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Dyadic Influence Processes in Cultural Context: An Examination of Emotional Contagion Susceptibility in American and Indian IT Workers

Dyadic Influence Processes in Cultural Context: An Examination of Emotional Contagion Susceptibility in American and Indian IT Workers

Meagan Marie Zajac | 2020

Abstract

Few trends have received as much publicity or attention in managerial circles as the topic of managing diversity (Prasad & Mills, 1997). As the modern workplace becomes increasingly culturally dimensional, managers are faced with “innumerable tensions, conflicts, and contradictions” that management literature “tends to ignore or gloss over” (Prasad & Mills, 1997, p. 5). As previous research has demonstrated, these cultural contradictions and tensions can have significant work outcomes, impacting decision making, productivity, morale, and group cohesion (Barsade, 2001). As such, this research effort is intended to help address what Prasad and Mills (1997) referred to as a “significantly under researched and undertheorized phenomenon” by examining one of the many complexities that underlie workplace diversity—the relationship between dyadic influence and cultural disparity (p. 5). Using a previously validated psychometric instrument, this study quantitatively examined emotional contagion susceptibility across individualist and collectivist cultures, specifically Indian and American IT and software industry professionals. Testing the hypothesis that Indian IT workers will report statistically higher levels of emotional contagion susceptibility than American IT workers, this study administered the Emotional Contagion Scale (ECS) to 82 Indian IT workers and 88 American IT workers. Bivariate profiling methods, to include an independent samples t test were conducted. Research results indicated the test was highly significant thereby rejecting the null hypothesis and supporting the premise that Indian IT workers on average reported higher levels of emotional contagion susceptibility than American IT workers as measured by the ECS. These findings present a range of implications for both the theory and praxis of cross-cultural management and contemporary organizational behavior, not only addressing critical gaps in the literature but offering empirical evidence to inform management approaches and globally literate managers as well as contributing to constructive influence dynamics and organizational function in a culturally evolving workplace.

Management Best Practices for Business as Mission Organizations: A Case Study of GAJ Marketing in the Philippines

Management Best Practices for Business as Mission Organizations: A Case Study of GAJ Marketing in the Philippines

Thepiolus Herrera Aspiras | 2019

Abstract

The purpose of this qualitative study is to evaluate the operations of a Business as Mission, or BAM, organization to develop a list of best management practices promoting employee engagement for BAM practitioners. The study that was conducted centered on GAJ Marketing, a BAM organization in the Philippines, whose leaders are known to display great care and concern for their employees and staff. Interviews were conducted with the leadership, employees, and subcontractors of GAJ Marketing. A focus group session was also held with a group of subcontractors. A Tagalog/English interpreter was hired to facilitate the interviews, during which suggestions for interpreter-facilitated interviews provided by Williamson et al. (2011) were utilized. The process of epoche, phenomenological reduction and imaginative variation as discussed by Moustakas (1994), was used during the data-gathering portion of the study. During data analysis, the first coding cycle and second coding cycle involved identification of common themes within the dataset; Atlas.ti was then used to facilitate the remainder of the data analysis process. The result of the analysis process is a list of best management practices promoting employee engagement for BAM organizations.

Authentic Leaders, Employee Innovation, and Employee Creativity in Telecommunication Cooperatives

Authentic Leaders, Employee Innovation, and Employee Creativity in Telecommunication Cooperatives

Esther Bobo | 2019

Abstract

This study examined authentic leadership and its relationships with employee innovation and employee creativity within nonprofit telecommunication cooperatives. The goal of the study was to determine if authentic leadership positively influenced follower innovation and creativity. The participants included 80 nonmanagerial employees within two telecommunication cooperatives. A correlational research design was used to test for a positive relationship between authentic leadership, employee innovation, and employee creativity. The results showed that there was not a positive relationship between authentic leaders and employee innovation within nonprofit telecommunication cooperatives. Similarly, the results showed that there was not a positive relationship between authentic leaders and employee creativity within nonprofit telecommunication cooperatives. Implications of these findings are discussed, as well as strengths and weaknesses of the study. Future directions for studying authentic leadership, employee innovation, and employee creativity are suggested.

