Thesis (M.A. (Human Resource Management))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2009.

Frontline client service workers are central to the service elements of any small and medium enterprise. People who have much customer or client contact are seen to be subject to stronger emotional display rules. These display rules may result in compromising the psychological and/or physical health of workers, because they often lead to a disturbing dissonance between felt emotions and the emotions one must exhibit. It is, therefore, of vital importance for service workers to exhibit Emotional Intelligence, which will enable them to manage both their own emotions and their interactions with other people. Their inability to do so may result in stress as well as physical and emotional exhaustion, also known as Burnout. The objective of this research was to determine the relationship between Emotion Work, Emotional Intelligence, Well-being and Social Support of client service workers within small and medium enterprises, A cross-sectional survey design was used. An availability sample was taken from small and medium enterprises employing client service workers in the Mpumalanga Province (N = 145). The Greek Emotional Intelligence Scale (GEIS), Frankfurt Emotion Work Scales (FEWS), Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES), Oldenburg Burnout Inventory (OLBI) and Social Support Scale, as well as a biographical questionnaire were used as measuring instruments. Cronbach alpha coefficients, factor analysis, inter-item correlation coefficients, Pearson product moment correlation coefficients, stepwise multiple regression analysis, and Multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) were used to analyse the data. Principal component analysis resulted in a one-factor solution for Engagement labelled Work Engagement, and a two factor solution for Burnout namely: Disengagement and Emotional Exhaustion. Regarding Social Support, a three factor model was extracted namely; Social Support - Co-worker, Social Support -Supervisor and Social Support - Family. A three factor model was extracted for Emotion Work namely: Emotional Dissonance, Display of Client Care and Extent of Client Interaction. A four-factor solution was extracted for Emotional Intelligence namely: Emotional Expression/Recognition, Use of Emotions to Facilitate Thinking, Control of Emotion as well as Caring and Empathy. An analysis of the data indicated that all of the correlations between the different constructs mentioned below are statistically and practically significant, Disengagement was positively related to Emotional Exhaustion and negatively related to Emotional Expression/Recognition, Emotion Use to Facilitate Thinking and Work Engagement. Emotional Exhaustion was positively related to Emotional Dissonance and negatively related to Emotional Expression/Recognition. Emotional Dissonance was positively related to Display of Client Care, while Display of Client Care was positively related to Extent of Client Interaction, as well as Caring and Empathy. Emotional Expression/Recognition was positively related to both Emotion Use to Facilitate Thinking and Work Engagement. Emotion Control was positively related to Emotion Use to Facilitate Thinking, while it in turn was positively related to Work Engagement. Finally, Social Support from Co-workers was positively related to Social Support from Supervisors and Family, and Social Support from Supervisors was positively related to Social Support from Family. A multiple regression analysis indicated that Emotion Work, Social Support and Emotional Intelligence predicted 29% of the variance in Work Engagement, 30% of the variance explained in Disengagement and 37% of the variance in Emotional Exhaustion. A multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) which was used to determine differences between the departmental, age, race, qualification, language and gender groups with regard to Emotion Work, Emotional Intelligence, Well-being and Burnout, indicated no statistical significant differences (p < 0,05). The results indicated a correlation between Emotional Intelligence, Emotion Work and Well-being factors. Emotional Intelligence factors predicted Work Engagement and Emotion Work predicted Emotional Exhaustion. Recommendations were made for the profession of client service work in small and medium enterprises, as well as for future research purposes. / Thesis (M.A. (Industrial Psychology))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2008.

