Sunday, June 30, 2013

What Are the Effects of Psychopathic Traits in a Supervisor on Employees' Psychological Distress?

ABSTRACT

Psychopathy, a construct with roots in forensic psychology, has recently been applied to the corporate context (Babiak, & Hare, 2006; Babiak, 2007). The goal of this study is to determine whether there is a relationship between supervisor's score on a measure of psychopathy and employees' psychological distress. One hundred and sixteen employees from a branch of a large Canadian financial institution have scored their supervisor on a psychopathy measure (B-Scan-360 psychopathy subscale; Babiak, & Hare, in press) and have completed a self-measure of psychological distress (General Health questionnaire-12; Goldberg & Williams, 1991). Results from regression …


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Job Satisfaction and Organizational Performance: Evidence from Canadian Credit Union

INTRODUCTION

In the recent years since the turn of the century, companies have found themselves in an economy heavily affected by globalization, an economy in which knowledge and information are indispensible elements in order to succeed. The importance of intellectual capital has increased to the point of being one of the most valuable assets that must be better understood in order to be developed. From such a perspective, human resources and their management now occupy a privileged place in business. The impact of human resource management is generally measured by the individual performance of each employee that, in turn, has a quantifiable impact upon the overall organizational performance.

Performance is a complex notion that is ever-present in the secondary literature related to organizations, and it occupies, perhaps, the predominant place in the day-to-day practice of actual companies. Numerous studies highlight the pertinence of linking work related performance with another important concept for companies; that is, satisfaction at work. A large empirical database of evidence shows that satisfaction and performance at work are indeed factors in a complex cause and effect relationship. As part of the research conducted on the relationship between employee satisfaction, attitudes toward work and organizational performance, the study before you has two objectives. The first is to analyse the mechanisms that create and sustain employee satisfaction at work (determinants and aspects), and secondly, to evaluate if the cause and effect relationship between employee satisfaction and individual performance so evident in existing literature is genuinely quantifiable and, therefore, significant.

THEORETICAL BACKGROUND

The relationship between satisfaction and performance has been for many decades the object of in-depth and disparate studies in Human Resource Management (HRM). The review of the current literature will be presented in three distinct parts. The first and second parts will be devoted, respectively, to the concepts of job satisfaction and job performance at work. The last part will examine the causal interrelationship between these two variables and thus lay the groundwork for the theoretical framework of our study.

Review of the Secondary Literature regarding Employee Satisfaction

Job satisfaction is one of the most incontestable and highly valued concepts in Human Research Management. It is equally important as a dependant variable and as an explicative factor of a heterogeneous group of attitudes and behaviours (Brief, 1998; Judge & al., 2001). The most often used definition in the field of research on the particular concept of satisfaction is the one provided by Locke: "an agreeable or positive emotional state derived from an evaluation made by a person about his work or his work experience" (Locke, 1976, pg. 1300). From this consensual definition, we extract the implicit idea by which thoughts and emotions both play an important role in the perception of satisfaction that an employee derives from his work. However, considering job satisfaction to be only a purely emotional outcome brings about numerous questions, specifically, opposing voices that decry the definition proposed by Locke as being insufficient and a paradoxical minefield (Brief, 1998: 85-118; Weiss, 2002).

For many authors and researchers such as Weiss (2002) and Greenberg (2008), job satisfaction describes the positive or negative attitude of a person regarding his employment and work environment. It is customary, therefore, to identify the different components of attitude in order to facilitate research studies. The current literature mentions a number of elements that all refer to job satisfaction, among which we find: remuneration, recognition, supervision, job security, and opportunities for career advancement (Weiss & al., 1967). Since job satisfaction stems from both job responsibilities and type of work occupied (Weaver, 1980), many factors could explain the difference between the levels of satisfaction among employees.

PREVIOUS HISTORY OF JOB SATISFACTION

Organizational literature distinguishes, on average, three to four principal case histories regarding job satisfaction. By "case histories" of job satisfaction, we understand these to be the combination of elements and factors that influence either satisfactory or unsatisfactory experience at work.

Influences related to personality

The majority of research studies on the influence of personality on job satisfaction, suggests a relationship that is statistically significant. Staw and Ross (1985) suggest that the level of employee satisfaction tends to remain fixed regardless of whatever job or organizational changes occur. Although there are those who are critical of these studies such as Davis-Blake and Pfeffer (1989), a body of empirical evidence indicates that the differences in employee job satisfaction can be explained, to a certain extent, by the employees' personality or their predisposition to the demands of the task (House, Shane & Herold, 1996). Considering the above, we propose the following hypothesis:

[H.sub.1]: The personality of employees influences their perception of job satisfaction

Influences related to the work environment

Not surprisingly, Ghazzawi (2008) suggests that one of the most important determinants of job satisfaction is the very nature of the work. Hence, organizational literature indicates that many factors such as the physical work environment, the quality of interactions between colleagues, as well as the way in which the organization treats its employees all influence job satisfaction. Judge and Church (2000) indicate that the nature of the work is what is ultimately identified as the most important factor when evaluating the various particularities affecting employees. Considering the above, we propose a second hypothesis:

[H.sub.2]: The nature of the work influences the employee's job satisfaction

Social Influences

There are influences that an individual or a group brings to the attitudes and/or behaviours of a person (George & Jones, 2008, pg. 87). In this case, we intend that the colleagues at work, groups of people that the employee meets, as well as the culture in which the employee "grew" or evolved all fully contribute toward influencing the amount of satisfaction held by the employee (George & Jones, 2008).

