According to organizational support theory (OST), the relationship between perceived organizational support (POS) and organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) is driven by social exchange mechanisms and mediated by felt obligation (Eisenberger, Armeli, Rexwinkel, Lynch, & Rhoades, 2001). This explanation may be incomplete or limited as well-established motivational concepts are omitted. A new conceptual model is described that extends OST by incorporating the several cognitive motivational concepts (e.g., behavioral intentions, self-efficacy) with the felt obligation concept. The proposed model is tested in two separate studies an experimental study of undergraduate students (N = 191) and a field study of nurses (N = 171). In the experiment, induced organizational support was found to significantly affect all the dependent variables, including POS, felt obligation, self-efficacy, and intentions. Results of structural equation modeling were generally supportive of the proposed model. POS was found to be positively and indirectly related to both self-efficacy and intentions, through felt obligation. Consistent with expectations, felt obligation was positively related to both self-efficacy and intentions, while self-efficacy was positively related to intentions. The felt obligation-OCB relation was fully mediated by self-efficacy and intentions. As predicted, a positive relationship between intention and OCB was observed. Contrary to expectations, POS was not directly related to self-efficacy. POS-felt obligation was significantly moderated by exchange ideology significantly in the experimental study only. These findings suggest that employees who feel obligated to the organization as a result of high perceived organizational support consider both their ability and form intentions to engage in OCBs before reciprocating. The results suggest that variance in felt obligation is associated with efficacy and goal states. The experimental study presented here successfully pioneers the use of vignettes to experimentally induce variance in POS. This research offers two contributions to theory. First, the present findings extend goal theory by demonstrating that felt obligation influences goal choice. Second, this research extends OST by integrating well-established motivational concepts with social exchange mechanisms to provide more detailed understanding of how POS is translated into OCB, and by demonstrating that reciprocation for POS is more conscious and deliberate than previously recognized. / Human Resource Management and Industrial Relations

Weick (2006) calls for researchers to investigate how employees ‘hold it together’ during periods when organizational routine and order are challenged. This thesis focuses on employee experiences during two types of organizational upheaval: periods of planned, large-scale organizational change and periods of organizational crisis triggered by external events. In both conditions, employees can react negatively. This leads to failure to cope with the current situation and with future situations that pose similar threats and challenges. On the other hand, if employees can make sense of a threatening, challenging situation, the outcomes are more positive for them as individuals and for the organization as a whole. Weick’s (1988) concept of sensemaking is used as a guiding framework for investigating the experiences, attitudes, and actions reported by employees in times of organizational change and crisis. The general assertion of the thesis is that the espoused and enacted values of an organization provide sensemaking cues to employees in difficult times. More specifically, the role of stated organizational values is examined. Organizational values are often stated as a set of principles that provide guidance for employees, particularly as part of a managing-by-values approach. The context for the research program is the healthcare industry, because values are very important for healthcare employees. Moreover, healthcare organizations must continue to function optimally during challenging conditions. Three research studies are reported. Study 1 was conducted in an Australian public hospital that was undergoing large-scale change. Thirty-five employees from a range of occupations were interviewed midway through the five-year period of change. Thematic analysis of their interviews revealed that employees mostly reported negative experiences of the change program. Furthermore, employees made sense of the change program by focusing on specific cues in their situation. One such cue was the organization’s strongly promoted set of ‘core values’. The stated values were seen to be a visible symbol of the hospital’s principles, but there were negative perceptions about how well these principles were enacted. Study 2 was conducted in a public hospital in Singapore exposed to a crisis situation due to the SARS virus in 2003. Thirty-one employees from a range of occupations were interviewed four months after the outbreak had ended. Twenty of these participants returned for a second interview, one week after the first interview. A card sort procedure and thematic analysis of the interview data were used to investigate employees’ experiences of the crisis. Results revealed that employees made sense of the crisis through identification with their profession and their organization. They also perceived that the hospital’s actions during the crisis were consistent with its written set of organizational values. In addition, employees identified a number of organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs) that they had shown during the crisis. Study 3 was conducted at three hospitals in Singapore. A pilot study involved 24 employees from a public hospital. They engaged in a focus group discussion about professionalism and they refined a set of hospital-specific employee behaviors that could potentially be classified as OCBs. The main study involved survey completion by a stratified sample of employees from another public hospital (n= 214) and from a private hospital (n=184). All respondents were invited to complete a second survey (measuring related variables) three weeks after the first survey. Analysis of 301 usable survey responses revealed findings that contribute to different literatures. Firstly, asking respondents to rate OCBs according to whether they were voluntary, unrewarded, and beneficial to the organization, revealed that many OCB items used in previous research were not perceived as being ‘true OCBs’ by the survey respondents. Furthermore, despite the use of many possible OCB dimensions, the true OCB items were factor analyzed into just two factors. One factor reflected OCBOs, which are behaviors directed towards the organization as a whole, while the other factor reflected OCBIs, which are behaviors directed towards other individuals. A second contribution is the suggestion that employees’ sense of ‘professionalism’ is a single construct. Survey respondents did not distinguish between professional identification and professional commitment in the same way as organizational identification and commitment were differentiated. Professionalism was weakly related to tendency to engage in OCBOs and more strongly related to tendency to engage in OCBIs. Finally, the main contribution to the values literature is the development of the concept of ‘organizational values integrity’ (OVI). This is conceptualized as the perceived alignment between organizational actions and organizational words, especially those words espoused in values statements. Structural equation modeling revealed that OVI influenced organizational identification and organizational commitment, which both mediated the impact of OVI on OCBOs. Furthermore, OVI had a direct impact on OCBOs. Overall, this thesis highlights employee perceptions that the organization acts in ways that are aligned to its stated values as important influences on employee attitudes and OCBs, particularly in difficult times. Implications for managerial practice and further research are discussed.

