Golembiewski, Billingsly, and Yeager (1976) conceptualized three distinct types of change that might result from development interventions, called alpha, beta, and gamma change. Recent research has found that beta and gamma change do occur as hypothesized, but the phenomena are somewhat infrequent and the precise conditions under which they occur have not been established. This study used confirmatory factor analysis and item response theory to identify gamma and beta change on a multidimensional, multisource managerial performance appraisal instrument and to examine relations among the change types, training program content, and raters' implicit theories of performance. Results suggested that coverage in training was a necessary but not sufficient condition for beta and gamma change to occur. Further, although gamma change was detected only in the trainee group, beta change was detected in self-ratings from trainees and in ratings collected from their superiors. Because trainees' superiors were involved in post-training follow-up, this finding was interpreted as a possible diffusion of treatments effect (Campbell & Stanley, 1963). Contrary to expectations, there were no interpretable relations between raters' implicit theories of performance and either of the change types. Perhaps relatedly, more implicit theory change was detected among individuals providing observer ratings than in the trainees themselves. The implications of these findings for future research on plural change were discussed. / Ph. D.

The factors that hinder or help the development of emotionally competent behaviour in leaders appear to be varied and complex. The role of personality variables such as personality preferences and self-esteem in influencing the development and demonstration of emotional competent behaviour has not yet been well researched. The general aim of this research was to investigate whether a relationship exists between personality preferences, self-esteem and emotional competence, and to determine whether the variables personality preferences and self-esteem can predict the demonstration of emotional competence. Personality preferences were studied from the Analytical Psychology paradigm. Jung's Psychological Types and the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator theory of Personality Types provided a theoretical understanding of individual differences in emotional response behaviour. Based on the Humanistic and Social Psychology paradigms, the construct self-esteem was explored from a multi-dimensional perspective with particular emphasis on individuals' self-evaluative views and feelings of self-worth, self-acceptance, sense of belonging and sense of psychological well-being within the particular socio-cultural domain in which these aspects manifest themselves. Emotional competence was studied from the paradigmatic perspectives of the Cognitive Social Learning theories. Emotional competence was viewed as the workplace application of emotional intelligence abilities, which are developable and can be learned. In this regard, emotional competence was described as the demonstration of self-efficacious behaviour in emotion-eliciting social transactions. Emotional competence implies a sense of psychological well-being (a positive inner state of being) and an ability to skillfully, creatively and confidently adapt in an uncertain, unstructured and changing socio-cultural environment. An empirical investigation was conducted to analyse the responses of a randomly selected sample of 107 South African leaders in the manufacturing industry to measures of these three constructs. The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), the Culture-free Self-esteem Inventories for Adults (CFSEI-AD), and the 360° Emotional Competency Profiler (ECP) were administered. The MBTI extraverted-thinking and extraverted-intuitive personality preferences were associated with the CFSEI-AD social, general and total self-esteem scales. In terms of the ECP emotional competence self-evaluations, self-motivation was associated with the MBTI extraverted-judging, extraverted-thinking and extraverted-intuitive preferences, while interpersonal relations was associated with the extraverted-intuitive and extraverted-feeling preferences. The MBTI introverted-sensing, introverted-judging and introverted-thinking preferences were associated with the ECP emotional literacy scale, and the introverted-judging, introverted-sensing and introverted-thinking preferences were associated with interpersonal relations in terms of the emotional competence other evaluations. The MBTI introverted-thinking preference was associated with the ECP self-esteem/self-regard other evaluations and the CFSEI-AD personal self-esteem scale. The ECP total emotional competence scale was associated with the MBTI extraverted-intuitive preference (in terms of the self-evaluations) and the introverted-judging and introverted-thinking preferences in terms of total emotional competence other evaluations. The CFSEI-AD general, personal and total self-esteem scales were associated with the ECP change resilience, self-motivation, self-esteem/self-regard, interpersonal relations and total emotional competence scales. Furthermore, the findings suggest that the ECP emotional competence construct is closely related to the affective component of the CFSEI-AD self-esteem construct, particularly one's sense of psychological well-being which is related to feelings of self-worth. The empirical results confirmed the effect of