Knowledge sharing is a discretionary act of employees who might see benefits in keeping their knowledge to themselves. We focus on the other-oriented nature of knowledge sharing to outline how ...respectful leadership as an other-oriented leadership style can enhance followers’ knowledge sharing through its effect on followers’ other-orientedness. Specifically, we propose that respectful leaders increase followers’ social mindfulness—defined as the cognitive (i.e. perspective taking) and affective (i.e. empathic concern) willingness to behave in a way that increases others’ opportunities—which facilitates knowledge sharing. To test our conceptual model, we conducted a three-wave field study with 275 followers, and a multi-source field study with 83 leader-follower dyads. In line with our hypotheses, followers’ perspective taking (Study 1 and 2) and empathic concern (Study 1) mediated the positive effect of respectful leadership on followers’ knowledge sharing. Moreover, perspective taking and empathic concern possessed interactive effects in Study 1, suggesting that the relationship between respectful leadership and followers’ knowledge sharing was strongest when both components of social mindfulness were high. We discuss theoretical implications of the identified motivational pathway and elaborate on implications for practitioners who aim to facilitate knowledge sharing at work.
The major aim of this article is to investigate the effect of individual dominance and entrepreneurial family background on entrepreneurial intentions (EI). By linking the EI model with social ...learning theory and the framework of the theory of planned behaviour, endogenous as well as exogenous factors for becoming an entrepreneur are considered simultaneously. Dominance (striving for autonomy and power) is conceptually connected with established antecedents of EI. By taking into account entrepreneurial family background, occurrence of social support (i.e. subjective norms) and effects of role modelling from childhood on competence beliefs (i.e. perceived behavioural control and dominance) are studied. Based on a sample comprising 3342 students from Austria and Liechtenstein, of whom at least one of the parents was self-employed, structural equation modelling confirms subjective norms, perceived behavioural control, and dominance as antecedents of EI. In line with previous entrepreneurship research but contrary to Ajzen’s initial model, attitudes towards entrepreneurship mediated this relationship, whereas entrepreneurial family background leads to higher scores in EI and its antecedents.
Organizational hiring practices have been charged for unfair treatment on the grounds of age. Drawing on theories of planned behavior and core self-evaluations, this research investigated the impact ...of negative attitudes toward older workers on hiring decisions and examined the moderating role of decision-makers' core self-evaluations. We tested our hypotheses based on a structured online questionnaire and a vignette study using a sample of 102 participants working in human resource management across different industries. As predicted, negative attitudes toward older workers were positively related to avoidance of hiring older people, which in turn was negatively related to the likelihood to select the oldest candidate. Because hiring decisions are not only about the hiring subject but also about the decision-maker, we tested the moderating role of decision-makers' core self-evaluations. Results showed that core self-evaluations buffered the relationship between negative attitudes toward older workers and avoidance of hiring older people. Theoretical implications of the findings with regard to hiring decisions about older people and practical recommendations to improve diversity management strategies and age-balanced hiring practices in organizations are discussed.
Much research has sought to understand how people construct their careers; however, only little is known about the career construction of older workers. To understand how people construct their ...careers in later life, we take a lifespan development perspective on career construction theory. Specifically, we propose and test a model in which we take a closer look at older workers' career adaptability and aging experience (i.e., physical loss, social loss, personal growth, and gaining self-knowledge) as relevant factors shaping their late career planning. Moreover, we explore whether these relationships are mediated by older workers' occupational future time perspective as an important underlying mechanism between adaptability resources (i.e., career adaptability), experiences (i.e., aging experience), and adapting responses (i.e., late career planning). We test our model with two-wave longitudinal data from a sample of older workers (aged 50 to 79) based in the United Kingdom. Results show that occupational future time perspective mediated the positive effects of career adaptability and personal growth, as well as the negative effect of physical loss on late career planning. Overall, our findings contribute to a better understanding of late career construction and offers practical implications for older workers to purse activities that help them to successfully plan their late career.
•Occupational future time perspective is positively related to late career planning.•Career adaptability is positively related to late career planning.•Aging experience has differential effects on late career planning.•Occupational future time perspective mediates these relationships.
Older job seekers dropping out of the active workforce is a major challenge for individuals, organizations, and society, resulting in the need to protect and extend their working lives. Based on the ...discouraged workers approach, this study used career construction theory to study how past experiences can discourage older job seekers and make them withdraw from the job search. Specifically, we explored how age discrimination is connected to lower levels of older job seekers' occupational future time perspective (i.e., remaining time and future opportunities) and how it results in less career exploration and higher retirement intentions. Using a three-wave design, we followed 483 older job seekers in two countries (the United Kingdom and the United States) over a total period of two months. Results of structural equation modeling showed that perceived age discrimination decreased older job seekers' remaining time and future opportunities. Further, remaining time was negatively linked to retirement intentions, whereas future opportunities were positively linked to career exploration. Furthermore, results revealed two indirect effects of age discrimination on (1) retirement intentions via remaining time and (2) career exploration via future opportunities. These results show how damaging age discrimination can be in the job search context and we call for the search of potential moderators that can buffer the negative impact of age discrimination. Practitioners should work on protecting older job seekers' occupational future time perspective to keep them active instead of losing them to early retirement.
