When (not) to empathize:The differential effects of combined emotion recognition and empathic concern on client satisfaction across professions

Previous research found inconsistent associations between individuals’ emotion recognition ability and their work-related outcomes. This research project focuses on client satisfaction as a core work-related outcome. We argue that service settings differentially affect clients’ emotional goals, activating either socio-affective goals or goals targeting cognitive clarity. In service settings activating clients’ socio-affective goals, clients are expected to respond favorably if service providers combine emotion recognition with high empathic concern; in service settings activating clients’ cognitive clarity goals, clients are expected to respond more favorably if service providers combine emotion recognition with low empathic concern. Study 1 confirmed that service settings differentially affect clients’ emotional goals, with hairdressing settings activating socio-affective goals and psychotherapy settings triggering cognitive clarity goals. Accordingly, hairdressing clients were more satisfied if service providers combined emotion-recognition ability with high trait empathic concern (Study 2). Conversely, in the context of psychotherapy, clients were more satisfied if therapists’ combined emotion-recognition ability with low trait empathic concern (Study 3). Thus, service contexts moderate the effect of affective responses to clients’ emotional signals in a predictable manner

Playful self versus self-report self one of a kind or worlds apart?

As digital traces and freely available online data increase transparency about job candidates’ attributes, companies may include unprecedented amounts of data into their personnel selection decisions. Besides the evaluation of social media profiles, video games in particular have recently gained trajectory as a promising alternative to personality self-report measures in job candidate assessment. Our study with 1,106 players of League of Legends analyzes convergent validity of players’ risk-taking behavior with established self-report measures and behavioral tests of risk propensity. Controlling for age, gender and individual performance we found weak associations of within-game risk-taking with self-report measures of risk propensity and no correlations with behavioral tests. The results suggest that behavioral data from a commercial video game do not substitute for established tests of risk-taking

All Impostors Aren’t Alike – Differentiating the Impostor Phenomenon

Following up on earlier investigations, the present paper analyzes construct validity of the impostor phenomenon. It examines the question whether the impostor phenomenon is a homogeneous construct or whether different types of persons with impostor self-concept can be distinguished on the basis of related characteristics. The study was conducted with professionals in leadership positions exhibiting a pronounced impostor self-concept (n = 183). Cluster-analytic procedures indicated the existence of two different types: one group which, in line with the literature (e.g., Clance, 1985), possessed traits classified as fairly unfavorable (“true impostors”) and another group which can be described as largely unencumbered (“strategic impostors”). The present study suggests two types of impostorism: “True” impostors characterized by the negative self-views associated with the construct definition, and more “strategic” impostors who seem to be less encumbered by self-doubt. It is assumed that “strategic impostors” are characterized by a form of deliberate self-presentation. Therefore, the impostor self-concept cannot principally be viewed as a dysfunctional personality style. This distinction should be more carefully considered in further research and in therapeutic interventions

Breathing to the path of virtue-The effects of justice sensitivity and state mindfulness on cheating behavior in a group performance task

Previous research established the notion that both trait and state variables are powerful predictors of individuals? unethical decision making. The present work investigates the role of individual differences in dispositional sensitivity to injustice and state mindfulness on cheating behavior in a group performance task. In a laboratory experiment with 395 participants, we first assessed dispositional justice sensitivity and experimentally induced mindfulness via a 10-minute meditation. We then analyzed cheating behavior in a performance task. The incentive structure of the experiment was designed to allow participants to cheat on their true performance to positively influence their group payment. The higher participants scored on perpetrator sensitivity (fear of behaving unfairly), the less likely they were to cheat; this was also true for participants with high levels of state mindfulness. In turn, participants who scored high on victim sensitivity (fear of being unfairly disadvantaged) were more likely to cheat. We discuss our findings in light of the literature on justice sensitivity and mindfulness and highlight implications for further research

When ignorance is bliss:Exploring perspective taking, negative state affect and performance