self-esteem on the self-evaluations of raters exposed to multi-rater assessments such as the 360° Emotional Competency Profiler, namely that self-raters with very high self-esteem may tend to over-inflate their self-evaluations. The CFSEI-AD total self-esteem scale also appears to be a more reliable predictor of emotional competence than the MBTI personality preferences. The results contributed new knowledge about the relationship between individuals' self-esteem, personality preferences and emotional competence and added perspective on the interpretation of individuals' self-ratings, particularly with regard to 360° emotional competence assessments. Recommendations for Industrial and Organisational Psychology practices regarding leader development are formulated, as well as recommendations for future research in the field. / Industrial and Organisational Psychology / D.Litt. et Phil. (Industrial and Organisational Psychology)

Legislators are placing increased pressure on mining companies to improve their safety performance. The importance of safety leadership is highlighted by its role in safety culture and improving safety performance. The aim of this study was to develop and evaluate the impact of a coaching program on safety leadership. The main constructs namely safety culture, safety leadership and coaching was conceptualised along the humanistic paradigm, with theoretical definitions and models. In this study, safety culture is employees’ shared attitudes, beliefs, perceptions and values about safety that affect their behaviour in the workplace. Safety leadership is the interpersonal influence that a leader exercises to achieve the organisation’s safety performance goals. Coaching is an interpersonal interaction that aims to improve individual performance through increased selfawareness and action plans. A theoretical model was developed to explain the elements that constitute effective safety leadership. A coaching program was developed based on executive coaching and leadership development principles. The empirical investigation was conducted in an organisation in the South African mining industry. A nested mixed methods design was followed. In the quantitative study, a 360 degree survey was employed to assess the ratings of a purposive sample (n=54) along eight dimensions before and after the coaching. Data was analysed with descriptive and inferential analysis. Results showed statistically significant improvements on accountability, collaboration, and feedback and recognition after the coaching. The results reflected differences in 360 degree ratings according to gender, race, job level, age and geographical location. The most significant improvements were for females, Africans, management, age 51-60 years, and site 2. In the qualitative study, a semi-structured interview was employed to study four cases to investigate managers’ personal experiences and changes in attitude toward safety. Data was analysed utilising thematic analysis. The findings revealed that coaching was a positive experience and contributed to changing managers’ attitudes toward safety. The research added to the field of organisational behaviour by presenting a theoretical model that enhances the understanding of safety leadership, the development of a coaching program and providing empirical evidence that the principles of coaching and leadership development can be applied to improve safety leadership. / Industrial & Organisational Psychology / D. Admin. (Industrial and Organisational Psychology)

The factors that hinder or help the development of emotionally competent behaviour in leaders appear to be varied and complex. The role of personality variables such as personality preferences and self-esteem in influencing the development and demonstration of emotional competent behaviour has not yet been well researched. The general aim of this research was to investigate whether a relationship exists between personality preferences, self-esteem and emotional competence, and to determine whether the variables personality preferences and self-esteem can predict the demonstration of emotional competence. Personality preferences were studied from the Analytical Psychology paradigm. Jung's Psychological Types and the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator theory of Personality Types provided a theoretical understanding of individual differences in emotional response behaviour. Based on the Humanistic and Social Psychology paradigms, the construct self-esteem was explored from a multi-dimensional perspective with particular emphasis on individuals' self-evaluative views and feelings of self-worth, self-acceptance, sense of belonging and sense of psychological well-being within the particular socio-cultural domain in which these aspects manifest themselves. Emotional competence was studied from the paradigmatic perspectives of the Cognitive Social Learning theories. Emotional competence was viewed as the workplace application of emotional intelligence abilities, which are developable and can be learned. In this regard, emotional competence was described as the demonstration of self-efficacious behaviour in emotion-eliciting social transactions. Emotional competence implies a sense of psychological well-being (a positive inner state of being) and an ability to skillfully, creatively and confidently adapt in an uncertain, unstructured and changing socio-cultural environment. An empirical investigation was conducted to analyse the responses of a randomly selected sample