Things develop quickly in today's internet-linked global economy and competition is intense. Speed, cost, and quality are no longer the trade-offs they once were. Today's consumers demand immediate access to high-quality products and services at a reasonable price. Thus, Managers are challenged to speed up the product creation and delivery cycle, while cutting costs and improving quality. Regardless of the size and purpose of the organisation and the technology involved, people are the common denominator when facing this immense challenge. Success or failure depends on the ability to attract, develop, retain, and motivate the employees. The human-resource employee is the drive behind all these voice-to-voice and face-to-face interactions, attempting to represent the emotions, attitudes, and behaviours required by the organisation. The objective of this research study was to determine the relationship between Emotion Work and Well-being among human-resource employees in the chrome industry. The research method consisted of a literature review and an empirical study. A cross-sectional survey design was used to collect the data. A non-probability convenience sample was taken from human-resource employees in the chrome industry. The Utrecht Work Engagement Scale, Oldenburg Burnout Inventory, the Frankfurt Emotion Work Scales, Greek Emotional Intelligence Scale, Emotional Labour Scale, and Social Support Scale were used as measuring instruments. The data was analysed by making use of descriptive statistics, Cronbach alpha coefficients, factor-analysis, Pearson product-moment correlation coefficients, and multiple regression analyses of variance (multivariate analysis of variance and ANOVA), calculated using SPSS. Compared to the the guidelines of a > 0,07 (Nunnally & Bernstein, 1994), all of the scales of the measuring instruments have normal distributions except for Engagement where the kurtosis was positively skewed. Compared to the guidelines of a > 0,07 (Nunnally & Bernstein, 1994), the Cronbach alpha coefficient of all the constructs is considered to be acceptable. A factor analysis confirmed four factors of Emotion Work, consisting of Emotional Dissonance, the Display of Positive/Pleasant Emotions, the Display of Empathy, and the Display of Negative/Unpleasant Emotions. Emotional Intelligence also consists of four factors namely the Use of Emotion, Caring Empathy, the Control of Emotions, and Expression Recognition. Well- being consists of two factors namely Exhaustion and Engagement. Finally, Social Support consists of three factors Co-worker Support, Supervisor Support, and Family Support. An analysis of the data indicated that all of the correlations between the different constructs mentioned below are statistically and practically significant. The Display of Positive/Pleasant Emotions and the Display of Empathy is positively related to Emotional Dissonance. The Display of Empathy is positively related to Emotional Dissonance as well as to the Display of Positive/Pleasant Emotions. The Display of Negative/Unpleasant Emotions is negatively related to the Display of Positive/Pleasant Emotions and the Display of Empathy. Exhaustion is negatively related to Engagement, the Use of Emotions, and the Control of Emotions. Engagement is positively related to Co-worker Support, the Use of Emotion as well as to the Control of Emotions. Family Support is positively related to both Supervisor Support and Co-worker Support. Supervisor Support is positively related to Co-worker Support. The Use of Emotion is positively related to Caring Empathy and the Control of Emotions. Caring Empathy is positively related to the Control of Emotions, the Display of Positive/Pleasant Emotions, and the Display of Empathy, while it in turn is negatively correlated to the Display of Negative/Unpleasant Emotions. The Control of Emotions is negatively related to the Display of Negative/Unpleasant Emotions. Emotional Dissonance is positively related to both the Display of Positive/Pleasant Emotions and the Display of Empathy. Finally, the Display of Positive/Pleasant Emotions is positively related to the Display of Empathy. In a multiple regression analysis with Emotional Dissonance as dependant variable and with demographic variables, as independent variable a statistically significant model was produced. More specifically, 11% of the variance predicted in Emotional Dissonance was explained by gender, age and ethnicity. In a multiple regression analysis indicated that Emotional Intelligence (specifically the Use of Emotion), Emotion Work (specifically Emotional Dissonance), and Social Support (specifically Co-worker Support) predicted 31% of the total variance in Engagement. Emotional Intelligence (specifically the Use of Emotion and the Control of Emotions), Emotion Work (specifically Emotional Dissonance and the Display of Negative/Unpleasant Emotions), and Social Support (specifically Co-worker Support) predicted 43% of the total variance in Exhaustion A multivariate analysis of variance, which was used to determine differences between ethnic, age, and gender groups with regard to Emotion Work, indicated that participants in the African ethnic group experienced higher levels of Emotional Dissonance than participants in the White ethnic group. Female participants display higher levels of Emotional Dissonance, the Display of Positive/Pleasant Emotions, and the Display of Empathy, while male participants experienced higher levels of the Display of Negative/Unpleasant Emotions. The age group of 42 to 51 experienced lower levels of Emotion Work owing to the experience of Emotional Dissonance, than participants in the age groups of 21 to 31, 32 to 41, and 52 to 66. / Thesis (M.A. (Human Resource Management))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2009.

