<p> The purpose of this study was to understand more deeply the process and nature of interpersonal connections among leaders in the workplace. Specifically, this study was guided by the primary inquiry question, &ldquo;How do leaders experience interpersonal connections in the workplace?&rdquo; A total of 20 leaders ranging from entry to executive levels were studied. This study employed the qualitative method of constructivist grounded theory. The objective of grounded theory is to generate, inductively, a theory about basic social and psychological processes. As a researcher, employing the constructivist grounded theory methodology provided me the opportunity to inquire into the experiences of interpersonal connections of leaders in the workplace. As a result of the inquiry, I generated a theory that provided more information about how leaders behaved in and the depth of their interpersonal connection experiences. The significance of this study is that it furthers relational leadership discourse and provides more awareness about how leaders connect and behave in their experiences of interpersonal connections. The study also sheds light on interpersonal connections outside the workplace.</p>

<p> Measuring and identifying pride in the workplace has been reported to have many benefits. However, there has yet to emerge a definitive measure of pride. The aim of the present research was to create and validate a new measure of pride in the workplace while improving on the shortcomings of previous measures. The main area of improvement from previous measures was the inclusion of a context in which participants rated the likelihood that they would behave given that particular context. A pilot of the newly-developed pride items confirmed that the contexts were appropriately manipulated to represent authentic and hubristic pride. The Workplace Hubristic and Authentic Pride measure, WHAMP, two other measures of pride, a measure of narcissism, a measure of organizational commitment, and a measure of social desirability were then administered to 313 participants using Amazon&rsquo;s Mechanical Turk. In general, the WHAMP&rsquo;s hubristic subscales correlated as predicted with other measures of hubristic pride. The WHAMP also showed little gender bias, low correlations with narcissism, a decrease in social desirability bias, and a reduction in restriction of range. However, the WHAMP&rsquo;s authentic subscales did not correlate well with previous measures of authentic pride. Additionally, organizational commitment did not correlate as predicted with the WHAMP. Limitations, practical implications, and future research directions are discussed.</p>

<p> Globalization has had a tremendous impact on society. While creating opportunity for corporations to expand into new markets, globalization has also created significant negative repercussions to the environment, human rights, health, and education (Reece, 2001). In the past twenty-five years Cross-Sector Social Partnerships (CSSPs) have emerged as a possible solution to the negative impacts from globalization with mixed results (Nidumolu, Ellison, Whalen, &amp; Billman, 2014) Although there are inherent challenges, the case for corporations and the public sector to continue to work together is compelling. By contributing their technical expertise and financial resources, companies can leverage the public sector&rsquo;s experience, knowledge networks, know-how and legitimacy to begin addressing large-scale global issues that directly impact society as well as their businesses. This study gathered data from interviewing nine participants. Interview questions were designed to answer the primary research question: Are there consistent best practices in CSSP governance? Findings from the study identified three best practices: formal governance, strategy, and stakeholder management. Additionally a CSSP Governance Framework was defined consisting of three categories: structure and processes, relationships, and governance dynamics. The result of the study is a flexible and adaptable framework for CSSPs that integrate the use of governance as one tool that increases the likelihood of positive partnership outcomes.</p>

<p> Today&rsquo;s workgroups need to be flexible, creative, and innovative to react swiftly to changing internal and external business environments. This is a real challenge when corporate cultures promote speed and cost-cutting measures. Yet a possible remedy exists to facilitate the cultivation of creativity within groups and that is through the use of mindfulness. This research sought to answer the question: <i>In what way, if any, does mindfulness contribute to creativity within a workgroup?</i> To explore this question, it was necessary to review three distinct areas within literature: creativity, mindfulness, and group process.</p><p> A 15-week, multi-methods study was developed based on existing research, most of which has been done within laboratory constructed designs. This study adapted the existing designs and applied them in a real world organizational setting. The research participants included members of an intact workgroup divided into a Treatment Group and Comparison Group. Individual and group creativity was assessed before and after a 5-week series of mindfulness training. The results indicated that the mindfulness training impacted creativity both in the moment and over time in most measures. Practical implications are offered for organizations to develop creative and innovative responses to business challenges.</p>

