interactions for Conscientiousness with strategy and well‐being. Our first prediction was supported – deploying the stable, key resource of Conscientiousness depletes the volatile, fluctuating resource of affective well‐being. However, our second prediction was not fully realized. Although resisting or avoiding an email interruption was perceived to hinder well‐being goal achievement by Conscientious people, it had neither a positive nor negative impact on task goal achievement. Implications for theory and practice are discussed.
Practitioner points
It may be necessary for highly Conscientious people to turn off their email interruption alerts at work, in order to avoid the strain that results from an activation‐resistance mechanism afforded by the arrival of a new email.
Deploying key resources means that volatile resources may be differentially spent, depending on one's natural tendencies and how these interact with the work task and context. This suggests that the relationship between demands and resources is not always direct and predictable.
Practitioners may wish to appraise the strategies they use to deal with demands such as email at work, to identify if these strategies are assisting with task or well‐being goal achievement, or whether they have become defunct through automation.
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BFBNIB, FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
In this study, we examined the associations of personality traits of the Big Five model with work engagement, and tested a theoretical model in which these associations are mediated by the positive ...state of psychological meaningfulness (perceptions that work is valuable and meaningful). In a sample of 238 UK working adults, we found that the personality facets assertiveness and industriousness were the strongest predictors of work engagement, and that both exhibited direct and indirect effects, mediated by psychological meaningfulness. Neuroticism demonstrated a marginal indirect association with engagement, again mediated by psychological meaningfulness. Our findings offered good support for our model, explaining a pathway from personality traits to engagement. Practical implications for management are discussed.
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