<p><b><font face="Times New Roman"> <p align="left">As organisations struggle to meet the demands placed on them by contextual challenges, they place more emphasis on relationships for effective organisational functioning. Trust is a critical component of workplace relationships and has been linked to numerous beneficial organisational outcomes. However, as trust is difficult for organisations to influence directly, Perceived Organisational Support may encompass a set of actions organisations can take that directly create workplace trust. The aim of this study was to elucidate the relationship between workplace trust and Perceived Organisational Support. Workplace trust was examined as a three-dimensional model, with the trust referent (Organisation, Immediate Manager, Co-Workers) forming each dimension. Perceived Organisational Support was examined as a two-dimensional model, based on performance-reward expectancies (&ldquo / Contribution&rdquo / ) or socio-emotional need fulfilment (&ldquo / Well-being&rdquo / ). A multi-method survey methodology yielded n = 212 participants in a South African organisation. The consolidated questionnaire sought biographical information from the sample as well as their responses to the Workplace Trust Survey and the Survey of Perceived Organisational Support. The reliability coefficients of the Workplace Trust Survey, Survey of Perceived Organisational Support and each of the dimensions were established as sufficient. Next, Confirmatory Factor Analysis confirmed that a three-dimensional factor structure for workplace trust and a two-dimensional factor structure for Perceived Organisational Support can&nbsp / and should be used in a South African sample. Correlation analysis indicated a significant, positive relationship between each dimension of workplace trust and both of the dimensions of Perceived Organisational Support. Regression analysis confirmed that Perceived Organisational Support contributes to a significant proportion of the variance in workplace trust. However, there was one exception: The Contribution dimension of Perceived Organisational Support did not contribute significantly to Trust in Co-workers. This research, based on a South African sample, confirms much of the previous international research into the relationship between Perceived Organisational Support and workplace trust. In addition, it makes two new contributions to the field. First, it found that Perceived Organisational Support can and should be considered a two-dimensional construct in a South African sample. This is in contrast with international studies that indicate a uni-dimensional construct for Perceived Organisational Support. Second, by using the two-dimensional Perceived Organisational Support construct, it found that only the Well-being, and not the Contribution, dimension of Perceived Organisational Support had a significant, positive impact on workplace trust.</p> </font></b></p>

<p><b><font face="Times New Roman"> <p align="left">As organisations struggle to meet the demands placed on them by contextual challenges, they place more emphasis on relationships for effective organisational functioning. Trust is a critical component of workplace relationships and has been linked to numerous beneficial organisational outcomes. However, as trust is difficult for organisations to influence directly, Perceived Organisational Support may encompass a set of actions organisations can take that directly create workplace trust. The aim of this study was to elucidate the relationship between workplace trust and Perceived Organisational Support. Workplace trust was examined as a three-dimensional model, with the trust referent (Organisation, Immediate Manager, Co-Workers) forming each dimension. Perceived Organisational Support was examined as a two-dimensional model, based on performance-reward expectancies (&ldquo / Contribution&rdquo / ) or socio-emotional need fulfilment (&ldquo / Well-being&rdquo / ). A multi-method survey methodology yielded n = 212 participants in a South African organisation. The consolidated questionnaire sought biographical information from the sample as well as their responses to the Workplace Trust Survey and the Survey of Perceived Organisational Support. The reliability coefficients of the Workplace Trust Survey, Survey of Perceived Organisational Support and each of the dimensions were established as sufficient. Next, Confirmatory Factor Analysis confirmed that a three-dimensional factor structure for workplace trust and a two-dimensional factor structure for Perceived Organisational Support can&nbsp / and should be used in a South African sample. Correlation analysis indicated a significant, positive relationship between each dimension of workplace trust and both of the dimensions of Perceived Organisational Support. Regression analysis confirmed that Perceived Organisational Support contributes to a significant proportion of the variance in workplace trust. However, there was one exception: The Contribution dimension of Perceived Organisational Support did not contribute significantly to Trust in Co-workers. This research, based on a South African sample, confirms much of the previous international research into the relationship between Perceived Organisational Support and workplace trust. In addition, it makes two new contributions to the field. First, it found that Perceived Organisational Support can and should be considered a two-dimensional construct in a South African sample. This is in contrast with international studies that indicate a uni-dimensional construct for Perceived Organisational Support. Second, by using the two-dimensional Perceived Organisational Support construct, it found that only the Well-being, and not the Contribution, dimension of Perceived Organisational Support had a significant, positive impact on workplace trust.</p> </font></b></p>

