The influence of job insecurity on performance outcomes among Chinese, German and U.S. employees : evidence from self-reported and observational studies

Since the 1980s our economy has been quickly evolving. Mergers, downsizing, privatizations and the recent economic crisis have exposed employees to a growing sense of uncertainty about their job future. Both quantitative and qualitative job insecurity has been linked to numerous negative performance and health outcomes for employees, negatively impacting organizations. Negative effects include burnout, reduced work engagement and decreased safety motivation and compliance. Most studies on job insecurity only look at one country, usually a Western country, and rely exclusively on self-reports. Therefore, the aims of the present research (including two studies) are to a) examine both qualitative and quantitative job insecurity in different cultural contexts, including an Eastern country and b) include behavioural measures to performance outcomes. Studies carried out before the economic crisis found more negative performance outcomes associated with job insecurity in collectivistic compared with individualistic cultures. The question arises whether the change in the economic environment since the economic crisis caused a change in the influence of job insecurity in Western as compared to Eastern countries. Thus, in the first study, the consequences of job insecurity for employees in the contexts of the U.S. were examined (N=969), where the crisis began, Germany (N=374), which is still affected by the subsequent Euro debt crisis, and China (N=205), which was initially mostly unaffected by the crisis but whose economy is currently experiencing a slowdown. Understanding the influence of job insecurity on employees’ performance in different national contexts is necessary for organizations to be successful and thrive. Two important performance outcomes are creativity and cognitive errors. Employees’ creativity can generate new ideas for products and procedures, which is a competitive advantage for organizations. In contrast, making and not detecting cognitive errors before they cause harm can reduce employees’ own and other people’s safety. Results of making and not detecting cognitive errors may include workplace injuries not only posing a threat to employees, but also to people around them, which can lead to significant costs for organizations. A theoretical model was developed and examined in which it was hypothesized that job insecurity influences those performance outcomes through burnout and work engagement. In the second study conducted in China (N=148), the first study was taken a step further and included observational data to investigate the relationship between performance outcomes and job insecurity. An error detection task was developed by adapting an established creativity test to examine whether the same results from the first study can be obtained using behavioural measures. In the first study, results supported the existence of cross-cultural differences in the relationship between performance outcomes and job insecurity. The second study showed similar results for self-report and observational data. To conclude, for organizations to be successful, it is highly important to understand performance outcomes of job insecurity in different national contexts and to implement measures to help employees cope with job insecurity in order to prevent negative consequences

Job insecurity : cross-cultural comparison between Germany and China

Purpose – The recent economic crisis gave rise to job insecurity and had a seemingly greater effect on western than eastern countries. The purpose of this paper is to examine cross-cultural differences of the influence of job insecurity on employees’ wellbeing, innovative work behaviour (IWB) and safety outcomes in the form of attention-related cognitive errors (ARCES) in Germany as compared to mainland China. Design/methodology/approach – Samples from both Germany and China rate their job insecurity, work engagement, burnout, IWB and ARCES in a survey. Findings – For both German and Chinese employees there was an indirect relationship between job insecurity and ARCES through burnout. In the German sample, there was an indirect relationship between employees’ job insecurity and IWB through work engagement. In contrast, the Chinese sample only showed the direct relationship between quantitative job insecurity and IWB, but not a mediation effect. Practical implications – For organizations to be effective and their employees to work safely, it is essential to understand the nature and process of job insecurity in different national contexts. Originality/value – The present research is unique by relating job insecurity to employee’ innovation on the one hand and safety outcomes on the other. Furthermore, these relationships are examined in the cultural contexts of Germany and China, contributing to the gap of research carried out in eastern contexts

Human Error: The Impact of Job Insecurity on Attention-Related Cognitive Errors and Error Detection

(1) Background: Work-related stress is a major contributor to human error. One significant workplace stressor is job insecurity, which has been linked to an increased likelihood of experiencing burnout. This, in turn, might affect human error, specifically attention-related cognitive errors (ARCES) and the ability to detect errors. ARCES can be costly for organizations and pose a safety risk. Equally detrimental effects can be caused by failure to detect errors before they can cause harm. (2) Methods: We gathered self-report and behavioral data from 148 employees working in educational, financial and medical sectors in China. We designed and piloted an error detection task in which employees had to compare fictitious customer orders to deliveries of an online shop. We tested for indirect effects using the PROCESS macro with bootstrapping (3) Results: Our findings confirmed indirect effects of job insecurity on both ARCES and the ability to detect errors via burnout. (4) Conclusions: The present research shows that job insecurity influences making and detecting errors through its relationship with burnout. These findings suggest that job insecurity could increase the likelihood for human error with potential implications for employees’ safety and the safety of others

The psychometric properties of the grit-o scale within the twente region in Netherlands : an ICM-CFA vs. ESEM approach

The purpose of this study was to examine the psychometric properties (i.e., factorial validity, measurement invariance, and reliability) of the Grit-Original scale (Grit-O) within the Netherlands. The Grit-O scale was subjected to a competing measurement modeling strategy that sequentially compared both independent cluster model confirmatory factor analytical- and exploratory structural equation modeling approaches. The results showed that both a two first order, bi-factor structure as well as a less restrictive two factor ESEM factorial structure best-fitted the data. The instrument showed to be reliable at both a lower- (Cronbach’s alpha) and upperlevel (composite reliability) limit. However, measurement invariance between genders could only be established for the B-ICM-CFA model. Finally, concurrent validity was established through relating the GRIT-O to task performance. The linear use of the Grit-O scale should therefore carefully be considered.The Optentia Research Programme of the North-West University as well as the National Research Foundation’s Rated Researcher Incentive Fund.http://www.frontiersin.org/Psychologyam2020Human Resource Managemen

Human Error: The Impact of Job Insecurity on Attention-Related Cognitive Errors and Error Detection

(1) Background: Work-related stress is a major contributor to human error. One significant workplace stressor is job insecurity, which has been linked to an increased likelihood of experiencing burnout. This, in turn, might affect human error, specifically attention-related cognitive errors (ARCES) and the ability to detect errors. ARCES can be costly for organizations and pose a safety risk. Equally detrimental effects can be caused by failure to detect errors before they can cause harm. (2) Methods: We gathered self-report and behavioral data from 148 employees working in educational, financial and medical sectors in China. We designed and piloted an error detection task in which employees had to compare fictitious customer orders to deliveries of an online shop. We tested for indirect effects using the PROCESS macro with bootstrapping (3) Results: Our findings confirmed indirect effects of job insecurity on both ARCES and the ability to detect errors via burnout. (4) Conclusions: The present research shows that job insecurity influences making and detecting errors through its relationship with burnout. These findings suggest that job insecurity could increase the likelihood for human error with potential implications for employees' safety and the safety of others.status: publishe