<p> Saudi Arabia faces many challenges, including the political instability of the Middle East as well as currently decreased oil prices. However, Saudi is ranked 83^rd in the global creativity index. Thus, Saudi has developed Vision 2013 to promote innovation that includes increasing tourism. The Mecca Region is a center of tourism and the police directors will need to demonstrate creative ways to maintain safety of an increasing influx of international tourists.</p><p> The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine the perceptions of leadership behaviors by directors of police force in Mecca as measured by Leaders Behavior Descriptive Questionnaire (LBDQ) and their perceptions on innovative behaviors as measured by Magley and Birdi&rsquo;s instrument. These two instruments in Arabic were personally distributed to 120 directors; 103 (86%) completed survey sets were returned. Of these, 95 were sufficiently complete for data analysis.</p><p> Demographic findings indicated that the median age of these directors was 30.5 years, median years of experience was 11, and median educational experience was Bachelors&rsquo; degree. Correlational and multiple regression analyses revealed that these leaders had moderate leadership scores and similar perceptions of innovation. The three largest correlations were between the total leadership on LBDQ and total innovation score, creativity self-efficacy, and team support for innovation. The fourth largest correction was between team support and innovation. Thus, the alternative hypotheses were accepted that these leaders&rsquo; perceptions of their leadership skills would predict their perception of innovations.</p><p> From the study, we concluded that the participating leaders believe they possess good leadership skills and have creative ideas, which are supported by their supervisors. Out of the 4 subscales of LBDQ, consideration has the strongest correlations with innovation. Thus, these leaders feel safe to try something new without fear of negative repercussions or others criticizing them if their idea or product. In addition, these leaders expressed that they work well in teams. A four-step model to promote innovation in any organization was developed from the finding. Saudi support of education for these young leaders should assist in their realization of innovation in police work in the Mecca Region.</p>

<p> The purpose of this study was to identify differences in perceived organizational justice between employees in different categories of overall performance appraisal ratings. This study was also concerned with the level of distributive, procedural, interpersonal, and informational justice individually dependent upon the overall performance appraisal rating. Performance appraisals can impact procedural and distributional justice, but few studies have been conducted illustrating the influence of the multifocal model of justice following a performance appraisal and the specific influence on each of the four dimensions has been inconsistent creating a gap in the literature. This study incorporated the fairness theory, OJS, and the multifocal four-dimensional model of organizational justice to address discrepancies in the literature and refrained from including the appraisal satisfaction measurement so interpersonal and informational justice could be investigated individually further supporting the multifocal model. A quantitative, quasi-experimental ex post facto design was applied by recruiting employees of organizations following a performance appraisal and collecting overall performance review ratings for comparison. The target population for this study was white collar workers within the U.S. who had been employed at the same company for at least six months and received scheduled traditional performance appraisals. The sample consisted of 167 employees, 29.3% were male (<i>n</i> = 49) and 70.7% were female (<i> n</i> = 118). The results of the one-way MANOVA suggested that at least one of the combined linear variates differed significantly on one or some combination of outcome variables. The planned analyses using univariate ANOVAs illustrated that the level of distributive, procedural, interpersonal, and informational justice changed depending upon the overall performance appraisal rating illustrating that each dimension of justice changes independent of one another and employees can decipher all four dimensions separately.</p>

<p> This study examined the relationship between corporate social responsibility (CSR), job satisfaction, and stress. Specifically, job satisfaction was hypothesized to act as a mediator between CSR and stress. For the purpose of this study, corporate volunteerism was used as the specific type of CSR assessed. To complete this study, 178 participants were recruited from Amazon Mechanical Turk. Each participant filled out a satisfaction, stress, and volunteerism questionnaire. Support for the hypotheses was mixed. Volunteerism and stress did not have a significant relationship with each other, which meant that job satisfaction did not act as a mediator between the two. However, job satisfaction did have a significant, positive relationship with volunteerism. Job satisfaction and stress were also found to be positively related. Although some hypotheses were not supported, the findings of this study do provide valuable insight into the relationship between volunteerism, satisfaction, and stress. Important implications for practitioners are also discussed.</p>