Frontline client service workers are central to the service elements of any small and medium enterprise. People who have much customer or client contact are seen to be subject to stronger emotional display rules. These display rules may result in compromising the psychological and/or physical health of workers, because they often lead to a disturbing dissonance between felt emotions and the emotions one must exhibit. It is, therefore, of vital importance for service workers to exhibit Emotional Intelligence, which will enable them to manage both their own emotions and their interactions with other people. Their inability to do so may result in stress as well as physical and emotional exhaustion, also known as Burnout. The objective of this research was to determine the relationship between Emotion Work, Emotional Intelligence, Well-being and Social Support of client service workers within small and medium enterprises, A cross-sectional survey design was used. An availability sample was taken from small and medium enterprises employing client service workers in the Mpumalanga Province (N = 145). The Greek Emotional Intelligence Scale (GEIS), Frankfurt Emotion Work Scales (FEWS), Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES), Oldenburg Burnout Inventory (OLBI) and Social Support Scale, as well as a biographical questionnaire were used as measuring instruments. Cronbach alpha coefficients, factor analysis, inter-item correlation coefficients, Pearson product moment correlation coefficients, stepwise multiple regression analysis, and Multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) were used to analyse the data. Principal component analysis resulted in a one-factor solution for Engagement labelled Work Engagement, and a two factor solution for Burnout namely: Disengagement and Emotional Exhaustion. Regarding Social Support, a three factor model was extracted namely; Social Support - Co-worker, Social Support -Supervisor and Social Support - Family. A three factor model was extracted for Emotion Work namely: Emotional Dissonance, Display of Client Care and Extent of Client Interaction. A four-factor solution was extracted for Emotional Intelligence namely: Emotional Expression/Recognition, Use of Emotions to Facilitate Thinking, Control of Emotion as well as Caring and Empathy. An analysis of the data indicated that all of the correlations between the different constructs mentioned below are statistically and practically significant, Disengagement was positively related to Emotional Exhaustion and negatively related to Emotional Expression/Recognition, Emotion Use to Facilitate Thinking and Work Engagement. Emotional Exhaustion was positively related to Emotional Dissonance and negatively related to Emotional Expression/Recognition. Emotional Dissonance was positively related to Display of Client Care, while Display of Client Care was positively related to Extent of Client Interaction, as well as Caring and Empathy. Emotional Expression/Recognition was positively related to both Emotion Use to Facilitate Thinking and Work Engagement. Emotion Control was positively related to Emotion Use to Facilitate Thinking, while it in turn was positively related to Work Engagement. Finally, Social Support from Co-workers was positively related to Social Support from Supervisors and Family, and Social Support from Supervisors was positively related to Social Support from Family. A multiple regression analysis indicated that Emotion Work, Social Support and Emotional Intelligence predicted 29% of the variance in Work Engagement, 30% of the variance explained in Disengagement and 37% of the variance in Emotional Exhaustion. A multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) which was used to determine differences between the departmental, age, race, qualification, language and gender groups with regard to Emotion Work, Emotional Intelligence, Well-being and Burnout, indicated no statistical significant differences (p < 0,05). The results indicated a correlation between Emotional Intelligence, Emotion Work and Well-being factors. Emotional Intelligence factors predicted Work Engagement and Emotion Work predicted Emotional Exhaustion. Recommendations were made for the profession of client service work in small and medium enterprises, as well as for future research purposes. / Thesis (M.A. (Industrial Psychology))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2008.

