A Social Information Processing Perspective of Coworker Influence on a Focal Employee

A critical omission in the coworker influence literature is how a coworker influences a closely related (focal) employee’s job performance behaviors and whether this influence is contingent on that coworker’s own behaviors. By integrating social information processing and social cognitive theories with social exchange and role theories, we hypothesize that there are, at least, three distinct types of coworker dyadic influence. Accordingly, we develop and test a moderated mediation model to explicate such influence. Two multi-source, field-design studies conducted in Hong Kong supported the modeled relationships in that employee role ambiguity partially mediated the relationships between coworker-employee exchange (CEX) and two types of employee job performance behaviors—task performance and organizational citizenship behavior (OCB). Furthermore, coworker OCB fostered employee job performance behavior both directly and interactively, acting as a moderator to weaken the relationships between employee role ambiguity and the two types of job performance behaviors

Family supportive supervisor behaviors and organizational culture:Effects on work engagement and performance

Informed by social information processing (SIP) theory, in this study, we assessed the associations among family supportive supervisor behaviors (FSSBs) as perceived by subordinates, subordinate work engagement, and supervisor-rated work performance. Moreover, we explored the role of family supportive organizational culture as a contextual variable influencing our proposed associations. Our findings using matched supervisor-subordinate data collected from a financial credit company in Mexico (654 subordinates; 134 supervisors) showed that FSSBs influenced work performance through subordinate work engagement. Moreover, the positive association between subordinates' perceptions of FSSBs and work engagement was moderated by family supportive organizational culture. Our results contribute to emerging theories on flexible work arrangements, particularly on family supportive work policies. Moreover, our findings carry practical implications for improving employee work engagement and work performance.</p

AN EXAMINATION OF THE INFLUENCES OF ORGANIZATIONAL, SUPERVISOR, AND COWORKER SUPPORT ON THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN FLEXIBLE WORK ARRANGEMENTS AND TURNOVER INTENTION OF CIVILIAN FEDERAL EMPLOYEES

Technological advancements and a rapidly changing workforce have created the need for researchers and practitioners to continually examine how work is designed, managed, and accomplished. As increased work demands have blurred the lines between work and family domains, stressors can create conflict between these environments. Flexible work arrangements (FWAs) represent one of the work-family benefit programs offered by employers to alleviate work-family conflict and provide flexibility to workers. This study examined the relationships between multiple support measures (organizational, supervisor, and coworker) and turnover intention in the context of FWAs. The study’s hypotheses predicted negative relationships between the support measures and turnover intention with positive relationships between individual support measures. Responding to the call of researchers to consider multiple support levels in future research (e.g., Abendroth & den Dulk, 2011; Allen, 2001; Ng & Sorensen, 2008), distinct sources of support were considered in a single study design. A survey of 1,172 respondents found statistically significant relationships between the study’s constructs. The findings suggest that the culture and support systems that exist within the organization influence employee outcomes such as turnover intention. Organizations that desire to achieve a dynamic work environment recognize the importance of providing the resources necessary to reduce employee turnover and enhance the work experience. The implications for research, practice, and organizations are discussed, including pathways for future research

Towards a socio cognitive perspective of presenteeism, leadership and the rise of robotic Interventions in the workplace

