The Importance of Being Psychologically Empowered: Buffering the Negative Effects of Employee Perceptions of Leader-Member Exchange Differentiation

Although differentiated relationships among leaders and their followers are fundamental to Leader-Member Exchange (LMX) theory, research provides limited knowledge about whether employees’ responses to individual perceptions of LMX differentiation are uniform. In a field study, we examined whether individual-level psychological empowerment buffers the negative relationship between perceived LMX differentiation and job satisfaction, and found that the negative relationship is strongest under low employee psychological empowerment conditions, as compared to high psychological empowerment. Furthermore, in a multi-wave field study and an experiment, we extended these initial findings by investigating employees’ perceptions of supervisory fairness as a mediator of this moderated relationship. We found that the indirect effect between perceived LMX differentiation and job satisfaction, through supervisory fairness perceptions, is strongest under low employee psychological empowerment, as compared to high psychological empowerment. Collectively, our findings showcase the importance of psychological empowerment as a tool for employees to use to counteract the negative effect of perceived differentiated contexts

Serum Response Factor Regulates Immediate Early Host Gene Expression in Toxoplasma gondii-Infected Host Cells

Toxoplasma gondii is a wide spread pathogen that can cause severe and even fatal disease in fetuses and immune-compromised hosts. As an obligate intracellular parasite, Toxoplasma must alter the environment of its host cell in order to establish its replicative niche. This is accomplished, in part, by secretion of factors into the host cell that act to modulate processes such as transcription. Previous studies demonstrated that genes encoding transcription factors such as c-jun, junB, EGR1, and EGR2 were amongst the host genes that were the most rapidly upregulated following infection. In cells stimulated with growth factors, these genes are regulated by a transcription factor named Serum Response Factor. Serum Response Factor is a ubiquitously expressed DNA binding protein that regulates growth and actin cytoskeleton genes via MAP kinase or actin cytoskeletal signaling, respectively. Here, we report that Toxoplasma infection leads to the rapid activation of Serum Response Factor. Serum Response Factor activation is a Toxoplasma-specific event since the transcription factor is not activated by the closely related protozoan parasite, Neospora caninum. We further demonstrate that Serum Response Factor activation requires a parasite-derived secreted factor that signals via host MAP kinases but independently of the host actin cytoskeleton. Together, these data define Serum Response Factor as a host cell transcription factor that regulates immediate early gene expression in Toxoplasma-infected cells

Using self-definition to predict the influence of procedural justice on organizational, interpersonal, and job/task-oriented citizenship behaviors

An integrative self-definition model is proposed to improve our understanding of how procedural justice affects different outcome modalities in organizational behavior. Specifically, it is examined whether the strength of different levels of self-definition (collective, relational, and individual) each uniquely interact with procedural justice to predict organizational, interpersonal, and job/task-oriented citizenship behaviors, respectively. Results from experimental and (both single and multisource) field data consistently revealed stronger procedural justice effects (1) on organizational-oriented citizenship behavior among those who define themselves strongly in terms of organizational characteristics, (2) on interpersonal-oriented citizenship behavior among those who define themselves strongly in terms of their interpersonal relationships, and (3) on job/task-oriented citizenship behavior among those who define themselves weakly in terms of their distinctiveness or uniqueness. We discuss the relevance of these results with respect to how employees can be motivated most effectively in organizational settings

Willing and able: action-state orientation and the relation between procedural justice and employee cooperation

Existing justice theory explains why fair procedures motivate employees to adopt cooperative goals, but it fails to explain how employees strive towards these goals. We study self-regulatory abilities that underlie goal striving; abilities that should thus affect employees’ display of cooperative behavior in response to procedural justice. Building on action control theory, we argue that employees who display effective self-regulatory strategies (action oriented employees) display relatively strong cooperative behavioral responses to fair procedures. A multisource field study and a laboratory experiment support this prediction. A subsequent experiment addresses the process underlying this effect by explicitly showing that action orientation facilitates attainment of the cooperative goals that people adopt in response to fair procedures, thus facilitating the display of actual cooperative behavior. This goal striving approach better integrates research on the relationship between procedural justice and employee cooperation in the self-regulation and the work motivation literature. It also offers organizations a new perspective on making procedural justice effective in stimulating employee cooperation by suggesting factors that help employees reach their adopted goals

Tcf7l2 is required for left-right asymmetric differentiation of habenular neurons.

BACKGROUND: Although left-right asymmetries are common features of nervous systems, their developmental bases are largely unknown. In the zebrafish epithalamus, dorsal habenular neurons adopt medial (dHbm) and lateral (dHbl) subnuclear character at very different frequencies on the left and right sides. The left-sided parapineal promotes the elaboration of dHbl character in the left habenula, albeit by an unknown mechanism. Likewise, the genetic pathways acting within habenular neurons to control their asymmetric differentiated character are unknown. RESULTS: In a forward genetic screen for mutations that result in loss of habenular asymmetry, we identified two mutant alleles of tcf7l2, a gene that encodes a transcriptional regulator of Wnt signaling. In tcf7l2 mutants, most neurons on both sides differentiate with dHbl identity. Consequently, the habenulae develop symmetrically, with both sides adopting a pronounced leftward character. Tcf7l2 acts cell automously in nascent equipotential neurons, and on the right side, it promotes dHbm and suppresses dHbl differentiation. On the left, the parapineal prevents this Tcf7l2-dependent process, thereby promoting dHbl differentiation. CONCLUSIONS: Tcf7l2 is essential for lateralized fate selection by habenular neurons that can differentiate along two alternative pathways, thereby leading to major neural circuit asymmetries