Things develop quickly in today's internet-linked global economy and competition is intense. Speed, cost, and quality are no longer the trade-offs they once were. Today's consumers demand immediate access to high-quality products and services at a reasonable price. Thus, Managers are challenged to speed up the product creation and delivery cycle, while cutting costs and improving quality. Regardless of the size and purpose of the organisation and the technology involved, people are the common denominator when facing this immense challenge. Success or failure depends on the ability to attract, develop, retain, and motivate the employees. The human-resource employee is the drive behind all these voice-to-voice and face-to-face interactions, attempting to represent the emotions, attitudes, and behaviours required by the organisation. The objective of this research study was to determine the relationship between Emotion Work and Well-being among human-resource employees in the chrome industry. The research method consisted of a literature review and an empirical study. A cross-sectional survey design was used to collect the data. A non-probability convenience sample was taken from human-resource employees in the chrome industry. The Utrecht Work Engagement Scale, Oldenburg Burnout Inventory, the Frankfurt Emotion Work Scales, Greek Emotional Intelligence Scale, Emotional Labour Scale, and Social Support Scale were used as measuring instruments. The data was analysed by making use of descriptive statistics, Cronbach alpha coefficients, factor-analysis, Pearson product-moment correlation coefficients, and multiple regression analyses of variance (multivariate analysis of variance and ANOVA), calculated using SPSS. Compared to the the guidelines of a > 0,07 (Nunnally & Bernstein, 1994), all of the scales of the measuring instruments have normal distributions except for Engagement where the kurtosis was positively skewed. Compared to the guidelines of a > 0,07 (Nunnally & Bernstein, 1994), the Cronbach alpha coefficient of all the constructs is considered to be acceptable. A factor analysis confirmed four factors of Emotion Work, consisting of Emotional Dissonance, the Display of Positive/Pleasant Emotions, the Display of Empathy, and the Display of Negative/Unpleasant Emotions. Emotional Intelligence also consists of four factors namely the Use of Emotion, Caring Empathy, the Control of Emotions, and Expression Recognition. Well- being consists of two factors namely Exhaustion and Engagement. Finally, Social Support consists of three factors Co-worker Support, Supervisor Support, and Family Support. An analysis of the data indicated that all of the correlations between the different constructs mentioned below are statistically and practically significant. The Display of Positive/Pleasant Emotions and the Display of Empathy is positively related to Emotional Dissonance. The Display of Empathy is positively related to Emotional Dissonance as well as to the Display of Positive/Pleasant Emotions. The Display of Negative/Unpleasant Emotions is negatively related to the Display of Positive/Pleasant Emotions and the Display of Empathy. Exhaustion is negatively related to Engagement, the Use of Emotions, and the Control of Emotions. Engagement is positively related to Co-worker Support, the Use of Emotion as well as to the Control of Emotions. Family Support is positively related to both Supervisor Support and Co-worker Support. Supervisor Support is positively related to Co-worker Support. The Use of Emotion is positively related to Caring Empathy and the Control of Emotions. Caring Empathy is positively related to the Control of Emotions, the Display of Positive/Pleasant Emotions, and the Display of Empathy, while it in turn is negatively correlated to the Display of Negative/Unpleasant Emotions. The Control of Emotions is negatively related to the Display of Negative/Unpleasant Emotions. Emotional Dissonance is positively related to both the Display of Positive/Pleasant Emotions and the Display of Empathy. Finally, the Display of Positive/Pleasant Emotions is positively related to the Display of Empathy. In a multiple regression analysis with Emotional Dissonance as dependant variable and with demographic variables, as independent variable a statistically significant model was produced. More specifically, 11% of the variance predicted in Emotional Dissonance was explained by gender, age and ethnicity. In a multiple regression analysis indicated that Emotional Intelligence (specifically the Use of Emotion), Emotion Work (specifically Emotional Dissonance), and Social Support (specifically Co-worker Support) predicted 31% of the total variance in Engagement. Emotional Intelligence (specifically the Use of Emotion and the Control of Emotions), Emotion Work (specifically Emotional Dissonance and the Display of Negative/Unpleasant Emotions), and Social Support (specifically Co-worker Support) predicted 43% of the total variance in Exhaustion A multivariate analysis of variance, which was used to determine differences between ethnic, age, and gender groups with regard to Emotion Work, indicated that participants in the African ethnic group experienced higher levels of Emotional Dissonance than participants in the White ethnic group. Female participants display higher levels of Emotional Dissonance, the Display of Positive/Pleasant Emotions, and the Display of Empathy, while male participants experienced higher levels of the Display of Negative/Unpleasant Emotions. The age group of 42 to 51 experienced lower levels of Emotion Work owing to the experience of Emotional Dissonance, than participants in the age groups of 21 to 31, 32 to 41, and 52 to 66. / Thesis (M.A. (Human Resource Management))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2009.

Månadssamtalet är ett frekvent återkommande samtal mellan medarbetare och chefer inom en organisation. I samtalet diskuteras medarbetarens välmående, resultat som har presterats samt framtida utvecklingsplaner. Syftet med denna uppsats var att utifrån medarbetares och chefers perspektiv undersöka hur månadssamtalet bidrar till medarbetares fortsatta utveckling och lärande. Vårt syfte resulterade i tre frågeställningar: Vad karaktäriserar månadssamtalet, hur medarbetare respektive chefer ser på sina uppgifter i månadssamtalet samt på vilka sätt månadssamtalen bidrar till att utveckla medarbetarna i deras fortsatta vardagliga arbete. Som ett första steg granskades tidigare forskning inom medarbetarsamtalet, detta gjordes för att kunna urskilja olika perspektiv, betydelsefulla aspekter och tidigare intressant problematik runt fenomenet. För att söka svar på frågeställningarna valdes en kvalitativ metod. Vi genomförde sju semistrukturerade telefonintervjuer tillsammans med medarbetare och chefer från ett bemanningsföretag. Det material som redovisades från intervjuerna analyserades sedan med ett sociokulturellt perspektiv i åtanke samt med teorier från Lave och Wenger samt Säljö. Vi kom fram till att månadsamtalet karakteriseras som en social och gemensam aktivitet. Samtalet generar kontinuerlig återkoppling till medarbetaren om deras styrkor och svagheter, vilket görs möjligt genom språket som även ses som en av de mest väsentliga komponenterna i samtalet. Utformning på samtalet påverkas av den existerande kulturen i organisationen. Chefens uppgift är att coacha och vägleda medarbetaren och därmed blir deras primära uppdrag att få medarbetaren att prata genom att engagera och stötta. Medarbetarens uppgift blir följaktligen att vara den engagerade, kommunikativa och ledande parten. Det finns ett fokus på lärande och utveckling som görs möjligt genom att medarbetaren tar ansvar för att delta, vara aktiv samt anpassar sig till den rådande kulturen. Medarbetarna själva anser att samtalet bidrar till en förändring i deras arbetssätt och i hanteringen av olika arbetsmoment till det bättre. En aspekt till att lärandet kan ske hänvisas till de kunskaper och råd som cheferna bidrar med men även till att medarbetarna själva aktivt har deltagit och resonera fram till lösningar. Lärandet i månadssamtalet sker på så sätt i social interaktion mellan medarbetare och chefer, erfarenheter och kunskaper används och utvecklas. / The monthly dialogue is a frequent discussion between employees and managers within an organization. In the conversation they discuss the employee's well being, results that have been achieved and future development plans. The purpose of this study was to examine, from a employees and managers perspective, how the monthly dialogue contributes to the employee's continued development and learning. Our purpose resulted in three questions: What characterizes the monthly dialogue, how do employees and managers view their individual tasks in the monthly dialogue and in which ways does the monthly dialogue contribute to developing employees in their daily work tasks. As a first step we reviewed previous research in performance appraisal, this was done in order to distinguish different perspective, significant aspects and past interesting problems around the phenomenon. In order to answer the questions