This thesis intends to investigate the relationship between the presenteeism phenomenon and the leadership construct, by analyzing a new concept in the literature, leadership presenteeism. Second, it explores robotic leadership and the impact of human-leadership styles in teams headed by social robots. Third, it investigates the role of robots as health-promoting agents within workplaces, contributing to workers’ improvements in a set of organizational variables. The thesis includes seven empirical studies, divided in four papers. Paper 1 findings suggest that individuals perceive themselves as less productive when they work with a leader with a psychological or contagious illness. Paper 2 reveals that robots can properly perform leadership roles while leading human teams, and achieve the same organizational outcomes as human leaders. Moreover, robots performing both transformational and transactional leadership styles can impact positively different organizational outcomes. In paper 3 a robot was used as a health behavior promoting agent in a single-arm intervention, with two assessment points in time. Results showed that the intervention with the robot enabled to improve a set of psychological health behavior constructs. Finally, paper 4 aimed to compare the health behavior change intervention between two groups: one guided by a robotic agent and the other by a human agent. Results showed that the intervention with the robot agent was associated with improvements in individuals’ productivity despite presenteeism and well-being levels. This thesis contributes to the understanding of the relationship between presenteeism and leadership constructs, while seeks also to contribute and extend SCT and HAPA theoretical framework.A presente tese pretende analisar a relação entre o fenómeno do presentismo e o construto de liderança, através da análise de um novo conceito na literatura, a liderança de presentismo. Em segundo lugar, explora a liderança robótica e o impacto dos estilos de liderança humana em equipas lideradas por robôs. Terceiro, investiga o papel dos robôs como agentes promotores da saúde nos locais de trabalho, contribuindo para a melhoria de um conjunto de variáveis organizacionais. A tese inclui sete estudos empíricos, divididos em quatro artigos. Os resultados do artigo 1 sugerem que os indivíduos se consideram menos produtivos quando trabalham com um líder com uma doença psicológica ou contagiosa. O artigo 2 revela que os robôs podem desempenhar corretamente papéis de liderança em equipas humanas, alcançando os mesmos resultados organizacionais que os líderes humanos. Além disso, os robôs podem desempenhar tanto estilos de liderança transformacional como transacional, com impactos positivos em diversos resultados organizacionais. No artigo 3 foi utilizado um robô como agente promotor de comportamentos de saúde. Os resultados mostraram que a intervenção permitiu melhorar um conjunto de variáveis ligadas a comportamentos psicológicos de saúde. Finalmente, o artigo 4 visou comparar a mesma intervenção entre dois grupos: um guiado por um agente robótico e o outro por um agente humano. Os resultados mostraram que a intervenção com o agente robô esteve associada a melhorias na produtividade dos indivíduos e nos respetivos níveis de bem-estar. Esta tese contribui para a compreensão da relação entre o presentismo e a liderança, ao mesmo tempo que procura também contribuir e alargar o quadro teórico da SCT e do modelo HAPA

Signaling and Social Influence: The Impact of Corporate Volunteer Programs on Employee Work Behavior

Corporate volunteer programs serve the social agenda of the organizations that deploy them, and are important channels for delivering care and compassion to important causes and communities in need. However, the uptake of these programs by employees is surprisingly low. Little is known about the affective reactions of those who do not avail themselves of the programs offered. In this dissertation, I draw from research on work-life benefits, as well as theories of signaling and social influence, to examine the effects of corporate volunteer programs on the affect and behavior of both the employees who take part in the initiatives, as well as those who do not. In a pilot study, I find initial support for the positive synergies of multiple role engagement – specifically, that time spent on non-work-related activities has a significant positive effect on individuals’ perceptions of work-life enrichment, and this in turn relates positively to their engagement and personal initiative at work. This pre-test of measures and theoretical relationships provided a stepping stone for my primary dissertation project: a longitudinal field study at a large organization in the Northeast to examine the effects of its corporate volunteer program. Through surveys at two points in time, I find that even when employee participation in volunteering is low, such programs may nevertheless have a significant influence on employees’ work-related perceptions and behavior, as driven primarily by processes of social sharing. Workplace conversations around volunteering led to enhanced perceptions of organizational support for enrichment, increased interpersonal citizenship behaviors at work, and stronger future volunteer intentions, regardless of whether or not employees personally took part in the volunteer activity. These positive effects are most prominent when employees are in positions that afford the flexibility to join in such initiatives. Understanding the effects of social influence and the factors that moderate the impact of these corporate programs on employee outcomes is important as firms seek to provide a more enriching environment for their workforce