Servant Leadership: The Effects on Work-Family Conflict and Work-Family Positive Spillover

Servant Leadership: The Effects on Work-Family Conflict and Work-Family Positive Spillover

Daniel Cancino | 2019

Abstract

The research study examined the effect of servant leadership on work-family conflict and work-family positive spillover in the United States. The research study utilized previously tested scales including the Essential Servant Leadership Behaviors (ESLB) (Winston & Fields, 2015), Work-Family Conflict subscales:Time-Based Conflict (TBC), Strain-Based Conflict (SBC), Behavior-Based Conflict (BBC), (Carlson, Kacmar, & Williams, 2000), and Work-Family Positive Spillover Scale subcategories: Affective Positive Spillover (APS), Behavior-Based Positive Spillover (BBPS), and Value-Based Positive Spillover (VBPS) (Hanson, Hammer, & Colton, 2006) to examine the effect of servant leadership on conflict and positive spillover from the work to the family domain while controlling for age, gender, number of dependents, and years of work experience. The population sample was randomly selected and queried via Facebook and emails and included 121 male and female participants from a cross-sectional sample of the general population. The research results concluded that essential servant leadership behaviors demonstrated a significant effect on strain and behavior-based conflict as well as behavior-based positive spillover (BBPS), and value-based positive spillover (VBPS). Conversely, the research results failed to find significant correlation between essential servant leadership behaviors and time-based conflict or affective positive spillover.

Development of an Instrument to Measure Leadership Excellence

Development of an Instrument to Measure Leadership Excellence

Annette Twahirwa Kirabira | 2020

Abstract

The study focused on developing an instrument to measure leadership excellence. There is a need to see leadership excellence globally, but in Uganda or East Africa particularly, there are no assessment tools to measure this construct (Cooper, 2001; Dorfman, Javidan, Hanges, Dastmalchian, & House, 2012; Gutterman, 2009; Kiggundu, 1989, 1991). Leadership excellence is defined as being a result of exceptional performance in four dimensions—personal qualities of a leader, managerial behaviors of a leader, organizational demands, and environmental influences (Kanji & Moura E Sá, 2001; Selvarajah, Meyer, Nathan, & Donovan, 2013). DeVellis’ (2003, 2017) eight steps for scale development were followed in developing the instrument. A literature review was conducted, out of which 111 items were generated. The items were reviewed by a panel of experts and reduced to 87 items. An online survey with a 5-point scale was created and administered to 530 participants who scored the items based on the extent to which they described leadership excellence based on their leadership experiences/encounters. The sample size was in alignment with DeVellis’ (2003) recommendation of a minimum of 300 participants for scale development. Factor analysis was conducted on 406 participant results after cleaning the data; a two-factor model emerged, accounting for 66% of the variance. Factor optimization resulted in a two-scale instrument; the two scales were labelled leader qualities and leadership behavior. The process generated six items per scale of The Leadership Excellence Instrument with Cronbach’s alpha of .947 and .949 for each scale, respectively. The Leadership Excellence Instrument can be used in hiring, organizational development, and future research to inform how leadership excellence may be assessed in various settings and cultures.