Mature workers’ aging experiences are central in transforming the self and as such can shape career‐related outcomes, such as late career work engagement and motivation to continue working. We ...therefore investigate the relations between aging experiences (i.e., personal growth, gaining self‐knowledge, social loss, and physical loss) and career‐related outcomes. Moreover, we explore psychological capital as an adaptive set of resources that can explain how aging experiences are linked to mature workers’ motivation to continue working and late career work engagement. We test our hypotheses using structural equation modeling based on two‐wave data from a sample of 346 Spanish mature workers. Results showed that psychological capital mediated the positive effects of personal growth and gaining self‐knowledge as well as the negative effect of social loss on career‐related outcomes. By highlighting the links between mature workers’ experiences, resources, and career‐related outcomes, we contribute to a more profound understanding of late career development.
The demographic trends (i.e., low birth rates and increasing longevity) pose challenges with regard to the increase of the average employee age along with a lack of skilled personnel on the labor ...market. Society, organizations, and individuals are confronted with the question on how to prolong working lives in the future. Based on socioemotional selectivity theory, the purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between respectful leadership and older workers' desired retirement age. In particular, we took a closer look at job satisfaction, subjective health, and work-to-private life conflict as underlying mechanisms. Further, we tested for the moderating role of occupational self-efficacy as an auxiliary condition for the assumed relationships of respectful leadership. We tested our hypothesized model using data from 1,130 blue- and white-collar workers aged 45-65 years. The results of structural equation modeling indicated that respectful leadership was positively related to older workers' desired retirement age and that this relationship was mediated by subjective health and work-to-private life conflict but not by job satisfaction. The findings add to the literature on resources in retirement decision-making; notably, they highlight the importance of leadership behavior for older workers' motivation and socioemotional needs.
Our research seeks to contribute to the existing literature on emotion measurement and research by proposing a new anger metric that addresses limitations of previous scales. This metric shows ...promise in meeting modern standards and drawing from traditional methods, potentially impacting the study of emotions. Additionally, our study explores cross-cultural congruence in assessing anger between English and German speakers, revealing differences in state and trait anger assessment. We offer theoretical perspectives on these cultural variances and emphasize the importance of considering language nuances in cross-cultural emotion assessment. Furthermore, our research delves into the relationship between anger and other emotions within an affective space, suggesting support for the notion that emotions are composite constructs consisting of valence and activation. We also discuss alternative theoretical perspectives on emotion construction to enhance our understanding. Additionally, our study examines the intricate relationship between anger and different forms of aggression, highlighting the association between anger and various aggressive behaviors in work settings. Our findings underscore the influence of personal traits and situational factors on experiences of anger and aggression, offering insights into the relationships between emotional states, traits, and behavior.Our research seeks to contribute to the existing literature on emotion measurement and research by proposing a new anger metric that addresses limitations of previous scales. This metric shows promise in meeting modern standards and drawing from traditional methods, potentially impacting the study of emotions. Additionally, our study explores cross-cultural congruence in assessing anger between English and German speakers, revealing differences in state and trait anger assessment. We offer theoretical perspectives on these cultural variances and emphasize the importance of considering language nuances in cross-cultural emotion assessment. Furthermore, our research delves into the relationship between anger and other emotions within an affective space, suggesting support for the notion that emotions are composite constructs consisting of valence and activation. We also discuss alternative theoretical perspectives on emotion construction to enhance our understanding. Additionally, our study examines the intricate relationship between anger and different forms of aggression, highlighting the association between anger and various aggressive behaviors in work settings. Our findings underscore the influence of personal traits and situational factors on experiences of anger and aggression, offering insights into the relationships between emotional states, traits, and behavior.
This research investigates age-diverse friendship and its complex relation to job satisfaction and turnover intentions. Based on self-expansion theory, we argue that age-diverse friendship can lead ...younger and older employees to perceive oneness (a sense of merged identity) with a colleague from the respective other age-group and that this perceived oneness has consequences. On the positive side, we hypothesize perceived oneness to facilitate motivation to cooperate, which should increase job satisfaction and decrease turnover intentions. On the negative side, we hypothesize perceived oneness to provoke interrole conflict, which should decrease job satisfaction and increase turnover intentions. We found support for our hypotheses in a two-wave dyadic study consisting of 93 German age-diverse employee dyads (N = 186 individuals). Results showed that perceived oneness resulting from age-diverse friendship was related to motivation to cooperate (positive path) and interrole conflict (negative path). In turn, interrole conflict was linked to lower job satisfaction and higher turnover intentions. Motivation to cooperate was however not significantly linked to job satisfaction and turnover intentions. By considering age-diverse friendships, this research provides an age-specific lens on the beneficial and detrimental effects of workplace friendship and contributes to the literatures on age diversity, cross-group friendship, and workplace friendship.
In this research, we examine how high-quality contact can facilitate employees’ coworker support and explain why the benefits of high-quality contact are contingent upon age. First, we employ a ...social mindfulness lens to decipher the motivational mechanisms of high-quality contact with coworkers on providing coworker support via coworker-oriented perspective taking and empathic concern. Second, we utilize socioemotional selectivity theory to overcome the current age-blind view on workplace interactions and examine the indirect moderating effect of age via future time perspective on the link between contact quality, social mindfulness, and coworker support. We tested our hypotheses based on data from a sample of 575 employees collected in three waves. Results showed that both coworker-oriented perspective taking and empathic concern mediated the positive effects of contact quality on coworker support. The effect of contact quality on coworker-oriented empathic concern was stronger for older employees with a more constrained future time perspective as compared to younger employees with a more extensive future time perspective. Overall, we extend research on aging, workplace interactions, and support behavior by linking the literature on these topics using a social mindfulness lens and by adding employee age and age-related mechanisms as important boundary conditions that qualify the outcomes of positive workplace contact.
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