Whereas the positive relationship between positive affect in teams and team performance is well established, the relationship between team negative affect and team performance seems to be subject to moderating effects. We focus on the effects of perspective taking as one of these moderators, and posit that perspective taking impedes team performance when team state affect is negative because team members become preoccupied with others’ negative emotions. Results from 49 teams involved in a computerized interactive decision-making task support our hypothesis: Negative state affect was negatively related to performance for teams high in perspective taking, but not for teams low in perspective taking. This leads to the conclusion that when teams experience high negative affect, they benefit from low perspective taking

Individuals in mind, mates by heart:Individualistic self-construal and collective value orientation as predictors of group creativity

It has been argued that groups with individualistic norms are more creative than groups with collectivistic norms (Goncalo &. Staw, 2006). This conclusion, however, may be too unspecific, as individualism-collectivism denotes a multidimensional continuum and may affect people's self-construal and values. This study analyzed to what extent these dimensions differentially impact upon group creativity. After manipulating self-construal and value orientation, 58 triads engaged in a brainstorming task. Groups with collectivistic value orientation generated more ideas than groups with individualistic value orientation. Furthermore, there was an interaction between value orientation and self-construal on originality: ideas were more original when group members combined collectivistic value orientation with individualistic self-construal. Thus, groups should integrate elements of both individualism and collectivism to ensure high creativity. (C) 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved

The bright and dark side of gossip for cooperation in groups

Recent experimental studies seem to concur that gossip is good for groups by showing that gossip stems from prosocial motives to protect group members from non-cooperators. Thus, these studies emphasize the "bright" side of gossip. However, scattered studies point to detrimental outcomes of gossip for individuals and groups, arguing that a "dark" side of gossip exists. To understand the implications of gossip for cooperation in groups, both the dark and bright side of gossip must be illuminated. We investigated both sides of gossip in two scenario studies. In Study 1 (N = 108), we confronted participants with a free-rider in their group and manipulated whether the gossip recipient was the free-rider's potential victim or not. Participants showed a higher group protection motivation in response to gossip when imagining gossiping to a potential victim of a norm violator compared to a non-victim. They showed a higher emotion venting motivation when imagining gossiping to a non-victim compared to a potential victim. Both these gossip motives were related to an increased tendency to gossip. In Study 2 (N = 104), we manipulated whether participants were the targets or observers of gossip and whether the gossip was true or false. Results showed that targets of negative gossip intended to increase their work effort in the short run, but only when the gossip was true. Furthermore, gossip targets reported lower long-term cooperative intentions toward their workgroup regardless of gossip veracity. This paper demonstrates that gossip has both a "dark" and "bright" side and that situational factors and agent perspectives determine which side prevails

Validation of the Short Clance Impostor Phenomenon Scale (CIPS-10)

We readdressed the multidimensionality of the Clance Impostor Phenomenon Scale (CIPS) by reanalyzing Rohrmann et al.’s (2016) dataset, which led to the development of an improved 10-item CIPS (CIPS-10). The validity of the CIPS-10 was further examined by correlating it with HEXACO personality traits and work-related outcomes in a newly collected working adult sample (N = 294). Factor analyses, reliability coefficients, and validity coefficients indicated that reporting and interpreting the total scores of both the CIPS and CIPS-10 was sufficient. We found the CIPS-10 to be positively related to Emotionality, job stress, turnover intention, and negatively related to Conscientiousness, Honesty-Humility, Extraversion, Agreeableness, and job satisfaction. The findings offer support for the validity of the CIPS-10

The creating force of minority dissent:A motivated information processing perspective

Sometimes social influence processes are the driving force behind the creation of new products, services, and modes of conduct. In this paper we argue that minority dissent and its ensuing influence provides an example par excellence, and we reviewed and interpret findings on minority influence and creativity in terms of the motivated information processing in groups model (MIP-G model; De Dreu et al., 2008). In essence, we argue that minority dissent produces creativity and innovation when majority members have (a) high rather than low epistemic motivation and concomitant willingness to engage in deep and deliberate processing of information, and (b) a pro-social motivation and focus on group successes rather than personal outcomes. Evidence from both laboratory and organizational field research is discussed and practical implications as well as avenues for further research are highlighted