Work-life balance is a dominant discourse in contemporary Western society. It has been built on a language of large organizations, hence has not been widely considered in relation to the small-medium enterprise sector. As a consequence, scant research has been conducted on the experiences of immigrant entrepreneurs and work-life balance within the small-medium enterprise sector in New Zealand, a country largely populated with migrants and small businesses which account for 96 per cent of the total enterprises. This study aims to fill this gap by firstly exploring the interpretations of the concept of work-life balance by Chinese immigrant entrepreneurs and, secondly, the main challenges they face in achieving work-life balance. This is done by drawing on literatures including those on work-life balance, small-medium enterprises, and immigrant entrepreneurship theories. Primary research was conducted using a critical interpretive approach where the researcher is an insider to the study. This philosophical and methodological approach makes it possible to give a minority group a voice to effect social change and gain further research attention. Fifteen Chinese business owners, chosen from a variety of industries within the Auckland region, participated in this study. A qualitative methodological technique and semi-structured interviews were used to collect the data for the case study on these entrepreneurs. The results indicate that the majority do not enjoy a sense of work-life balance because they take on filial obligations important for their own culture. They need to work hard to generate financial profit for the benefit of family. About half of them work more than 60 hours per week and three works longer than 70 hours weekly. The motivation for them to work in this way is to provide their family with desirable housing and to enable their children to meet higher education goals. This study challenges the applicability of the work-life balance discourse among the immigrant entrepreneurs who perceive the concept differently based on their cultural values. The results emphasise the need for business case studies from Chinese immigrant entrepreneurs and research attention on contemporary human resource topics to be given to minority groups.