Emotional Intelligence as a Moderator of the Relationship Between Followership Behavior and Influence Ability

Emotional Intelligence as a Moderator of the Relationship Between Followership Behavior and Influence Ability

Lavoy Love | 2020

Abstract

The study of organizational leadership focused on a leader’s ability to influence followers (Humphrey, 2002). Goleman (1998) asserted leadership used emotional intelligence ability to affect influence as part of the leadership process. With the emergence of followership research, Kelley (1992) contended effective followers possessed attributes similar to those of effective leadership. This study extended research informing the similarities between leadership and followership behavior founded on literature supporting the congruence between effective leadership and exemplary followership behaviors (Kelley, 1992), the existence of a relationship between followership and emotional intelligence (Nicolet, 2014), and the existence of a relationship between leader emotional intelligence and influence ability (Hong, 2016). This study investigated the moderating effect of emotional intelligence on the relationship between followership behavior and influence ability. Followership behaviors consisted of the courage to assume responsibility, the courage to serve, the courage to challenge, the courage to participate in transformation, and the courage to take moral action (Chaleff, 1995). This study included the use of online surveys to collect data from 116 members of an online community of leaders and aspiring leaders. The survey instrument informed follower behavior, as measured by the Followership Profile (E. N. Dixon, 2003); an emotional intelligence score, as measured by the Schutte Self-Report Emotional Intelligence Test (Schutte, Malouff, & Bhullar, 2009); and participant influence sophistication, as measured by the Cialdini Influence Quiz (Cialdini & Goldstein, 2004). Bivariate correlational analyses provided support for positive relationships between followership and emotional intelligence along with followership and influence. Furthermore, a multiple regression procedure supported the statistical significance of the moderating effects of emotional intelligence. This research resulted in findings supportive of the similar nature of leadership and effective followership. However, an opportunity emerged from the findings as leadership informed a relational process, while followership manifested itself as a behavioral relationship linked to the leadership process through a complementary and supportive interactive role.

The Relationship between Professional Identity and the State of Flow in Adjunct Faculty Leaders

The Relationship between Professional Identity and the State of Flow in Adjunct Faculty Leaders

Kristan M. Price Mason | 2020

Abstract

A phenomenological bounded case study was performed, which involved interviewing seven adjunct leaders to address two research questions, in order to understand the relationship between professional identity and the capacity to achieve the state of flow among adjunct faculty leaders in higher education. After answering questions to indicate; (a) professional affiliation identifying with their role as an adjunct, and (b) achieving flow in their position, participants answered 10 open-ended questions during an individual interview. The findings of this study suggest that adjunct leaders serve as leaders in academia as; (a) lifelong learners, (b) knowledge workers, and most often (c) serve in multiple work roles along with their peers. The shared characteristics amongst adjunct leaders who achieve flow per the findings of this study include but are not limited to; (a) an authentic leadership style, (b) a high standard for self, (c) a desire/passion for teaching, and (d) an investment in students. This research contributes to the existing literature on the role of adjunct instructors in higher education. In this study two existing gaps in the literature on adjunct instructors are also addressed which includes, (a) the leadership role undertaken by the academic adjuncts along with their faculty peers, and (b) the relationship between professional identity and achievement of flow among adjunct leaders. The intent of this study is to contribute to the existing literature by identifying self-motivated, engaged adjunct professors, and discerning common traits in their professional identity, and its relationship to their capacity to experience a state of flow as leaders.

The Organizational Impact of Fair Process on Perceptions of Integrity and Trust Within the Salvation Army in Canada

The Organizational Impact of Fair Process on Perceptions of Integrity and Trust Within the Salvation Army in Canada

Andrew John Morgan | 2020

Abstract

The organizational communication concept of fair process offers organizational members a voice in decision making, improves the sharing of information around decision making, and facilitates clarification of decisions made within the organization. Kim and Mauborgne’s (1997, 2003, 2005) three-part fair process model features engagement, explanation, and expectation clarity. Kim and Mauborgne’s model aligns with the three categories of Daly and Geyer’s (1994) Procedural Fairness, Employee Voice, and Justification scale. This research investigated a correlation model proposing relationships between the fair process communication dimensions of procedural fairness, employee voice, and justification (independent variables) and perceived leader integrity and perceived leader trust (dependent variables). The study employed a nonexperimental, cross-sectional quantitative approach to investigate the research hypotheses. The data collection methodology and sample were designed to focus on Salvation Army officer leaders in Canada and yielded a data sample of 162 participants. The results indicate that fair process expectation clarity (procedural fairness) is a predictor of both perceived leader integrity and perceived leader trust and that engagement (employee voice) is a predictor of perceived leader trust. Explanation (justification) was not found to be a predictor of perceived leader integrity or perceived leader trust. Discussion of theoretical and practical implications and operational relevance and insight for The Salvation Army is offered from the results of the study. The conclusion reviews limitations to this study and recommendations for future research. This study marks an important contribution to the body of knowledge by offering a never before researched organizational impact of fair process on perceptions of leader integrity and perceptions of leader trust.