of 107 South African leaders in the manufacturing industry to measures of these three constructs. The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), the Culture-free Self-esteem Inventories for Adults (CFSEI-AD), and the 360° Emotional Competency Profiler (ECP) were administered. The MBTI extraverted-thinking and extraverted-intuitive personality preferences were associated with the CFSEI-AD social, general and total self-esteem scales. In terms of the ECP emotional competence self-evaluations, self-motivation was associated with the MBTI extraverted-judging, extraverted-thinking and extraverted-intuitive preferences, while interpersonal relations was associated with the extraverted-intuitive and extraverted-feeling preferences. The MBTI introverted-sensing, introverted-judging and introverted-thinking preferences were associated with the ECP emotional literacy scale, and the introverted-judging, introverted-sensing and introverted-thinking preferences were associated with interpersonal relations in terms of the emotional competence other evaluations. The MBTI introverted-thinking preference was associated with the ECP self-esteem/self-regard other evaluations and the CFSEI-AD personal self-esteem scale. The ECP total emotional competence scale was associated with the MBTI extraverted-intuitive preference (in terms of the self-evaluations) and the introverted-judging and introverted-thinking preferences in terms of total emotional competence other evaluations. The CFSEI-AD general, personal and total self-esteem scales were associated with the ECP change resilience, self-motivation, self-esteem/self-regard, interpersonal relations and total emotional competence scales. Furthermore, the findings suggest that the ECP emotional competence construct is closely related to the affective component of the CFSEI-AD self-esteem construct, particularly one's sense of psychological well-being which is related to feelings of self-worth. The empirical results confirmed the effect of self-esteem on the self-evaluations of raters exposed to multi-rater assessments such as the 360° Emotional Competency Profiler, namely that self-raters with very high self-esteem may tend to over-inflate their self-evaluations. The CFSEI-AD total self-esteem scale also appears to be a more reliable predictor of emotional competence than the MBTI personality preferences. The results contributed new knowledge about the relationship between individuals' self-esteem, personality preferences and emotional competence and added perspective on the interpretation of individuals' self-ratings, particularly with regard to 360° emotional competence assessments. Recommendations for Industrial and Organisational Psychology practices regarding leader development are formulated, as well as recommendations for future research in the field. / Industrial and Organisational Psychology / D.Litt. et Phil. (Industrial and Organisational Psychology)

Legislators are placing increased pressure on mining companies to improve their safety performance. The importance of safety leadership is highlighted by its role in safety culture and improving safety performance. The aim of this study was to develop and evaluate the impact of a coaching program on safety leadership. The main constructs namely safety culture, safety leadership and coaching was conceptualised along the humanistic paradigm, with theoretical definitions and models. In this study, safety culture is employees’ shared attitudes, beliefs, perceptions and values about safety that affect their behaviour in the workplace. Safety leadership is the interpersonal influence that a leader exercises to achieve the organisation’s safety performance goals. Coaching is an interpersonal interaction that aims to improve individual performance through increased selfawareness and action plans. A theoretical model was developed to explain the elements that constitute effective safety leadership. A coaching program was developed based on executive coaching and leadership development principles. The empirical investigation was conducted in an organisation in the South African mining industry. A nested mixed methods design was followed. In the quantitative study, a 360 degree survey was employed to assess the ratings of a purposive sample (n=54) along eight dimensions before and after the coaching. Data was analysed with descriptive and inferential analysis. Results showed statistically significant improvements on accountability, collaboration, and feedback and recognition after the coaching. The results reflected differences in 360 degree ratings according to gender, race, job level, age and geographical location. The most significant improvements were for females, Africans, management, age 51-60 years, and site 2. In the qualitative study, a semi-structured interview was employed to study four cases to investigate managers’ personal experiences and changes in attitude toward safety. Data was analysed utilising thematic analysis. The findings revealed that coaching was a positive experience and contributed to changing managers’ attitudes toward safety. The research added to the field of organisational behaviour by presenting a theoretical model that enhances the understanding of safety leadership, the development of a coaching program and providing empirical evidence that the principles of coaching and leadership development can be applied to improve safety leadership. / Industrial and Organisational Psychology / D. Admin. (Industrial and Organisational Psychology)