Emotional Dissonance and the Information Technology Professional: A Methodological Replication Study

This study is a methodological replication of Emotional Dissonance and the Information Technology Professional by Rutner, Hardgrave, and McKnight (2008). Though we adopted the original study\u27s hypotheses and research methodology, we add to that research by investigating generational differences, increasing the sample size, and including respondents from multiple firms and industries. In this replication, we were able to 1) establish continued support for the direct impact of emotional dissonance on work exhaustion, 2) increase the explanatory power, and 3) provide broader generalizability through sampling subjects from multiple firms. We discuss both the practical and theoretical implications of these findings

The Role of Gender in Workplace Exhaustion: Female Perceptions of Stress in the Technology Workplace

As the role of the information technology professional expands, an increasing amount of technology employees are experiencing workplace exhaustion. Adding to that stress, women face other obstacles as minorities in the field. This project identifies characteristics of how gender influences perceived stress and exhaustion in the technology workplace. Through the use of statistics and spreadsheets, this study analyzes survey data regarding information technology professional job perceptions. Expanding upon previous research on this data set, this study adds the element of gender. It was discovered that men were more likely to experience stressors such as role conflict, role ambiguity, and a greater perceived workload. Women were more likely to experience emotional dissonance stressors such as positive display rules, apparent sincerity, social astuteness, and avoidance of conflict

Are Leader Behavior and Emotional Intelligence related to Teacher Efficacy?

There is general agreement and the research supports the contention that school leadership is related to student learning/achievement (Hallinger & Heck, 1996; Ross & Gray, 2006; Francera & Bliss, 2011; Shatzer, Caldarella, Hallam, & Brown, 2014). However, the nature and strength of that relationship is still uncertain. Identifying the effects, whether direct or indirect, leaders have on student learning/achievement is imperative to the further development of school leadership theory. Direct leader effects on student achievement/learning may be identified at some point. However, given that a leader impacts many factors related to student achievement/learning indirectly, the identification of indirect leader effects on student achievement/learning seems more likely. This study examined the relationships between and among school leader behaviors, leader emotional intelligence, and teacher efficacy. The findings revealed that leader behaviors were found to be inversely correlated to general teaching efficacy but that leadership behaviors and leader emotional intelligence were positively correlated. Also, leader emotional intelligence was found to be positively correlated (though weakly or moderately) to general teaching efficacy, and/or personal teacher efficacy

A multi-layered approach to surfacing and analysing organisational narratives : increasing representational authenticity

This paper presents an integrated, multi-layered approach to narrative inquiry, elucidating the evolving story of organisational culture through its members and their physical, textual, linguistic and visual dialogue. A dynamic joint venture scenario within the UK hi-technology sector was explored to advance understanding of the impact of transformation level change, specifically its influence on shared belief systems, values and behavioural norms. STRIKE – STructured Interpretation of the Knowledge Environment is introduced as an innovative technique to support narrative inquiry, providing a structured, unobtrusive framework to observe, record, evaluate and articulate the organisational setting. A manifestation of narrative in physical dialogue is illuminated from which the underlying emotional narrative can be surfaced. Focus groups were conducted alongside STRIKE to acquire a first order retrospective and contemporaneous narrative of culture and enable cross-method triangulation. Attention was given to non-verbal signals such as Chronemic, Paralinguistic, Kinesic and Proxemic communication and participants were also afforded opportunities to develop creative output in order to optimise engagement. Photography was employed to enrich STRIKE observation and document focus group output, affording high evidential value whilst providing a frame of reference for reflection. These tools enable a multiplicity of perspectives on narrative as part of methological bricolage. Rich, nuanced and multi-textured understanding is developed, as well as the identification of connections, timbre and subjugated knowledge. A highly emotional and nostalgic context was established with actors’ sense of self strongly aligned with the pre-joint venture organisation and its brand values, norms and expectations. Credibility and authenticity of findings is enhanced through data triangulation indicating traceability across methods, and from the contextual preservation attained through STRIKE. The multi-layered approach presented can facilitate researcher reflexivity and sense-making, while for the audience, it may be employed to help communicate and connect research findings. In particular, STRIKE demonstrates utility, quality and efficacy as a design artefact following ex-post evaluation. This systematic method of narrative inquiry is suitable for standardisation and alongside a diagnostic/prescriptive capacity, affords both researcher and practictioner value in its application

Managing clinical uncertainty: an ethnographic study of the impact of critical care outreach on end‐of‐life transitions in ward‐based critically ill patients with a life‐limiting illness