It is important to emphasize the impact of culture as part of the social aspects that affect job satisfaction, including the cultural dimensions proposed by Hofstede (1980). For example, employees working in countries such as the United States, Australia, Canada, United Kingdom, and the Netherlands where individualism is greater, will be more predisposed to be satisfied within the …


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Build a solid foundation for effective empowerment

Build a solid foundation for effective empowerment | Articles | Main .CpButton { cursor:pointer; border:outset 1px #CCCCCC; background:#999999; color:#463E3F; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, Sans-Serif; font-size: 10px; font-weight:bold; padding: 1px 2px; background:url(/Integrations/Centralpoint/Resources/Controls/CpButtonBackground.gif) repeat-x left top; }.CpButtonHover { border:outset 1px #000000; }.CpRating { font-size: 0pt; width: 13px; height: 12px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; cursor: pointer; display: block; background-repeat: no-repeat; }.CpRatingFilled { background-image: url(/Uploads/Public/Images/RatingFilled.png); }.CpRatingEmpty { background-image: url(/Integrations/Centralpoint/Resources/RatingEmpty.png); }.CpRatingSaved { background-image: url(/Integrations/Centralpoint/Resources/RatingSaved.png); } Ragan | PRDaily | Health Care HMC News | Ragan Training Log In using Facebook | Log In | Cart | Store HRCommunications.com
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Yes, I accept Terms of Use.Terms of Use | Today's HeadlinesFollow HR Communication on:Facebook twitter linkedin youtube Rss feedEzine_box_bottomSubmit News Related Articlesbox_article_footer_bluegreeRelated Articles By Category Featured Article Featured Article Topic Pages Human Resources Leadership box_article_footer_blueBuild a solid foundation for effective empowermentThe key to making it work is incorporating all four of these essential elements in your empowerment strategy. By ManageBetter | Posted: June 28, 2013 DataSource: The requested DataSource 5f4ce871-9abc-4ec7-89fd-43fb6c737f57 is not accessible.Printer Friendly VersionEmail A Friend
“Empowerment” may seem like an overused term, but it’s still a valid concept for any manager who wants to maximize performance and productivity.

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The key to making it work is incorporating all four of these essential elements in your empowerment strategy: 

• Authority. You can’t simply empower employees to tackle a project or solve a problem without giving them sufficient authority to get things done. If they have to constantly obtain your permission for every decision—or if other employees insist on getting your approval before doing anything— they don’t have any real power. You can monitor progress, but don’t stand in the employee’s way. 

• Resources. Does the employee have the equipment, budget, people, and whatever else is necessary to the project’s ultimate success? Discuss the task in detail before delegating it so you all have a good idea of what’s going to be needed. Shutting down a project halfway through because it requires more resources than you expected is a sure way to squelch motivation to take on future assignments. 

• Information. You’ve got to trust employees with all the data they need to do a good job. If they sense you’re keeping pertinent facts from them, they may grow more concerned with protecting themselves than finishing the task successfully. Be as open as possible so employees can make good decisions based on the truth. 

• Accountability. “Empowerment” doesn’t mean letting employees do whatever they want. When discussing the assignment, emphasize the rewards of success and the consequences of failure. Don’t try to scare the employee, but do make clear that you expect his or her full commitment, and that you’ll evaluate results honestly. 

—Adapted from the Dr. Bev Smallwood website Printer Friendly VersionEmail A FriendPopularity: This record has been viewed 53 times. !function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js";fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,"script","twitter-wjs"); Logo helthcarecommunication.com

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Explore strengths for a successful orientation

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Yes, I accept Terms of Use.Terms of Use | Today's HeadlinesFollow HR Communication on:Facebook twitter linkedin youtube Rss feedEzine_box_bottomSubmit News Related Articles First impressions: Plan an orientation that supports your retention efforts 4 keys to the best orientation strategy ever Advice for new corporate writers and editorsbox_article_footer_bluegreeRelated Articles By Category Featured Article Featured Article Topic Pages Human Resources Leadership Recruitment and Retentionbox_article_footer_blueExplore strengths for a successful orientationA successful orientation sets the stage for motivation in your organization. By Motivational Manager | Posted: June 27, 2013 DataSource: The requested DataSource 5f4ce871-9abc-4ec7-89fd-43fb6c737f57 is not accessible.Printer Friendly VersionEmail A Friend
A successful orientation sets the stage for motivation in your organization. It takes more than a quick tour and a glance at the org chart.

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In addition to an overview of your organization and introductions to co-workers, pay attention to these “people factors” to get your new hires off to a good start: 

• Identify newcomers’ real strengths. You’ve got a list of skills on your new employee’s résumé, but that tells only part of the story. Spend time uncovering new employees’ other strengths and interests. Probe their background and experience—not just their main job, but any one-off assignments they may have performed and learned something useful from. Try to adjust the position you hired them for to something unique to them, and they’ll be more excited about the possibilities of working for you in the long term. 

• Set up teams based on strengths. Try to place newcomers in groups and teams where their skills complement those of other employees. Look for similarities, and introduce new hires to co-workers who share their interests and experience. They’ll fit in more naturally and forge better relationships with their new team members. 

• Match the person to the job. Describe your organization’s needs and objectives, as well as the function and specific tasks of each newcomer’s job. Then explore how they can use their most important strengths on their new job. This helps you frame the job as an opportunity for new hires to use their best strengths at work, enhancing their motivation to excel. 

—Adapted from the Onrec website

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