The purpose of this research is to identify the forces that impact the intention of employees to misuse the Internet at the workplace, called cyberloafing. Although cyberloafing literature has suggested several antecedents that predict cyberloafing such as job attitudes, organizational characteristics, work stressors, locus of control (Blanchard & Henle, 2008; Henle & Blanchard, 2008; Liberman, Seidman, McKenna, & Buffardi, 2011), this research adopted attitude, subjective norm, perceived behavioral control, and organizational citizenship behavior to predict the intention to cyberloaf. Additionally, this research adopted organizational justice and the mechanisms of general deterrence theory as moderating variables to better understand the relationship between attitude, subjective norm, perceived behavioral control, organizational citizenship behavior, and the intention to cyberloaf. We believe it is essential to investigate the antecedents of cyberloafing to help predict its existence and occurrence. The existing research, which examined employees' abuse of the Internet, remains greatly atheoretical; thus, it supplies limited insights to researchers as to why cyberloafing continues to take place (Lim, 2002). It is important to recognize what motivates employees to engage in cyberloafing for organizations to implement specific polices and intervention programs to limit or deter its occurrence. This is necessary, as employees' abuse of the Internet can negatively affect an organization through decreased profitability, reduced productivity levels, and exposure to a diverse range of legal liabilities (Liberman et al., 2011). The results of the study showed that an employee's attitude and subjective norm can significantly predict his or her intention to engage in cyberloafing. Both of the dimensions of general deterrence theory (punishment severity and certainty) significantly moderated the relationship between attitude, subjective norm, and the intention to cyberloaf. Additionally, punishment severity significantly moderated the relationship between perceived behavioral control and the intention to cyberloaf. From this study, we concluded that cyberloafing is a social phenomenon that needs to be studied further to fully comprehend the organizational contexts, motivational factors, and consequences. Our study should be analyzed as a positive step toward learning the key components that can influence employees' intentions to abuse the Internet in the workplace.

This study was an investigation of the relationship between subordinates' perceptions of the quality of the leader-member exchange (LMX) relationship and their willingness to engage in organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) and organizational commitment (OC). Differences in subordinates' perceptions of the quality of the LMX with their supervisor according to the gender of the supervisor compared to the employee (same sex vs. different sex) and dyadic duration of the LMX were also investigated. The possible moderation of dyadic duration on the relationship between subordinates' perception of the quality of the LMX and their willingness to engage in OCB and OC were also investigated. Lastly, the possible moderation of gender on the relationship between subordinates' perception of the quality of the LMX and their willingness to engage in OCB and OC were also investigated. This study surveyed direct service subordinate staff currently employed at a large rehabilitation organization in the Midwest. Results of research questions (RQ) one through eight are as follows: No significant correlation, r = .15, p = .35 for RQ1, significant correlation for RQ2, r = .38, p =.01, no significant correlation, r = .14, p = .38, for RQ3, no significant correlation, r = .30, p = .05 for RQ4, RQ5 model one was not significant, R2 = .10, F (2,38) = 2.21, p = .12, model two was significant, R2 = .19, F (3, 37) = 2.86, p = .05, RQ6 model one was significant, R2 = .26, F (2, 38) = 7.59, p = .002, model two was significant, R2 = .34, F (3, 37) = 6.34, p = .001, RQ7 model one was not significant, R2 = .10, F (2, 38) = 2.21, p = .12, model two was not significant, R2= .16, F (3, 37) = 2.31, p = .09, and RQ8 model one was significant, R2 = .26, F (2, 38) = 7.59, p = .002, model two was significant, R2 = .32, F (3, 37) = 5.98, p = .002. A summary of results and limitations and delimitations of the study are discussed, as well as implications and directions for future research.

This study explores the gendered nature of OCB effects by examining communal and agentic forms of OCB (altruism and civic virtue, respectively), as well as the possible effects of not performing gendered OCBs on performance appraisals and related job outcomes. Using employee evaluation based scenarios which included task performance and OCBs (altruism/civic virtue; engage/disengage/no OCB), participants (N= 306) rated the job performance of a female or male employee. Employees engaged in OCBs experienced higher performance evaluations than did employees in scenarios which did not contain OCB information or scenarios in which employees disengaged in OCB. Employees who engaged in OCB, despite gender, were rated similarly. Gender differences were found in the disengaging of OCB but directions were contrary to the past research and theories. In this study, employees incurred lower evaluations when disengaging in gender incongruent OCB in comparison to disengaging in gender congruent OCB. The findings of this study are two-fold. First, in comparison to past research, the results of this study present positive possibilities for women and men who engage in the OCBs of altruism and civic virtue. Second, the results on disengagement suggest more research needs to be conducted to explore evaluations of employees disengaging in gender incongruent OCBs.