© 2018 Crown copyright. Journal of Clinical Nursing © 2018 John Wiley & Sons LtdRapid response teams, such as critical care outreach teams, have prominent roles in managing end-of-life transitions in critical illness, often questioning appropriateness of treatment escalation. Clinical uncertainty presents clinicians with dilemmas in how and when to escalate or de-escalate treatment. Aims and objectives: To explore how critical care outreach team decision-making processes affect the management of transition points for critically ill, ward-based patients with a life-limiting illness. Methods: An ethnographic study across two hospitals observed transition points and decisions to de-escalate treatment, through the lens of critical care outreach. In-depth interviews were carried out to elucidate rationales for practices witnessed in observations. Detailed field notes were taken and placed in a descriptive account. Ethnographic data were analysed, categorised and organised into themes using thematic analysis. Findings: Data were collected over 74 weeks, encompassing 32 observation periods with 20 staff, totalling more than 150 hr. Ten formal staff interviews and 20 informal staff interviews were undertaken. Three main themes emerged: early decision-making and the role of critical care outreach; communicating end-of-life transitions; end-of-life care and the input of critical care outreach. Findings suggest there is a negotiation to achieve smooth transitions for individual patients, between critical care outreach, and parent or ward medical teams. This process of negotiation is subject to many factors that either hinder or facilitate timely transitions. Conclusions: Critical care outreach teams have an important role in shared decision-making. Associated emotional costs relate to conflict with parent medical teams, and working as lone practitioners. The cultural contexts in which teams work have a significant effect on their interactions and agency. Relevance to practice: There needs to be a cultural shift towards early and open discussion of treatment goals and limitations of medical treatment, particularly when facing serious illness. With training and competencies, outreach nurses are well placed to facilitate these discussions.Peer reviewe

Negotiating conflict and negativity in an online\ud Community for recovering heart pateints

When an online community has been set up to support members living\ud with heart disease, it has a responsibility to provide a safe environment in terms of\ud emotional security and accurate health information. Unfortunately, in online\ud communities as in communities generally, relationships developed among\ud members can sometimes go awry. Situations can arise where private exchanges\ud between members exacerbate public discord and conflict erupts: occasionally with\ud both sides having legitimate reason to feel aggrieved. At this point, a usually selfregulating community can polarise and request the moderator's intervention. What\ud happens when the moderator is perceived to be doing nothing about the situation\ud and members of the community take matters into their own hands? This paper\ud discusses the implications and challenges of conflict in a therapeutic community.\ud It acknowledges that sometimes the situation can be too complex for simple\ud resolution and that in such circumstances, one or both of the conflicted parties\ud may have to withdraw from the site for a period of time

Emotional Dissonance and the IT Professional – A Replication

This study is a conceptual replication of the Rutner, Hardgrave, and McKnight (2008) model of emotional dissonance analyzed as an antecedent of work exhaustion and job satisfaction extending the original Moore (2000a) model of turnover intention. Using a sample of IT workers from a Fortune 500 company, we tested the model of emotional dissonance and turnover intention. Our sample size is 303, nearly double the sample size (N=161) used in the original study. We successfully replicated five of the seven hypotheses tested in original paper. These results strengthen theories in information systems exploring job satisfaction and turnover intention among IT workers. Future research might consider new stressors or issues facing IT workers that could be investigated with emotional dissonance

Emotions Management within Organizations

Emotions management in organizations is meant to habilitate the employees in administrating the emotional resources aiming at the correct adaptation to the organizational environment and the necessities in the work activity. The study of emotions in organizations has the purpose to know and optimize the employees’ emotional condition. The efficient leaders are interested in administrating the emotions, being aware of and capable to revaluate the factors which positively activate the employees emotional life. Emotions management is accomplished at two more important levels: personal level or subjective (represented by the person’s self-control capacity, the emotional intelligence, the ability to administrate the positive and negative emotions) and an interpersonal or social level, centered upon settling the emotional changes between employees and leaders, between employees and clients. From their settling into the practice point of view, the increase in the work performance and the benefits brought to the organizational environment, the concepts by which emotions management is accomplished/operate (positive emotions and negative emotions, emotional intelligence, emotional self-control, emotional labour etc.), this issue presents greater interest both for theorists and for the real doers/practitioners.emotions management, emotional labour, emotional contagion, emotional intelligence, organizational group

Philosophy of Technology Assumptions in Educational Technology Leadership

A qualitative study using grounded theory methods was conducted to (a) examine what philosophy of technology assumptions are present in the thinking of K-12 technology leaders, (b) investigate how the assumptions may influence technology decision making, and (c) explore whether technological determinist assumptions are present. Subjects involved technology directors and instructional technology specialists from school districts, and data collection involved interviews and a written questionnaire. Three broad philosophy of technology views were widely held by participants, including an instrumental view of technology, technological optimism, and a technological determinist perspective that sees technological change as inevitable. Technology leaders were guided by two main approaches to technology decision making in cognitive dissonance with each other, represented by the categories Educational goals and curriculum should drive technology, and Keep up with Technology (or be left behind). The researcher concluded that as leaders deal with their perceived experience of the inevitability of technological change, and their concern for preparing students for a technological future, the core category Keep up with technology (or be left behind) is given the greater weight in technology decision making. A risk is that this can on occasion mean a quickness to adopt technology for the sake of technology, without aligning the technology implementation with educational goals