we choose a qualitative method. We performed seven semi-structured telephone interviews with employees and managers from an employment agency. The material from the interviews were then analysed with a socio-cultural perspective in mind and with theories from Lave and Wenger and Säljö. We concluded that the monthly dialogue can be characterized as a social and communal activity. The dialogue will generate continuous feedback to the employee on their strengths and needs, which are made possible through the language, which is seen as one of the most essential components in the monthly dialogue. The dialogues are affected by the existing culture in the organization. The manager's role is to coach and guide the employees and therefore their primary mission is to get the employee to talk through involvement and support. The employee's task is to be communicative and take the leading role. There is a focus on learning and development and this is made possible if the employee takes responsibility to participate, be active and adapt to the existing culture. The employees themself believe that the dialogue contributes to a change in their approach and in handling different work tasks, for the better. One aspect that learning refers to is the knowledge and advices that managers contribute with and to the employees themselves that have actively participated and reflected to solutions. Learning in the monthly dialogue is made possible through social interaction between employees and managers and when experiences and knowledge are used and developed.

Magister Commercii (Industrial Psychology) - MCom(IPS) / As organisations struggle to meet the demands placed on them by contextual challenges, they place more emphasis on relationships for effective organisational functioning. Trust is a critical component of workplace relationships and has been linked to numerous beneficial organisational outcomes. However, as trust is difficult for organisations to influence directly, Perceived Organisational Support may encompass a set of actions organisations can take that directly create workplace trust. The aim of this study was to elucidate the relationship between workplace trust and Perceived Organisational Support. Workplace trust was examined as a three-dimensional model, with the trust referent (Organisation, Immediate Manager, Co-Workers) forming each dimension. Perceived Organisational Support was examined as a two-dimensional model, based on performance-reward expectancies (“Contribution”) or socio-emotional need fulfilment (“Well-being”). A multi-method survey methodology yielded n = 212 participants in a South African organisation. The consolidated questionnaire sought biographical information from the sample as well as their responses to the Workplace Trust Survey and the Survey of Perceived Organisational Support. The reliability coefficients of the Workplace Trust Survey, Survey of Perceived Organisational Support and each of the dimensions were established as sufficient. Next, Confirmatory Factor Analysis confirmed that a three-dimensional factor structure for workplace trust and a two-dimensional factor structure for Perceived Organisational Support can and should be used in a South African sample. Correlation analysis indicated a significant, positive relationship between each dimension of workplace trust and both of the dimensions of Perceived Organisational Support. Regression analysis confirmed that Perceived Organisational Support contributes to a significant proportion of the variance in workplace trust. However, there was one exception: The Contribution dimension of Perceived Organisational Support did not contribute significantly to Trust in Co-workers. This research, based on a South African sample, confirms much of the previous international research into the relationship between Perceived Organisational Support and workplace trust. In addition, it makes two new contributions to the field. First, it found that Perceived Organisational Support can and should be considered a two-dimensional construct in a South African sample. This is in contrast with international studies that indicate a uni-dimensional construct for Perceived Organisational Support. Second, by using the two-dimensional Perceived Organisational Support construct, it found that only the Well-being, and not the Contribution, dimension of Perceived Organisational Support had a significant, positive impact on workplace trust. Recommendations are made for future research, based on limitations of the current study as well as on the research results.