Job stress has been associated with lower levels of job satisfaction in the workplace, and the economic performance of organizations is directly affected by employee job satisfaction. Five job stressors in particular (work-home conflict, invasion of privacy, work overload, role ambiguity, and job insecurity) have been shown to contribute the most to job stress. Organizations with high job satisfaction rates are more likely to have lower turnover, fewer accidents, higher customer satisfaction scores, and better performance. This study contributes to the literature by examining the mediating role of emotional intelligence and organizational citizenship behavior on the relationship between job stress and job satisfaction. Panel data was collected using Qualtrics and Amazon Mechanical Turk. Utilizing PLS-SEM, it was found that the named job stressors do contribute to job stress, job stress does negatively affect job satisfaction, and this relationship is partially mediated by both emotional intelligence and organizational citizenship behavior. Discussion of future research regarding job satisfaction is included.

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado do Rio de Janeiro / Neste estudo foram verificadas as implicações da gestão por competências nos comportamentos de cidadania organizacional (CCO) e no comprometimento organizacional. Buscamos verificar até que ponto os modelos de gestão de pessoas baseados em competências podem influenciar positiva ou negativamente os CCO e o comprometimento, ou seja, até que ponto estas práticas funcionam como um elemento que estimula ou auxilia na desintegração, reduzindo a adoção dos comportamentos de cidadania organizacional e também o comprometimento com a organização. A pesquisa foi realizada em uma organização multinacional fabricante de produtos óticos, que utiliza os modelos de gestão baseados em competências para seleção, avaliação e remuneração variável de seus funcionários há três anos. Para investigação do comprometimento organizacional adotamos como referencial o Modelo de Três Componentes de Meyer e Allen. Para a investigação dos comportamentos de cidadania organizacional utilizamos como referência as quatro dimensões encontradas a partir dos estudos de Armênio Rego e seus colaboradores. A metodologia adotada combinou métodos quantitativos e qualitativos. Nos levantamentos quantitativos usamos a escala para mensurar o comprometimento desenvolvida por Meyer Allen e Smith, traduzida e validada para o contexto brasileiro por Medeiros, e a escala de comportamentos de cidadania organizacional desenvolvida por Armênio Rego e colaboradores. Os resultados alcançados indicam que a população estudada apresenta um grau satisfatório de comprometimento global, com maior presença da dimensão afetiva. Com relação aos CCO, os mesmos também encontram-se presentes em um grau adequado nesta amostra com maior destaque nas dimensões harmonia interpessoal e iniciativa. Dentre as conclusões obtidas a partir do estudo, destacamos que os resultados indicam a existência de variáveis organizacionais que parecem estar contribuindo para neutralizar a competição e o individualimo, por vezes potencializado pelas práticas de gestão baseadas em competências. / In this study were verified the implications of the management by competence on the organizational citizenship behaviour (OCB) and in the organizational commitment. We sought to verify up to what extend the models of personnel management based on competence may influence the OCB and the commitment negatively or positively, which means to what extend do these practices work as an element that stimulates or aids on the disintegration reducing the adoption of the organizational citizenship behaviour and also the commitment with the organization. The research was carried out in a multinational organization that manufactures optical products, which uses the model based on competences for selection, evaluation and variable salary of its employees for the last three years. For the investigation of the organizational commitment, we adopted the three-component model of Meyer and Allen as a reference. For the investigation of the organizational citizenship behaviour , we used the four dimensions found in the studies of Armenio Rego and his collaborators. The methodology adopted combined quantitative and qualitative methods. In the qualitative research we used the scale to measure the commitment developed by Meyer, Allen and Smith, translated and validated to the Brazilian context by Medeiros and the scale of organizational citizenship behaviour developed by Armenio Rego and his collaborators. The results reached indicated that the population investigated show a satisfactory degree of global commitment, with a bigger presence of the affectionate dimension. As for the OCBs, they are also present in an appropriate level in this sample focusing more on the dimensions of interpersonal harmony and initiative. Among the conclusions resulted from the studies, we emphasize that the results indicate the existence of organizational variables, which seem to account for the neutralization of competition and individualism sometimes intensified by the management practices based on competences.