Strain-dependent host transcriptional responses to toxoplasma infection are largely conserved in mammalian and avian hosts

Toxoplasma gondii has a remarkable ability to infect an enormous variety of mammalian and avian species. Given this, it is surprising that three strains (Types I/II/III) account for the majority of isolates from Europe/North America. The selective pressures that have driven the emergence of these particular strains, however, remain enigmatic. We hypothesized that strain selection might be partially driven by adaptation of strains for mammalian versus avian hosts. To test this, we examine in vitro, strain-dependent host responses in fibroblasts of a representative avian host, the chicken (Gallus gallus). Using gene expression profiling of infected chicken embryonic fibroblasts and pathway analysis to assess host response, we show here that chicken cells respond with distinct transcriptional profiles upon infection with Type II versus III strains that are reminiscent of profiles observed in mammalian cells. To identify the parasite drivers of these differences, chicken fibroblasts were infected with individual F1 progeny of a Type II x III cross and host gene expression was assessed for each by microarray. QTL mapping of transcriptional differences suggested, and deletion strains confirmed, that, as in mammalian cells, the polymorphic rhoptry kinase ROP16 is the major driver of strain-specific responses. We originally hypothesized that comparing avian versus mammalian host response might reveal an inversion in parasite strain-dependent phenotypes; specifically, for polymorphic effectors like ROP16, we hypothesized that the allele with most activity in mammalian cells might be less active in avian cells. Instead, we found that activity of ROP16 alleles appears to be conserved across host species; moreover, additional parasite loci that were previously mapped for strain-specific effects on mammalian response showed similar strain-specific effects in chicken cells. These results indicate that if different hosts select for different parasite genotypes, the selection operates downstream of the signaling occurring during the beginning of the host's immune response. © 2011 Ong et al

Using the Mystery Motivator to Improve Child Bedtime Compliance

Child bedtime problems are commonly reported by parents. A number of behavioral techniques, including extinction of tantrum behaviors, reinforcement of compliant bedtime, and implementation of consistent bedtime routines have been successful in improving bedtime compliance. The present study examined the effects of the Mystery Motivator (MM), a behavioral contract designed to remediate bedtime problems by delivering random reinforcement. Emphasis was placed on the optimal use of clinical intervention by enlisting parents as primary change agents in the home setting. Three adults and their four children, aged 3-5 years, participated. Three of the four children showed substantial changes in both time out of bed and bedtime noncompliance between baseline and treatment phases. A fourth child showed less improvement. Parent participants demonstrated understanding of the materials and successfully implemented the home program. Both parent and child participants rated the Mystery Motivator reinforcement system as an acceptable intervention

Lhx2 and Lhx9 Determine Neuronal Differentiation and Compartition in the Caudal Forebrain by Regulating Wnt Signaling

Initial axial patterning of the neural tube into forebrain, midbrain, and hindbrain primordia occurs during gastrulation. After this patterning phase, further diversification within the brain is thought to proceed largely independently in the different primordia. However, mechanisms that maintain the demarcation of brain subdivisions at later stages are poorly understood. In the alar plate of the caudal forebrain there are two principal units, the thalamus and the pretectum, each of which is a developmental compartment. Here we show that proper neuronal differentiation of the thalamus requires Lhx2 and Lhx9 function. In Lhx2/Lhx9-deficient zebrafish embryos the differentiation process is blocked and the dorsally adjacent Wnt positive epithalamus expands into the thalamus. This leads to an upregulation of Wnt signaling in the caudal forebrain. Lack of Lhx2/Lhx9 function as well as increased Wnt signaling alter the expression of the thalamus specific cell adhesion factor pcdh10b and lead subsequently to a striking anterior-posterior disorganization of the caudal forebrain. We therefore suggest that after initial neural tube patterning, neurogenesis within a brain compartment influences the integrity of the neuronal progenitor pool and border formation of a neuromeric compartment

Parental rating of sleep in children with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder

Objective: Sleep problems have often been associated with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Parents of those with ADHD and children with ADHD report sleep difficulties more frequently than healthy children and their parents. The primary objective of this paper is to describe sleep patterns and problems of 5 to 11-year-old children suffering from ADHD as described by parental reports and sleep questionnaires. Method: The study included 321 children aged 5–11 years (average age 8.4 years); 45 were diagnosed with ADHD, 64 had other psychiatric diagnoses, and 212 were healthy. One hundred and ninety-six of the test subjects were boys and 125 were girls. A semi-structured interview (Kiddie-SADS-PL) was used to DSM-IV diagnose ADHD and comorbidity in the clinical group. Sleep difficulties were rated using a structured sleep questionnaire (Children Sleep Behaviour Scale). Results: Children diagnosed with ADHD had a significantly increased occurrence of sleep problems. Difficulties relating to bedtime and unsettled sleep were significantly more frequent in the ADHD group than in the other groups. Children with ADHD showed prolonged sleep onset latency, but no difference was shown regarding numbers of awakenings per night and total sleep time per night. Comorbid oppositional defiant disorder appeared not to have an added effect on problematic behaviour around bedtime. Conclusion: Parents of children with ADHD report that their children do not sleep properly more often than other parents. The ADHD group report problems with bedtime resistance, problems with sleep onset latency, unsettled sleep and nightmares more often than the control groups. It may therefore be relevant for clinicians to initiate a closer examination of those cases reporting sleep difficulties