The personality congruence of supervisors and subordinates and its influence on work outcomes is a relatively new topic in social and behavioral sciences. Most well-known personality theory is Big Five that includes openness, conscientiousness, neuroticism, extraversion and agreeableness traits. LMX theory focuses on the mutual relationship between a supervisor and a subordinate. There is a gap in the literature regarding the mediating role of LMX perceptions of subordinates on the relationship between personality congruence of supervisors and subordinates and affective commitment (AC). The purpose of this cross-sectional design was first to explore the direct relationship between supervisors and subordinates personality congruence and AC of subordinates. The second purpose of this study was to explore the role of LMX as a mediator between the personality congruence of supervisors and subordinates and AC of the subordinates. A cluster sampling method was used to gather 400 supervisor-subordinate dyads from 3 technopolises in Ankara, who completed self-reported questionnaires. A technopolis is a technology science park. Polynomial regression analysis was conducted to measure the congruence level of dyads' personality traits and structural equation modeling was used to analyze the mediating effect of LMX. Results revealed that, LMX has no mediating effect on personality congruence and AC. The results also revealed that there is a significant relation between the agreeableness congruence of supervisors and subordinates, and AC. This information can be used by organizations by pairing up agreeable dyad members to increase affective commitment. The findings of this study may create positive social change by promoting optimum functioning organizations that have committed employees which would affect the society and economy in a positive way.

Small business managers are experiencing a 30% turnover of employees, costing U.S. businesses $41.3 million per year. The purpose of this case study was to explore the strategies that experienced business managers use in small accounting firms to respond effectively to generational differences in workplace engagement. Using a purposeful sampling technique, 5 managers possessing successful experience in issues related to generational differences in the workplace were recruited from small accounting firms located in Midwestern United States to participate in semi-structured interviews about engaging a multi-generational workforce. Methodological triangulation was used to analyze the data collected through semi-structured interviews and observations, which were grouped into common nodes and themes. Three themes emerged, including providing resources and incentives, giving opportunities, and forming relationships between managers and subordinates. These themes aligned with leader-member exchange theory, indicating the need for managers and subordinates to establish high-quality relationships which result in more engaged employees. The results from this study might contribute to social change by providing transferable knowledge about how management behaviors affect the engagement of employees, which could assist more business owners to take generational differences into account, and in turn produce more engaged and satisfied employees. Responding effectively to generational differences in workplace engagement may lead to less employee turnover, which may increase revenue and translate into social responsibility and sustainability programs in the community.

People who telecommute or work in virtual settings report higher satisfaction from increased flexibility and autonomy. However, relationships with leaders are more difficult to build, particularly as leadership in virtual workplaces tends to be less hierarchical. It is known that leader-member communication is an important aspect of employee job satisfaction and a significant problem exists for leaders who are ill-prepared to function in the leadership role required by a virtual workplace. The purpose of the quantitative study was to examine if employee job satisfaction predicts attitude toward virtual workplace setting and if this relationship is moderated by leader-member communication and leadership style. The theoretical frameworks that guided the study were the job demands-resources model and media richness theory. Relationships between variables were explored using correlation and multiple regression, while controlling for moderating variables. 145 of the 295 telecommuters fit the parameters. The findings revealed a significant relationship between attitude toward telecommuting and job satisfaction. The leader-member exchange and transformational leadership styles significantly and positively affected the relationship between attitude and job satisfaction, while passive avoidant leadership style significantly and negatively affected the relationship between attitude and job satisfaction. These findings can help leaders as they aim to improve communication for the growing number of employees who telecommute.

