"You can see how things will end by the way they begin". The contribution of early mutual obligations for the development of the psychological contract

This study explores dynamic processes in the development of the psychological contract, focusing on the interaction of obligations related to the two parties (i.e., employees' perceptions of both their own and the organization's obligations fulfillment) on attitudinal outcomes (organizational commitment and turnover intention) during the initial stage of the employment relationship. In a twofold cross-sectional and two-wave study on newly hired correctional police officers, we examined: (a) whether perception of organizational obligations fulfillment moderates the relationship between employee obligations and their attitudes (Study 1, n.500); (b) the direct and moderated influence of perceived obligations at the entrance stage on those in the following months (Study 2, n.223). Results confirmed that, in the eyes of the newcomer, the obligations fulfillment of each of the two parties interact, having an additional effect beyond the main direct effects, in influencing both subsequent obligations perceptions and, through this, the outcome variables. Theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed

Reflexivity and flexibility: Complementary routes to innovation?

Flexibility and reflexivity are essential processes for organisational innovation. The aim of the paper is to investigate their concurrent and interactive contribution in enhancing two innovation outcomes (the organisational openness towards innovation and the actual innovation adoption). Participants were 357 Italian employees. Results of a hierarchical regression model showed the role of both factors in fostering the two innovation outcomes under study. In addition, results showed the complementary interaction of reflexivity and flexibility, outlining two possible routes to innovation. Specifically, reflexivity appears to be a generative learning process capable of encouraging innovation in low-flexibility conditions, whereas flexibility tends to encourage innovation in low-reflexivity conditions. The findings provide empirical support of their roles as complementary resources for innovation, which has been under-examined in the literature

Organizational capital: a resource for changing and performing in Public Administrations

The aim of this study was to deepen our knowledge about the role played by organizational capital (OC) among public administration (PA) agencies. A questionnaire was administered to a gender-balanced convenience sample of 270 workers of Italian PAs. First, confirmatory factor analysis was performed in order to examine the measurement model. Second, a SEM model was performed, confirming that OC was both directly and indirectly positively related to performance, through the mediation of innovation. OC was also positively related to innovation through the mediation of clarity about change. Overall, the results supported the hypothesized model, providing initial evidence on the pivotal role OC plays, and especially for PA agencies, on organizational innovation and performance. The limits and practical implications of these results are discussed

Editorial: management of intangible assets among non-profit organizations: challenges and peculiarities

Editorial on the Research Topi

Error orientation at work: Dimensionality and relationships with errors and organizational cultural factors

Making errors represents a stressful event, and the way errors are dealt with are significantly influenced by individuals’ error orientation. Drawing on the stress literature, scholars have identified several dimensions underpinning error orientation construct. Nevertheless, empirical studies have overlooked the construct complexity and do not provide clear theoretical anchors for its operationalization. This study aims to contribute to the error orientation literature by proposing and empirically testing a theoretical framework that integrates stress and attitude theories, on a sample of 443 employees. Specifically, we examined the error orientation facets’ relationships with both two Hofstede’s cultural factors (i.e., power distance and uncertainty avoidance) and work errors (i.e., slips/lapses and mistakes types). Findings from the test of alternative models and from a structural equation model showed the uniqueness of each facet, also in relation to additional study variables, supporting the relevance of adopting this twofold theoretical framework in order to better understand the nature of each facet

La propensione al pensiero complesso

Obiettivo del presente lavoro è costruire e validare uno strumento di propensione al pensiero complesso (Avallone, Pescatori, Scanzani, 1994), ovvero volto a misurare il grado di condivisione che i soggetti esprimono su alcune modalità di analisi e valutazione della realtà che sono assunte come espressione di complessità cognitiva. A tal fine si è ipotizzato che il pensiero complesso sia un costrutto multidimensionale riferibile a sette dimensioni. Il campione considerato è costituito da 1.515 soggetti residenti sul territorio nazionale (Italia). Le proprietà psicometriche del questionario sono state esaminate mediante l’analisi fattoriale esplorativa, analisi fattoriale confermativa e attendibilità. L’analisi fattoriale confermativa ha corroborato la coerenza interna delle scale fattoriali e la loro distinzione. I risultati evidenziano la multidimensionalità del questionario riconducibile alle sette dimensioni ipotizzate