Both mindfulness and authentic leadership base themselves on self-awareness. Authentic leadership has positively predicted organizational citizenship behavior (OCB), and mindfulness has been positively correlated to work engagement, which has shared positive relationships with OCB. Job demands (JD) have been shown to compromise work engagement. Using a sample of 134 MBA and undergraduate students, a longitudinal design evaluated the meditational role of authentic functioning (AF) between mindfulness and OCB and the moderating role of JD. Over the course of three months, three questionnaires were administered to measure mindfulness, AF, OCB, and JD. Despite the positive predictive relationship between mindfulness and AF, there was not a significant predictive relationship between AF and OCB or the predictor (i.e. mindfulness) and criterion (i.e. OCB) variables, so structural equation modeling could not reveal if AF mediates the relationship between mindfulness and OCB. These findings suggest that AF could be a characteristic mechanism of mindfulness that helps facilitate certain behaviors. Future practical implications could suggest the prosocial value of cultivating mindfulness and authentic leadership to promote overall organizational functioning.

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado do Rio de Janeiro / Neste estudo foram verificadas as implicações da gestão por competências nos comportamentos de cidadania organizacional (CCO) e no comprometimento organizacional. Buscamos verificar até que ponto os modelos de gestão de pessoas baseados em competências podem influenciar positiva ou negativamente os CCO e o comprometimento, ou seja, até que ponto estas práticas funcionam como um elemento que estimula ou auxilia na desintegração, reduzindo a adoção dos comportamentos de cidadania organizacional e também o comprometimento com a organização. A pesquisa foi realizada em uma organização multinacional fabricante de produtos óticos, que utiliza os modelos de gestão baseados em competências para seleção, avaliação e remuneração variável de seus funcionários há três anos. Para investigação do comprometimento organizacional adotamos como referencial o Modelo de Três Componentes de Meyer e Allen. Para a investigação dos comportamentos de cidadania organizacional utilizamos como referência as quatro dimensões encontradas a partir dos estudos de Armênio Rego e seus colaboradores. A metodologia adotada combinou métodos quantitativos e qualitativos. Nos levantamentos quantitativos usamos a escala para mensurar o comprometimento desenvolvida por Meyer Allen e Smith, traduzida e validada para o contexto brasileiro por Medeiros, e a escala de comportamentos de cidadania organizacional desenvolvida por Armênio Rego e colaboradores. Os resultados alcançados indicam que a população estudada apresenta um grau satisfatório de comprometimento global, com maior presença da dimensão afetiva. Com relação aos CCO, os mesmos também encontram-se presentes em um grau adequado nesta amostra com maior destaque nas dimensões harmonia interpessoal e iniciativa. Dentre as conclusões obtidas a partir do estudo, destacamos que os resultados indicam a existência de variáveis organizacionais que parecem estar contribuindo para neutralizar a competição e o individualimo, por vezes potencializado pelas práticas de gestão baseadas em competências. / In this study were verified the implications of the management by competence on the organizational citizenship behaviour (OCB) and in the organizational commitment. We sought to verify up to what extend the models of personnel management based on competence may influence the OCB and the commitment negatively or positively, which means to what extend do these practices work as an element that stimulates or aids on the disintegration reducing the adoption of the organizational citizenship behaviour and also the commitment with the organization. The research was carried out in a multinational organization that manufactures optical products, which uses the model based on competences for selection, evaluation and variable salary of its employees for the last three years. For the investigation of the organizational commitment, we adopted the three-component model of Meyer and Allen as a reference. For the investigation of the organizational citizenship behaviour , we used the four dimensions found in the studies of Armenio Rego and his collaborators. The methodology adopted combined quantitative and qualitative methods. In the qualitative research we used the scale to measure the commitment developed by Meyer, Allen and Smith, translated and validated to the Brazilian context by Medeiros and the scale of organizational citizenship behaviour developed by Armenio Rego and his collaborators. The results reached indicated that the population investigated show a satisfactory degree of global commitment, with a bigger presence of the affectionate dimension. As for the OCBs, they are also present in an appropriate level in this sample focusing more on the dimensions of interpersonal harmony and initiative. Among the conclusions resulted from the studies, we emphasize that the results indicate the existence of organizational variables, which seem to account for the neutralization of competition and individualism sometimes intensified by the management practices based on competences.