Disengaged employees are a threat to a company's survival in a highly competitive world. Despite employee engagement benefits, the mediation of interactions between leaders and followers and the specific drivers of engagement remain poorly understood. This correlational study was grounded on leader member exchange (LMX) theory and examined the relationship between 2 dimensions of LMX (perceived contribution and professional respect) and employee engagement. In this study, 68 manufacturing employees from the southern region of the United States responded to 2 surveys to measure the LMX dimensions and the level of employee engagement. Using multiple regression analysis, the existence of a positive correlation, p < .001 and R2= .277, was demonstrated, which explained 28% of the variation in engagement. This research may serve as a roadmap for studying additional variables and providing workable tools for developing strategies to improve engagement in the workplace. The results of this study might contribute to positive social change by helping managers develop strategies to engage employees and reduce turnover, by improving the sense of stability for employees and their families, and by helping companies become more competitive and generate new jobs.

Despite regulatory efforts of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), 104 cases of nonfatal occupational illnesses and injuries (OIIs) per 10,000 full-time workers required time away from work in 2015. Although OII rates in private and public sectors are high, the rates among state and local government agencies were over 50% higher than private sector rates in 2015, especially in the healthcare industry. OIIs can lead to reduced organizational productivity and performance. Guided by the leader member exchange theory (LMXT) and risk homeostasis theory (RHT), the purpose of this single case study was to explore effective strategies that supervisors in a government agency in the mid-Atlantic region of the United States use to reduce OIIs. Data were collected from face-to-face semistructured interviews with 8 purposefully selected supervisors who had reduced OIIs and the review of company documents. Data were analyzed using inductive coding of phrases, word frequency searches, and theme identification. Four themes emerged: managing employee risk-taking behaviors reduced OIIs, communicating the importance of safety with employees decreased OIIs, having high-quality relationships with employees reduced and mitigated OIIs, and continuous education and training reduced OIIs. Both the LMXT and RHT were essential in exploring the role that education and training played in reducing OIIs. Findings may provide government agencies with valuable information that may lead to a healthier and safer work environment, increased productivity and profitability, and healthier lifestyles inside and outside of the workplace.

Interactions such as task assignments and communications between supervisors and subordinates have unintended negative consequences on subordinates such as alienation of subordinates that are not members of the 'in' group. These relations are determined by the quality of the leader-member exchange (LMX) between supervisor and subordinate. The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of supervisor-subordinate exchange on state government employees by understanding the essence of these exchanges in state government agencies. The theoretical foundation of this phenomenological study was Graen and Uhl-Bien's conceptualization of LMX. Data were collected through 12 semi structured interviews with subordinates from the North Carolina Motor Vehicle Driver's License Section. This group of employees from the NC DMV were selected because of the geographical convenience to conduct interviews with participants. Supervisors were not interviewed for this study because the focus was the perceived effect on the employees' performance, motivation, and attitudes. The data were coded and analyzed using a modified Stevick-Colaizzi-Keen method. The results of this study supported that supervisor-subordinate exchanges can influence subsequent behaviors in government employees. This study may have future policy implications in that the results can be used to influence new policy or revise current policies concerning supervisor training within local, state, and federal government agencies. Organizations that comprehend how and why supervisor-subordinate exchanges impact them can revise training for both management and employees, improve communication and relationship skills, and reduce negative effects from these exchanges to promote positive social change.