Avhandlingen behandlar idén om medarbetarskap med utgångspunkt från hur begreppet medarbetarskap tolkas och används. Syftet är att öka kunskapen kring idén och hur den tar sig uttryck i organisationers praktik. I den teoretiska referensramen har nyinstitutionell teori integrerats med teorier kring lärande och implementering. Strukturen i analysen utgörs av en metafor som behandlar hur populära idéer reser in i och genom organisationer. Centrala begrepp i tolkningen av vad som sker i mötet mellan idé och subjekt vid de olika anhalterna på resan är översättning, lärande och ömsesidig anpassning. Studien har genomförts i form av fallstudier vid ett statligt bolag och vid ett landsting där medarbetarskapsprogram bedrivits. Resultaten grundar sig huvudsakligen på intervjuer, vilka kompletterats med observationer och dokumentstudier. Resultaten visar att det skett en ömsesidig anpassning mellan idé och subjekt vid den studerade enheten i landstinget med ökad delaktighet, förståelse för varandra och ett förbättrat arbetsklimat som följd. Idén integrerades i hög grad i den vardagliga verksamheten. Vid det statliga bolaget passerade idén förbi utan några större bestående avtryck i de studerade grupperna och idén integrerades inte i den ordinarie verksamheten. Resultaten kan förstås med grund i hur programmen genomförts tolkat utifrån lärandeteorier och olika perspektiv på implementering. Genomförandet i det statliga bolaget kännetecknades av central styrning och snäva frihetsgrader vad gäller form och innehåll för medarbetarskapsutvecklingen. Vid landstinget var däremot behoven vid de lokala enheterna en grundläggande utgångspunkt för inriktningen på medarbetarskapsutvecklingen där delaktighet i idéutvecklingen och genomförandet av programmet var en ledstjärna. I översättningen av idén om medarbetarskap i ord finns skiljelinjen mellan personer på olika nivåer i organisationen, snarare än mellan organisationerna. Medarbetare vid enheterna ser medarbetarskapsbegreppet i första hand som ett kollektivt begrepp, där gruppens funktion är i centrum, medan de som representerar organisationsnivån i större utsträckning betonar individens ansvar och agerande. Vilket perspektiv och vilka intressen individen har ser ut att ha betydelse för hur idén uppfattas. Vidare kan den spridning och det genomslag som idén om medarbetarskap fått i svenskt arbetsliv, förstås utifrån dess samstämmighet med tidsandan och den generella utvecklingen som skett i samhälle och arbetsliv. / The aim of this thesis is to increase knowledge of the idea of co-workership and how it is manifested in the practice of organizations. The point of departure is how the concept of co-workership is interpreted and used. The theoretical framework is based on an integration between new institutional theory and theories about learning and implementation. The starting point of the analysis is a metaphor about popular ideas travelling into and through organizations. Central concepts are learning, translation and mutual adaptation. The study is based on a qualitative case study with two cases, a county council and a state-owned company, where co-workership programs have been implemented. The empirical material consists mainly of interviews. In addition observations and document studies have been used. The results indicate that a mutual adaptation between idea and operation occurred in the studied unit in the county council, with consequences in the daily work, while the idea passed without any lasting impressions at the unit level in the state-owned company. These findings may be understood in terms of how the co-workership program was implemented, interpreted through theories of learning and implementation. The co-workership development in the county council was characterized by employee participation in identifying needs and choice of areas of work as well as a high level of integration in the daily operations. In the studied groups in the state-owned company, the employees did not participate in the planning, and the co-workership program was not actively integrated into daily operations. Hence, there were not the same opportunities for a mutual adaptation between idea and operation as we found in the unit at the county council. In translating the idea into words, differences were found mainly between people at different levels in the organizations. At the organizational level co-workership was viewed as an individual concept emphasizing the responsibility and actions of the individual. Employees in the studied units, on the other hand, mainly expressed co-workership as a collective concept, focusing on the team and how it functions. The interpretation of the concept seems to be connected to the perspective of different parties within the organizations. Furthermore, the spread and the popularity of the idea of co-workership in Swedish working life can be understood in terms of the ideas correspondence with the current zeitgeist, and in relation to the general development going on in society and working life.