Bien que la réputation en ligne ait attiré une attention particulière parmi les praticiens en marketing, la recherche dans ce domaine est encore limitée. Dans ce travail doctoral, les auteurs examinent les antécédents et les conséquences de l’e-réputation du point de vue client. Une approche selon un modèle d’équations structurelles est utilisée pour tester le modèle basé sur les données d’une enquête auprès de 1097 acheteurs en ligne français. Les résultats montrent l’impact de la confiance, l’héritage et la qualité du site sur l’e-réputation, ainsi que la façon dont l’e-réputation affecte l’engagement du client, le bouche à oreille, le risque perçu et la valeur perçue. Plusieurs implications managériales et théoriques sont ensuite discutées. / Although online reputation has attracted significant attention among marketing practitioners, research in this area is still limited. In this research dissertation, the authors examine the antecedents and consequences of online reputation from the customer’s perspective. A structural equation modeling approach is used to test the model based on data from a survey of 1097 French online buyers. The results show the impact of trust, heritage, and website quality on online reputation, as well as how online reputation affects customer commitment, word of mouth, perceived risk, and perceived value. Several implications either in terms of conceptual or managerial insights are then discussed.

Rhetorical agency is an ideologically contentious facet within communication and rhetorical research. While its importance in scholarship can be traced back to early works by Kenneth Burke and Pierre Bourdieu, debate continues regarding the source of agency, how it is enacted in rhetorical application and communication, and who/what can claim responsibility for the communication practices one may utilize in enacting their respective levels of agency. Thus, the ways in which the rhetoric of popular, influential individuals/antecedents affects the rhetorical agency and invention practices of those without significant levels of influence must be examined. American Christianity, in particular the culture created through heavy use of televised and web-media (televangelism), provides an excellent context to examine this subject. The present thesis discusses relevant literature to the topics of rhetorical agency, invention, and antecedents, as well as American Christianity, televangelism, and the changes that have occurred in religious rhetoric within the culture. Additionally, results indicate a high propensity towards rhetorical agency influenced through the themes of identity, adaptation, and audience sensitivity, and encourage pastors to focus on the identity and context through which their agency is manifested.

Transformational leaders inspire followers to perform beyond expectations and to become transformational leaders themselves. Research evidence shows that transformational leadership has positive effects on people, teams, organizations, and nations. In addition to producing higher levels of follower performance, transformational leadership results in increased follower satisfaction and commitment. However, there is still much to be learned about the complex set of antecedents that predict perceptions of transformational leader behaviors, and research is scarce regarding moderators that impact the relationship between leader behavior and follower outcomes. Most research regarding antecedents of transformational leadership has focused on leader personality and other individual differences, but there are other potential predictors not addressed in the literature, such as how the match between a leader and the situation influences transformational leadership. This study expanded upon previous research by examining the constructs of person-organization fit, person-job fit (demands-abilities and needs-supplies), and motivation to lead as predictors of transformational leader behavior. Because followers' fit with the situation may influence their receptiveness to transformational leadership, I also examined follower perceptions of person-supervisor fit and person-organization fit as moderators of the relationship between transformational leadership and follower outcomes. I hypothesized that these relationships would be stronger for those with higher levels of fit perceptions and recruited participants from multiple organizations to test the hypotheses. A sample of 215 leaders across 10 organizations provided self-report data regarding the proposed antecedents, as well as their personality characteristics, the need for change in their work unit, and the performance of their followers. Their supervisors provided ratings of leader effectiveness and assessed the need for change in the leader's work unit. A sample of 1,284 followers assessed the leaders' transformational leader behaviors and provided self-report data regarding the proposed fit moderators and their own work attitudes, which included job satisfaction and intentions to quit. Analytic strategies used to test the hypotheses were correlational analysis, multiple regression, hierarchical linear modeling, and moderated mediation. Initial regression results showed that both needs-supplies fit and demands-abilities fit were significantly related to transformational leadership. After control variables were taken into account, only demands-abilities fit remained significantly related to transformational leadership. Consistent with previous research, transformational leadership was related to boss ratings of leader effectiveness as well as to follower job satisfaction, intentions to quit (negative), and organizational citizenship behaviors (but not to task performance). Of the proposed moderators, support was found for the interaction of transformational leadership and person-supervisor fit influencing intentions to quit (intentions to quit was positively related to transformational leadership; the relationship was stronger for those with higher levels of person-supervisor fit), the interaction of transformational leadership and person-organization fit influencing intentions to quit (intentions to quit was negatively related to transformational leadership; the relationship was stronger for those with higher levels of person-organization fit), and also for the interaction of transformational leadership and person-organization fit influencing task performance (task performance was positively related to transformational leadership; the relationship was stronger for those with higher levels of person-organization fit). Theoretical and managerial implications are also discussed, along with limitations of the study and suggestions for future research.