Leader-member exchange (LMX) differentiation, the extent to which the leader forms different quality exchange relationships with group members, is the fundamental premise of LMX theory. The present study tests whether, why, and when LMX differentiation increases group outcomes. More specifically, I suggest a dual perspective model of LMX differentiation and group effectiveness, which includes both leaders' and members' perspectives on LMX differentiation. To explicate the effects of leader- and member-rated LMX differentiation on group effectiveness, I delineate two group processes (task and socio-emotional processes) to link LMX differentiation to two aspects of group effectiveness (group performance and group viability). I propose that leader-rated LMX differentiation increases group performance via task group processes (group role clarity and group coordination) whereas member-rated LMX differentiation decreases group viability via socio-emotional processes (relationship conflict and group potency). Furthermore, I propose moderators (distributed expertise, leader-leader exchange, leader prototypicality, and group power distance) suggesting when leader-rated LMX differentiation relates to task group processes more strongly and positively, and when member-rated LMX differentiation relates to socio-emotional group processes less strongly and negatively. Survey data, based on the US and South Korean employees working in 57 teams, were collected from three different sources (group leaders, members, and upper-level managers) at two points in time (with 3-month time lag). Results revealed three important findings: (a) leader-rated LMX differentiation is positively correlated with group role clarity, group coordination, and group potency and negatively correlated with relationship conflict, (b) group mean member LMX and group mean leader LMX were more robustly, positively related to most group process and effectiveness variables, and (c) leader prototypicality moderates the relationship between member-rated LMX differentiation and relationship conflict such that the negative relationship is significant only when members perceptions of leader prototypicality was high. The present study contributes to the LMX and team leadership literature by (a) providing a theoretical framework of a dual perspective to understand the LMX differentiation-group effectiveness relationship at the group level, (b) providing empirical evidence showing that leader-rated LMX differentiation is positively related to some group processes although these relationships were not significant when controlling for group mean LMX, (c) finding that the leaders' and members' perspectives on LMX differentiation are not highly correlated, and (d) emphasizing the role of leader prototypicality in understanding the effect of member-rated LMX differentiation at the group level. Based upon these findings, I suggest future research directions such as ways to improve measurement and operationalization of LMX differentiation, development of a theoretical model explaining the low level of LMX agreement between members and leaders, and examining LMX differentiation in broader contexts (e.g., HR systems or strategy and cultural contexts).

The upper member of the Nounan Formation and the Worm Creek Member of the St. Charles Formation, both late Cambrian in age, were studied in the Bear River Range and the Fish Creek Range in southeast Idaho. Lithology and sedimentary structures of these units were compared with characteristics of similar modern sediments and ancient rocks, to determine the environments of deposition and effects of diagenesis for the interval studied. On the basis of widely traced marker horizons, the two-member interval is divided into three parts, with parts 1 and 2 comprising the upper member of the Nounan Formation, and part 3 equal to the Worm Creek Member. A marker of mixed-fossil lime packstone at the base of part 1 is overlain by mixed-fossil and lithiclast lime grainstones and cryptalgal boundstones. Sedimentary structures within these units suggest that part 1 was deposited in shallow subtidal and intertidal environments. An oolitic lime and/or dolomite grainstone marks the base of part 2, and suggests shallow subtidal conditions. Part 2 is comprised of interbedded limestones and dolostones, with dolostone becoming predominant up section. The mixed-fossil, oolitic, and lithiclast packstones and grainstones, and cryptalgal boundstones of this part include sedimentary structures which indicate shallow, subtidal accumulation. The percentage of non-carbonate sand increases near the top of part 2, and sedimentary features suggest that water depth decreased slightly as terrigenous influx increased. The base of part 3 (Worm Creek Member) is marked by sandstones and quartzites, cemented with carbonate minerals and/or quartz over-growths. Carbonate deposition resumed above these terrigenous units in the southern and central parts of the study area, while terrigenous sediments continued to accumulate in the north and northwest. This suggests that the source of terrigenous sand was north or northwest of the study area. Radial-fibrous cement rims on carbonate grains indicate early subsea cementation in limestones. Dolomite in "birdseye" structures and in reworked lithiclasts, both in limestones, suggests that a minor amount of syngenetic dolomite formed, although there are no beds of primary dolomite. Dolostone units do not have the sedimentary structures typical of supratidal environments of syngenetic dolomitization, and have the coarsely crystalline texture and other characteristics of secondary dolomite. Dolomitization in a zone of mixing of fresh water and sea water is a probable explanation of all dolostones in the sequence . Dolomite-embayed quartz and feldspar grains and overgrowths in some quartzites of part 3 suggest that dolomitization continued after lithification of some rock units.