<p> <u>Problem.</u> With the high level of importance placed on service quality, and a lack of studies on the service behaviors of frontline service employees, this study was conducted to explore the influences of organizational identity (OI) on the service-oriented organizational citizenship behaviors (SOCB) of frontline service providers. Few studies of OI have explored its influence on organizational behaviors; in addition, most OI studies have been conducted from a positivist framework in the not-for-profit sector. Similarly, service studies reside more prominently in positivist methodologies conducted in the retail and marketing sectors or in fast food restaurants, hospitals, and hotels. </p><p> <u>Procedures.</u> This qualitative case study involved a luxury-level restaurant. Data were gathered through 12 on-site individual semi-structured interviews with service staff of varied roles and tenure, as well as through direct observation, field notes and journaling, and document analysis. The data were recorded, transcribed, analyzed, and interpreted while iteratively triangulated by the sole researcher. </p><p> <u>Findings.</u> The site&rsquo;s OI claims influenced SOCB characteristics aligned with the construct attributes of <i>participation, loyalty,</i> and <i>service delivery.</i> The three OI claims were that the organization is <i>guest focused,</i> focuses on and maintains <i>a gold standard of quality,</i> and is <i>employee focused.</i> Additionally, it was found that a present and highly engaged founder was instrumental to leading, inspiring, and developing staff using a congruent organizational philosophy and core values supported through a rigidly defined formal structure while paradoxically balanced by an informal structuring of employee empowerment facilitated through communications and collaboration. </p><p> <u>Conclusions.</u> The OI claims that surfaced in the study were congruent with and influenced SOCB attributes in a dynamic and iterative manner. In addition to the OI claims and SOCB characteristics identified, the chef/founder&rsquo;s image, organizational philosophy and core values, and organizational structure were important groundings for both OI claims and SOCB. The Hatch and Schultz (2002) OI dynamics model facilitated analysis and interpretation of the iterative cycling between organizational culture and external image. This study contributes to OI, SOCB, and OI dynamics research, particularly in offering a better understanding of the influences of OI on the SOCB of a group of employees. In practice, this study is relevant for hospitality operators and practitioners seeking to better understand influences on the extra-role behaviors of frontline service employees and to enhance service quality.</p><p>

Uncertainty about one's job or work environment is a common and aversive experience that organizational members typically seek to reduce or manage. This study investigates whether different types of uncertainty - informational uncertainty (i.e., not having sufficient information to confidently form social judgments) and standing uncertainty (i.e., instability in one's perception of positive regard from relevant others) - are qualitatively distinct. The study also examines whether both types of uncertainty are heightened by ongoing organizational factors (i.e., organization role and tenure) as well as temporary factors (i.e., affiliation with a division undergoing redesign). Implementing fair processes and procedures may be an effective way for organizational leaders to help organizational members address their uncertainty. Uncertainty has been shown to moderate the "fair process effect," such that the positive effect of higher process fairness (i.e., procedural, informational, and interpersonal fairness) on organizational members' attitudes is stronger when uncertainty is higher. Specifically, people's uncertainty about their standing in an organization has been shown to moderate the "process-outcome interaction effect," such that the positive effect of the interaction between higher process fairness and lower outcome fairness on organizational members' attitudes is stronger when uncertainty is higher. This study investigates whether informational uncertainty, like standing uncertainty, moderates the fair process effect and the process-outcome interaction effect. Study hypotheses were tested through a longitudinal field research design that utilized web-based questionnaires involving responses from 500 students, faculty, and administrators of an urban university undergoing an organization redesign effort. Both ongoing and temporary organizational factors were found to significantly reduce rather than heighten uncertainty, which was the opposite of what was predicted. Higher informational and standing uncertainty were found to enhance the positive effect of process fairness on organizational members' attitudes as predicted. But lower informational and standing uncertainty were also found to enhance the positive effect of process fairness on organizational members' attitudes, which was the opposite of what was predicted. Lower informational uncertainty, but not standing uncertainty, was found to enhance the positive effect of higher process fairness and lower outcome favorability on organizational members' attitudes, which was the opposite of what was predicted.

Adopting a regulatory focus perspective, I study why people repeat a prior behavior that could be unpleasant, ineffective, or unethical. Driven by the concerns to avoid negative deviations from the status quo, the prevention aspect of self-regulation (i.e., prevention focus) is associated with the motivation to maintain the status quo (Higgins, 2005). Previous findings showing a prevention focus motivation to maintain the status quo suggest that sticking with a precedent is a safe choice that fits with prevention focus. Putting this motivation to a more challenging test, nine studies show that maintaining the status quo is a deep motivation for prevention focus that transcends hedonic, utilitarian, and ethical concerns. Specifically, being in a prevention focus, either measured as a chronic disposition or induced as a psychological state, increases the likelihood of 1) copying the managing behaviors of a role model, even when these behaviors are perceived as unpleasant or ineffective (Studies 1-5), and 2) repeating one's own choices regarding ethical behavior, regardless of whether the initial choice was ethical or not (Studies 6-9). Implications of this research and future directions are discussed.