Thesis (M.Com. (Industrial Psychology))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2007.

Thesis (M.A. (Industrial Psychology))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2008.

Sustainability reporting has emerged as an outcome of corporate social responsibility, giving companies an opportunity to show transparency towards their stakeholders. The Global Reporting Initiative, a largely voluntary sustainability reporting standard, has become increasingly popular, providing a framework making reports consistent and comparable. However, Holmen, SAS, SKF, Vattenfall and Vin & Sprit were the only Swedish companies complying with application level A, the highest level of compliance, of the GRI framework in their 2007 sustainability reports. The purpose of this thesis is therefore to analyze why these five Swedish companies are sustainability reporting and why they are doing so according to the GRI standard. A theoretical background regarding CSR, sustainability and GRI is provided in order to get a basic understanding of the context of the thesis. The theoretical framework for the study is based on the stakeholder concept and the legitimacy theory, utilizing the internal marketing and brand identity theories for the analysis. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with the five managers of the companies in order to gather the relevant data. The study showed that the five companies investigated are sustainability and GRI reporting as a result of their company size, industry type, reporting tradition, ownership structure and various stakeholder-driven motives. The motives were found to be specific to either sustainability or GRI reporting, where the majority were linked to the practice of sustainability reporting.

The goals of the current study were to examine the antecedents and boundary conditions of a new construct called unethical pro-organizational behavior (UPB) defined as behaviors that are unethical but at the same time helping the organizations (e.g., giving a low performing employee a letter of recommendation to help him/her find a job in another organization). Drawing from social exchange theory, antecedents such as leader-member exchange, perceived organizational support, idiosyncratic deals, and leader-member exchange were hypothesized to be positively related to UPB Three moderators of the impact of the social exchange variables on UPB: were also investigated: moral identity, psychological entitlement, and supervisor's embodiment of the organization. Data was collected in a cross-sectional survey from 269 employees and 144 supervisors. The hypotheses were tested using correlations and moderated multiple regressions. The results indicate that none of the hypotheses were supported. However, there were some interesting unexpected findings as some social exchange variables were found to correlate negatively with UPB. Implications for future research and practice are discussed.

Despite that we are in the midst of profound changes in communications technologies, there is a remarkable gap in the International Relations literature devoted to exploring the implications of these changes. In part, this can be attributed to the discipline’s conservative tendencies; generally, International Relations theorists have resisted studying major discontinuity in the international system. The few studies that do attempt to account for change typically focus on modes of production or destruction as determinant variables. Though there are rare exceptions, many of them also tend towards a form of mono-causal reductionism. When considered at all, communications technologies are viewed through the prism of, or are reduced to, these other factors. This study seeks to remedy this gap by examining the relationship between large-scale shifts in modes of communication and “world order” transformation -- the structure or architecture of political authority at a world-level. Drawing from the work of various “medium theory” scholars, such as Harold Innis and Marshall McLuhan, the study outlines an open-ended, non-reductive theory at the core of which is the argument that changes in modes of communication facilitate and constrain social forces and ideas latent in society. This hypothesized process can be likened to the interaction between species and a changing natural environment: new communications environments “favour” certain social forces and ideas by means of a functional bias towards some and not others, much the same as environments determine which species prosper by “selecting” for certain physical characteristics. In other words, social forces and ideas survive differentially according to their “fitness” or match with the new communications environment -- a process that is both open ended and contingent. The study is organized into two parts: Part one examines the relationship between printing and the medieval to modem world order transformation in Europe; Part two examines the relationship between new digital-electronic-telecommunications (called “hypermedia”) and the modem to postmodern world order transformation. The study suggests that the hypermedia communications environment is contributing to the dissolution of modern world order by facilitating the transnationalization of production, the globalization of finance, the rise of complex, non-territorial social networks, and the de-massification of “national” identities. The hypermedia environment is also helping to re-focus security concerns from an inter-national to an intra-planetary context. While it is far too early to provide a clear outline of the emerging postmodern world order, the trends that are unearthed in this study point away from single mass identities, linear political boundaries, and exclusive jurisdictions centred on territorial spaces, and towards multiple identities and non-territorial communities, overlapping boundaries, and non-exclusive jurisdictions.