Bringing social interaction at the core of organizational neuroscience

Organizations are composed of individuals working together for achieving specific goals, and interpersonal dynamics do exert a strong influence on workplace behaviour. Nevertheless, the dual and multiple perspective of interactions has been scarcely considered by Organizational Neuroscience (ON), the emerging field of study that aims at incorporating findings from cognitive and brain sciences into the investigation of organizational behaviour. This perspective article aims to highlight the potential benefits of adopting experimental settings involving two or more participants (the so-called "second person" approach) for studying the neural bases of organizational behaviour. Specifically, we stress the idea that moving beyond the individual perspective and capturing the dynamical relationships occurring within dyads or groups (e.g., leaders and followers, salespersons and clients, teams) might bring novel insights into the rising field of ON. In addition, designing research paradigms that reliably recreate real work and life situations might increase the generalizability and ecological validity of its results. We start with a brief overview of the current state of ON research and we continue by describing the second-person approach to social neuroscience. In the last paragraph, we try and outline how this approach could be extended to ON. To this end, we focus on leadership, group processes and emotional contagion as potential targets of interpersonal ON research

“Yes, I Can”: the protective role of personal self-efficacy in hindering counterproductive work behavior under stressful conditions

Within the stressor-emotion model, counterproductive work behavior (CWB) is considered a possible result of stress. It is well-known that self-efficacy mitigates the detrimental effects of stress and the stressor-strain relation. We aim to extend the stressor-emotion model of CWB by examining the additive and moderating role of work and regulatory emotional self-efficacy dimensions

An Integrative Approach to Understanding Counterproductive Work Behavior: The Roles of Stressors, Negative Emotions, and Moral Disengagement

Several scholars have highlighted the importance of examining moral disengagement (MD) in understanding aggression and deviant conduct across different contexts. The present study investigates the role of MD as a specific social-cognitive construct that, in the organizational context, may intervene in the process leading from stressors to counterproductive work behavior (CWB). Assuming the theoretical framework of the stressor-emotion model of CWB, we hypothesized that MD mediates, at least partially, the relation between negative emotions in reaction to perceived stressors and CWB by promoting or justifying aggressive responses to frustrating situations or events. In a sample of 1,147 Italian workers, we tested a structural equations model. The results support our hypothesis: the more workers experienced negative emotions in response to stressors, the more they morally disengaged and, in turn, enacted CW

Apprendere per le organizzazioni: Lo sviluppo delle risorse umane attraverso la formazione

Le conoscenze hanno da sempre rappresentato una risorsa di valore. È tut- tavia solo alla fine dello scorso secolo che i teorici delle organizzazioni le hanno poste a fondamento del vantaggio competitivo delle imprese (Fulmer & Ployhart, 2014). La concezione di valore per le organizzazioni è infatti mutata nel tempo, divenendo via via sempre più intangibile. Dalla centralità delle ri- sorse materiali (es. materie prime, forza lavoro) come input del processo tra- sformativo tipica dell’era pre-industriale, si è passati in epoca tayloristica al va- lore della capacità progettuale e organizzativa del processo produttivo, ed in seguito (in epoca modernista) al valore relazionale e di posizione dell’organizzazione come parte di un network, fino alla centralità delle cono- scenze e del capitale intellettuale che caratterizza l’epoca attuale (Lipparini, 2002). Le conoscenze sono diventate la principale qualità delle risorse umane, e nel loro insieme e varietà – es. saperi, esperienza, skill tecniche, accesso alle in- formazioni, competenze relazionali, capacità di soluzione di problemi e deci- sione – costituiscono il capitale intellettuale dell’organizzazione (Lipparini, 2002), ed anche il principale contenuto di valore che i beni-servizi incorporano (es. know-how, pratiche operative, routine) (Gherardi & Nicolini, 2004). Inoltre le conoscenze sono alla base della capacità di innovare