Keywords: fair process, organizational communication, integrity, trust, engagement, explanation, expectation clarity, procedural fairness, employee voice, justification

Building an Ethical Backbone: Leadership and Virtue as Antecedents of Moral Courage and the Moderating Effects of Ethical Disengagement

Building an Ethical Backbone: Leadership and Virtue as Antecedents of Moral Courage and the Moderating Effects of Ethical Disengagement

Tom Morris | 2020

Abstract

Because of the current ethical and moral pressures facing contemporary organizations and leaders (ECI, 2018), this dissertation was designed to add to the empirical research surrounding the area of moral courage. According to Detert and Bruno (2017), little is understood by both practitioners and researchers about the antecedents of moral courage. However, because of the potential professional and personal threats that may come with making individual ethical decisions, training opportunities remain a challenging target for Human Resource and Development (HRD) professionals. In order for individuals to make the best moral decisions in their daily work environment, they will need to possess a moral backbone developed through authentic leaders and virtuous organizations. Using Detert and Bruno’s (2017) classification of antecedents, the following research argues for the antecedents of authentic leadership and virtuous organizations, along with the moderator of the propensity to morally disengage as predictors of moral courage. Participants consisted of 213 adults who have enrolled in a leadership development seminar through a U.S. non-profit training organization. A cross-sectional, quantitative, nonexperimental research design was used to perform hierarchical multiple regression analysis on the hypotheses while controlling for age and gender. Findings indicated partial support for authentic leadership and organizational virtue as antecedents of moral courage with the propensity to morally disengage behaving as a moderator. Implications for HRD professionals, along with suggestions for future research, are included.

The Role of Leadership in the Social Resilience of Alabama Churches Impacted by Natural Disaster

The Role of Leadership in the Social Resilience of Alabama Churches Impacted by Natural Disaster

Elizabeth Ashley Newcomb | 2020

Abstract

The success of an organization depends on many factors, including relationships. Organizational success is impacted by such relationships as those between leaders and followers within the organization, the relationships between the organization and other organizations, the relationship between the organization and the environment, and the relationships between the organization and the community. In addition to the overall success, these relationships also impact the social resilience of the organization. The social resilience of an organization is determined by how the organization processes a threat presented by the environment, such as a natural disaster, and how the organization survives, evolves, and even thrives after the event. This dissertation examined the behavior of leaders within socially resilient organizations to determine which leadership behaviors were associated with organizational social resilience. By using a phenomenological approach in which six participants were interviewed using qualitative methodology, a picture was formed of leadership behavior from two mainstream evangelical Christian churches. Both of these mainstream evangelical churches were located in Wetumpka, Alabama, and experienced catastrophic destruction through a tornadic event occurring on January 19, 2019. Through interviewing three participants from each organization, fifteen meta-themes emerged as related to the behavior of senior pastors leading socially resilience organizations. These meta-themes included: (a) acts of faith, (b) acts of service, (c) charity, (d) acceptance/inclusion, (e) consistency/continuity, (f) openness, (g) shared identity, (h) community involvement, (i) rapid response, (j) communication, (k) interpersonal connection, (l) encouragement, (m) corporate worship, (n) decision-making, and (o) empowering followers. Although additional research is needed to confirm the findings and examine further generalizability, this study serves to fill a gap in the literature regarding the role of organizational leadership in organizational social resilience.