Work and family constitutes the dominant life roles for most adults in contemporary society. In that, work may be interrupted by family and family may be interrupted by work. Work often generates ambivalent feelings; it can create both positive feelings (e.g. gives energy, enables development) and negative feelings (e.g. lack of freedom). Therefore, most people accept the overall life experiences including the various dimensions or domains that play a role in work-personal life interaction, such as, time spent on one domain, pressures experienced, responsibilities carried, sense of loyalty with work and family, as common and conflicting aspects. Recent developments in boundary theory highlighted the fact that integrating, or rather interaction means bordering between the two domains of work and personal life is permeable. The main objective of this study was to investigate work-personal life interaction (WPLI) experiences of Setswana speaking police officials. This study also concentrated on the existence of work-personal life interaction, aspects involved, consequences thereof and coping mechanisms employed by the police officers. A non-probability purposive voluntary sample (n = 12) was taken of Setswana speaking police officials from the Mafikeng area in the North West Province. Data collection was done through a phenomenological method of semi-structured in-depth interviews. Content analysis was used to analyse, quantify and interpret the research data systematically and objectively. Results from the content analysis based on the experiences were recorded as reported. The results indicated that there was a definite interaction between work and personal life. However, some police officials experienced interaction more than others. Furthermore, they also experienced the interaction to be more negative than positive due to organisational stressors and the management style of the organisation. Consequently the participants experienced high levels of strain and difficulty when managing their time and dealing with the interaction between their work and personal lives. The time and strain difficulties induced a lot of conflict in their homes as well as their social lives. However, there were some police officials who experienced positive aspects in their lives regardless of the difficulties of being a police official. In addition, it was identified that they made use of coping mechanisms that acted as a buffer against negative experiences of WPLI. Recommendations were made for both the organisation and for future practice. / Thesis (M.A. (Industrial Psychology))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2008.

In an ever-changing world, work and personal life are the main areas in which most employed adults spend their time. Today the essence of the relationship between work- and personal life is that these two domains overlap and interact. Consequently, an increasing number of employed adults are confronted with bigger demands in both their work and personal lives, and many of their daily hassles stem from job responsibilities that are incompatible with responsibilities in their personal lives. Educators' work has also become more intricate and demanding and may be one of the professions in which individuals find it difficult to combine their work and personal lives. The objective of this study was to determine how Setswana-speaking educators experienced their work-personal life interaction (WPLI), and more specifically to determine the significant domains, antecedents, consequences and strategies associated with WPLI for the participants. A non-probability purposive voluntary sample (N = 10) was taken of Setswana-speaking secondary school educators from the Potchefstroom and Klerksdorp areas in the North West Province. Data collection was done through a phenomenological method of semi-structured in-depth interviews. Data was analysed by the use of content analysis The results indicated that educators experienced factors in both their work and personal lives to be demanding. In addition, work demands led to various time constraints and strain. However, factors were identified that made the demands less overwhelming and it was also found that educators valued certain things (family, friends, leisure time, church and personal time) in their personal lives. Educators nevertheless employed certain strategies to cope with this interaction, which in turn led to numerous positive outcomes. Lastly, an interesting finding relating to this study was that educators felt a responsibility towards the children. Recommendations were made for the organisation and for future practice. / Thesis (M.Com. (Industrial Psychology))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2007.