Despite the promise of evidence-based management as a practice for improving decisions and their outcomes in organizations, little empirical study exists on the effects of evidence use in the ...workplace. The present research develops a scale to assess subordinate perceptions of managerial evidence use in decision making and provides empirical evidence of the relationships this measure has with established workplace and organizational phenomena. First, scale development studies in four samples, including a field site and MBA courses with students employed full time, show that perceived evidence use can be measured reliably and is distinct from other leadership measures. Second, a cross-sectional study of 308 employees in 18 aged care homes demonstrates a positive relationship between employee perceptions of managerial evidence use and commonly used measures of leader member exchange, trust in supervisor, work-based learning, and organizational performance ratings, and a negative relationship with employee distress. These results suggest implications for leadership and management practices in contemporary, information-rich environments and novel insights into how employees can be affected by managerial evidence use.
Evidence-based practice (EBP) in management is still in its infancy. Several studies suggest that managers in businesses and other organizations do not consult the scientific evidence when making ...decisions. To facilitate its uptake, we need to better understand practitioner attitudes and perceived barriers related to EBP. In medicine and nursing, an abundance of research exists on this subject, although such studies are rare in management. To address this gap, we surveyed 2,789 management practitioners in Belgium, the Netherlands, the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia. Our findings indicate that most managers we studied have positive attitudes towards EBP. However, lack of time and a limited understanding of scientific research are perceived as major barriers to the uptake and implementation of EBP in management. Studies in other professions where EBP is far more established also report similar barriers. We discuss the implications of our findings for practice, education and research, providing suggestions to enhance use of EBP in management practice.
In formulating a dynamic model of psychological contract (PC) phases, this paper offers new insights by incorporating a temporal perspective into the study of the PC. Although conceptualized as a ...dynamic construct, little empirical attention has been directed at how PCs evolve and change over time. Moreover, conceptualization of the PC and its processes has undergone limited revision since the 1990s despite challenges to some of its tenets and advances in related fields that suggest the importance of time to such processes. In this article, we address limitations in existing theory, clarify the conceptualization of the PC, and bring dynamism to the forefront of PC theory building by emphasizing dynamic processes. We propose a phase-based model of PC processes (intraphase and interphase) wherein the functions of key variables (e.g., promises, inducements, contributions, and obligations) change over time and context. These phases include creation, maintenance, renegotiation, and repair. This model directs attention to the dynamic nature of the PC, drawing on contemporary evidence regarding self-regulatory mechanisms. Finally, we present the implications of this dynamic phase model for theory and research.
Idiosyncratic deals (i-deals) research focuses on the emergence of customized work arrangements employees negotiate with their employers. This article provides a critical review and synthesis of ...i-deals research, combining a qualitative review of i-deals theory and research with a supplementary meta-analysis of 23 empirical studies (k = 27 samples, N = 8110 individuals). The qualitative review examines the conceptualization and measurement of i-deals and identifies patterns and gaps in i-deals research, while the quantitative meta-analysis tests the moderating effect of societal cultures on the predictors and consequences of ideals investigated to date. In each section, attention is given to strengths and weaknesses of current approaches to i-deals theory and research. Future research directions are identified with particular emphasis on the largely unexamined role of i-deals from a multilevel perspective.
I explore the promise organization research offers for improved management practice and how, at present, it falls short. Using evidence-based medicine as an exemplar, I identify ways of closing the ...prevailing "research-practice gap"--the failure of organizations and managers to base practices on best available evidence. I close with guidance for researchers, educators, and managers for translating the principles governing human behavior and organizational processes into more effective management practice.
Idiosyncratic deals ("i-deals") are special arrangements that individuals negotiate with their employers. This study investigates the link between i-deals and organizational citizenship behavior ...(OCB). From the perspective of social exchange theory, the relationship between individuals' i-deals and OCB should depend on the quality of workplace relationships with their supervisors, colleagues, and organization. Measuring these respectively as leader-member exchange (LMX), team-member exchange (TMX), and perceived organizational support (POS), we tested hypotheses via data gathered from 231 supervisor-subordinate dyads nested in 53 work groups. Results reveal stronger positive relations between i-deals and OCB for employees with low rather than high LMX or TMX.
Rousseau focuses on the realist rationality of evidence-based management (EBM). The evidence-based practice movement began as a response to the underutilization of scientific evidence in medicine, ...particularly in medical school education, and its concomitant over-reliance on tradition and authority. As is the case of the broader evidence-based practice movement, EBM is as much a teaching innovation as it is a source of new organizational practices and ways of making decisions.
The effects of psychological contract violation are the subject of considerable research. Yet, their effects in work arrangements with more than two parties are largely unknown. Multi‐party work ...arrangements differ from traditional ones because individuals may be vulnerable to psychological contract breach and violation by more than one party, potentially directing negative emotional responses not only towards the responsible party but also displacing it to the other (innocent) party. Primary data from a two‐wave survey of 221 current expatriates is used to test the effects of displaced aggression and emotion regulation in multi‐party psychological contracts. We find that the negative emotions (violation experiences) associated with breach predict reduced commitment both to the perpetrating organization and the innocent party. However, this spillover effect is asymmetric and follows displaced aggregation theory: Expatriates displace their aggressive behaviour on to the host when the home organization violated the psychological contract, not the reverse.
Evidence-based practice (EBP) is an approach used in numerous professions that focuses attention on evidence quality in decision making and action. We review research on EBP implementation, ...identifying critical underlying psychological factors facilitating and impeding its use. In describing EBP and the forms of evidence it employs, we highlight the challenges individuals face in appraising evidence quality, particularly that of their personal experience. We next describe critical EBP competencies and the challenges underlying their acquisition: foundational competencies of critical thinking and domain knowledge, and functional competencies such as question formulation, evidence search and appraisal, and outcome evaluation. We then review research on EBP implementation across diverse fields from medicine to management and organize findings around three key contributors to EBP: practitioner ability, motivation, and opportunity to practice (AMO). Throughout, important links between psychology and EBP are highlighted, along with the contributions psychological research can make to further EBP development and implementation.
Bacteriophages display remarkable genetic diversity and host specificity. In this study, we explore phages infecting bacterial strains of the Enterobacteriaceae family because of their ability to ...infect related but distinct hosts. We isolated and characterized two novel virulent phages, SH6 and SH7, using a strain of Shigella flexneri as host bacterium. Morphological and genomic analyses revealed that phage SH6 belongs to the T1virus genus of the Siphoviridae family. Conversely, phage SH7 was classified in the T4virus genus of the Myoviridae family. Phage SH6 had a short latent period of 16 min and a burst size of 103 ± 16 PFU/infected cell while the phage SH7 latent period was 23 min with a much lower burst size of 26 ± 5 PFU/infected cell. Moreover, phage SH6 was sensitive to acidic conditions (pH < 5) while phage SH7 was stable from pH 3 to 11 for 1 hour. Of the 35 bacterial strains tested, SH6 infected its S. flexneri host strain and 8 strains of E. coli. Phage SH7 lysed additionally strains of E. coli O157:H7, Salmonella Paratyphi, and Shigella dysenteriae. The broader host ranges of these two phages as well as their microbiological properties suggest that they may be useful for controlling bacterial populations.
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