<p>Att delegera ansvar till sina medarbetare är närmast självklart i det moderna ledarskapet. Detta har lett till ett ökat behov av tillit mellan ledare och medarbetare. I en väl fungerande ledar-medarbetar-relation har medarbetarens tro på sin förmåga i arbetet – arbetsrelaterad self-efficacy – visat sig vara viktig. I föreliggande studie var syftet att undersöka betydelsen av medarbetarens arbetsrelaterade self-efficacy för ledarens tillitsintention. Avsikten var också att jämföra denna med betydelsen av medarbetarens objektiva kompetens, vilken traditionellt framhållits som viktig i tillitsbedömningar, samt medarbetarens kön. Deltagarna bestod av 44 ledare från ett industriföretag samt 28 ledare från ett vårdföretag. Resultatet visade en stark huvudeffekt av medarbetarens arbetsrelaterade self-efficacy. Detta talar för vikten av att investera i medarbetarnas personliga utveckling.</p>

Virtuelle Communities bezeichnen Gemeinschaften von Individuen, die maßgeblich über das Internet miteinander kommunizieren und kollaborieren. Anders als in Unternehmen, in denen Motivationsstrukturen primär auf finanziellen Anreizen basieren, gilt für Virtuelle Communities, dass die Zuarbeit in diesen in der Regel freiwillig und ohne monetäre Interessen der Mitglieder stattfindet. Unternehmen nutzen Virtuelle Communities für Zwecke des Customer Relationship Management, des Wissensmanagement und des Customer Integration. Universitäten bilden virtuelle Lernnetzwerke, um die Interaktion zwischen Studierenden zu erhöhen und hierdurch Lernerfolge zu steigern. Die Potenziale Virtueller Communities werden jedoch in vielen Fällen nicht vollständig ausgeschöpft. Insbesondere der Frage nach einer systematischen Mitgliedersteuerung kommt aufgrund der vorherrschenden komplexen Motivationsstrukturen der freiwillig partizipierenden Mitglieder eine besondere Bedeutung zu. In bisherigen wissenschaftlichen Arbeiten wurde dieser Aspekt jedoch vernachlässigt. Das Untersuchungsdesign der Arbeit zielt darauf ab, diese Forschungslücke zu schließen und einen Ordnungsrahmen zu gestalten, der einen systematischen Aufbau, Betrieb und insbesondere eine Steuerung Virtueller Communities ermöglicht. Die Identifikation von Steuerungsinstrumenten wurde im Rahmen der Arbeit durch eine Analyse der Strukturen und Funktionsweisen in Open Source-Projekten vorgenommen, anschließend wurden diese auf andere Typen Virtueller Communities übertragen. Im Rahmen zweier Fallstudien wurde der entwickelte Ordnungsrahmen unter realen Bedingungen an einem Expertennetzwerk an der Börse Berlin AG und einem universitären Lernnetzwerk erprobt. Die anschließende Analyse gibt Aufschluss über die Wirkungsweisen wettbewerblicher, kooperativer und hierarchischer Steuerungsinstrumente in Virtuellen Communities. / A virtual community can be understood as a group of people sharing common interests, ideas, and feelings by using the internet or other collaborative networks. In contrast to companies where contributors are mainly motivated by financial incentives, virtual communities are based on voluntarily participation and non-monetary benefits. Companies build up virtual communities to support customer relationship management, customer integration or knowledge management. Universities use virtual learning communities to increase knowledge transfer among students. However, the potential of virtual communities can not completely tapped without efficient and systematic approaches of community engineering. Members usually participate voluntarily in virtual community and therefore are characterized by a complex motivational structure. This aspect has not been discussed in scientific literature intensively. The research design of this contribution aims on developing a framework that can be used to systematically build up a virtual community. By analyzing open source projects several instruments of member management were identified and transferred to different types of virtual communities. By developing a case study design the practical relevance of the theoretical model was measured. A network of experts at Berlin stock exchange and a learning network at University of Potsdam were analysed. Surveys, interviews as well as data examinations were used to evaluate the effects of instruments of a systematic member management and different types of coordination such as hierarchy, competition and cooperation.