Trash-Talking: Competitive Incivility Motivates Rivalry, Performance, and Unethical Behavior

Trash-talking increases the psychological stakes of competition and motivates targets to outperform their opponents. In Studies 1 and 2, participants in a competition who were targets of trash-talking outperformed participants who faced the same economic incentives, but were not targets of trash-talking. Perceptions of rivalry mediate the relationship between trash-talking and effort-based performance. In Study 3, we find that targets of trash-talking were particularly motivated to punish their opponents and see them lose. In Study 4, we identify a boundary condition, and show that trash-talking increases effort in competitive interactions, but incivility decreases effort in cooperative interactions. In Study 5, we find that targets of trash-talking were more likely to cheat in a competition than were participants who received neutral messages. In Study 6, we demonstrate that trash-talking harms performance when the performance task involves creativity. Taken together, our findings reveal that trash-talking is a common workplace behavior that can foster rivalry and motivate both constructive and destructive behavior

Over or Under? The Motivational Implications of an Underdog Image.

Underdogs are pervasive in competitive and organizational settings, but their theoretical understanding is limited. I build on several fragmented and disparate literatures to understand how being perceived as an underdog impacts employee motivation. Whereas existing research suggests that the low expectations of others are threatening, I contribute to existing theory and research by suggesting that an underdog image has the potential to motivate employees through the desire to prove others wrong and prove oneself right. However, I suggest that whether each of these motives is experienced depends on the characteristics of an underdog image, constituents and competitors. This perspective offers insights into how and why people may be motivated from being perceived as an underdog by others, and considers its consequences for employees. I discuss theoretical implications for research on expectations, motivation, competition, and self-verification.PHDBusiness AdministrationUniversity of Michigan, Horace H. Rackham School of Graduate Studieshttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/107335/1/snurmo_1.pd

time and punishment

Do time delays increase punishment severity? Yes, for the most part

Encouraging Employees To Report Unethical Conduct Internally: It Takes A Village

Via three studies of varying methodologies designed to complement and build upon each other, we examine how supervisory ethical leadership is associated with employees\u27 reporting unethical conduct within the organization (i.e., internal whistle-blowing). We also examine whether the positive effect of supervisory ethical leadership is enhanced by another important social influence: coworkers\u27 ethical behavior. As predicted, we found that employees\u27 internal whistle-blowing depends on an ethical tone being set by complementary social influence sources at multiple organizational levels (both supervisory and coworker levels), leading us to conclude that it takes a village to support internal whistle-blowing. Also, this interactive effect was found to be mediated by a fear of retaliation in two studies but not by perceptions of futility. We conclude by identifying theoretical and practical implications of our research. © 2013 Elsevier Inc

Sex-specific cardiovascular comorbidities with associations in dermatologic and rheumatic disorders

Cardiology, dermatology, and rheumatology form a fascinating triad. Many skin and joint disorders are associated with cardiovascular comorbidities because they share etiologic elements. Female predominance is often remarkable and likely related to autoimmune pathology. Although studies have shown that X-encoded genes may be involved in the differences in immunity between males and females, other studies have also shown that sex chromosomes are irrelevant and that estrogens and androgens are responsible for the differences. The elevated immune activity in females provides a beneficial position in coping with a pathogenic stimulus but may also enhance their susceptibility to autoimmunity. The complexity of the immune system and its role as a defensive force against infection requires an armamentarium to precisely identify and selectively control inflammatory processes or cells which promote atherosclerosis. On the other hand, the inflammation in skin diseases seems to be an active source of diverse proinflammatory cytokines and chemokines which can predispose to cardiovascular comorbidities. Also, it has been shown that comorbidity disproportionately accelerates risk in women. The skin offers a readily available window to facilitate detection of risk factors or even to assist the diagnostic process regarding a variety of disorders, including those with cardiovascular involvement. Current imaging techniques provide exquisite capabilities for diagnosing and possibly even counteracting atherosclerotic plaque formation, before serious cardiovascular events occur. Combining imaging approaches (such as videocapillaroscopy, intravascular ultrasound, and FDG positron emission tomography) with insights based on immunology will likely accelerate advances in this area. We review major dermatologic manifestations and rheumatologic disorders which are associated with cardiac and vascular abnormalities. In particular we discuss sex-specific aspects concerning incidence and severity of cardiovascular disease associated with systemic sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, psoriasis, atopic dermatitis, and hidradenitis suppurativa