The authors used the frameworks of reciprocal determinism and occupational socialization to study the effects of work characteristics (consisting of control and complexity of work) on personal initiative (PI)--mediated by control orientation (a 2nd-order factor consisting of control aspiration, perceived opportunity for control, and self-efficacy) and the reciprocal effects of PI on changes in work characteristics. They applied structural equation modeling to a longitudinal study with 4 measurement waves (N = 268) in a transitional economy: East Germany. Results confirm the model plus 1 additional, nonhypothesized effect. Work characteristics had a synchronous effect on PI via control orientation (full mediation). There were also effects of control orientation and of PI on later changes in work characteristics: As predicted, PI functioned as partial mediator, changing work characteristics in the long term (reciprocal effect); unexpectedly, there was a 2nd reciprocal effect of an additional lagged partial mediation of control orientation on later work characteristics.

Newcomers engage in proactive behaviors during organizational entry to increase their adjustment to the organization and to successfully complete their socialization. The present study investigated the links between proactive socialization tactics (i.e., positive framing, sense making and relationship building) and organizational outcomes. Specifically, organizational citizenship behaviors (e.g., assisting coworkers) and counterproductive work behaviors (e.g., verbal abuse) were investigated. The sample included 216 employees from various industries and organizations with an average organizational tenure of 9 months. The results indicated that all proactive socialization behaviors were associated with high levels of citizenship behaviors (i.e., OCB). Only positive framing was associated with low levels of counterproductive work behaviors (e.g., CWB). Furthermore, newcomer adjustment variables (i.e., role clarity, self-efficacy and social integration) were positively related to OCB and negatively related to CWB. The results also provided some support for the newcomer adjustment variables as mediators between proactive socialization behaviors and OCB/CWB. The present study also investigated the role of procedural justice in this model that links proactive socialization behaviors to OCB/CWB through newcomer adjustment variables. Results indicated procedural justice moderated the relationship between relationship building and newcomer adjustment including role clarity, self-efficacy and social integration.

Proactive behaviour implies taking initiative and mastering unexpected situations, and hence, is desirable in different situations. The present thesis includes three empirical studies intended to understand the consequences of proactive behaviour, as well as the factors that contribute to proactive behaviour at work and when facing unemployment. More specifically, whether job design, as measured by objective work task analysis, provides conditions conducive to proactivity in the workplace and when facing unemployment. The results of proactive behaviour during unemployment were also of interest. Study I focused on the influence of job design on individuals’ personal initiative and confidence in their ability when facing unemployment. Participants were employees at a downsizing Swedish assembly plant. Confidence in one’s ability mediated the relationship between job design and personal initiative, and personal initiative affected job search behaviour when advised to be dismissed. Study II, a longitudinal exploration, focused on the predictors of re-employment in the same group as in Study I. Men were more than nine times as likely as women to obtain jobs within 15 months. Individuals without children were more than seven times as likely as those with children to find work within 15 months. The desire to change occupation and willingness to relocate also increased the probability of being re-employed, whereas anonymous-passive job-search behaviour and work-related self-efficacy actually decreased the probability of re-employment. The number of job applications did not impact later re-employment. Study III analysed job design as a predictor of group initiative and self-organisational activities in semiautonomous industrial work groups. An input-process-output model showed that group processes such as reflexivity mediated the impact of job design on proactivity in work groups. Taken together, these studies suggest that work task analysis a useful tool, since it provides access to information that cannot be obtained with self-report measures. Job design indirectly affected proactivity both in the face of unemployment, and in industrial work groups. Further, it is worthwhile to continue identifying the antecedents and consequences of proactivity, as this seems to be an important factor regarding work and unemployment.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-03-15T19:26:32Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Meiry Kamia.pdf: 647658 bytes, checksum: 268c81bd30bfe84fdd2a05221e8488bd (MD5) Previous issue date: 2007-08-13 / Fundo Mackenzie de Pesquisa / Due to the increase of complexity and competitiveness in the global economy, researches on pro-activity have gained strength in the last fifteen years. From this perspective, the proactive behavior has acted as one of the most critical determinant for the organizational success. The proactive behavior is defined as a set of non-formal behaviors that allow the workers to spontaneously search for changes in the work environment, looking forward to solutions and aiming to long term goals that provide benefits to the company. Literature points to the fact that personal values are strongly connected to the behavior. However, up to the moment, little has been investigated regarding the relation between personal values as the antecedent of the proactive behavior in the organizational environment. This study aimed to investigate the relation between personal values and its impact on the proactive behavior in organizations. It is characterized as a descriptive and transversal research. Some instruments were used as measurement tools, such as the Personal Values Questionnaire (PVQ) already validated and the scale of Proactive Behavior in Organizations (ECPO), which has been developed, used and validated in this study. The ECPO presented good levels of reliability, being nominated to be used in researches and organizational diagnosis. Those two scales were answered by a sample of 369 workers. After eliminating extreme cases, the sample was constituted of 325 employees. The linear regression analysis showed that values predict the proactive behavior, and the most significant motivational type is Stimulation. However, the impact of the values over the proactive behavior was low, justifying only 6.7% of the behavior. This low prediction may indicate the existence of variable mediators that affect the impact of the values on the behavior. The implications and limitations of this research are argued in this work. / Pesquisas sobre proatividade ganharam força nos últimos quinze anos por conta do aumento da competitividade e complexidade da economia global. Nesse contexto, o comportamento proativo tem se mostrado um dos determinantes mais críticos para o sucesso organizacional. O comportamento proativo é definido como sendo um conjunto de comportamentos extrapapel em que o trabalhador busca espontaneamente por mudanças no seu ambiente de trabalho, solucionando e antecipando-se aos problemas, visando metas de longo prazo que beneficiam a organização. A literatura aponta para o fato de que os valores pessoais possuem forte relação com o comportamento. Entretanto, até o momento, pouco foi investigado a respeito da relação entre os valores pessoais como antecedentes do comportamento proativo no ambiente organizacional. Este estudo buscou investigar a relação entre os valores pessoais e seu impacto sobre o comportamento proativo nas organizações. Este trabalho caracteriza-se por ser uma pesquisa, descritiva e transversal. Foram utilizados como instrumentos de medida o Personal Values Questionaire (PVQ) já validado, e a escala de Comportamento Proativo nas Organizações (ECPO) que foi desenvolvida e validada neste estudo. O ECPO apresentou bons índices de confiabilidade, sendo indicado para utilização em pesquisas e diagnóstico organizacional. As duas escalas foram respondidas por uma amostra de 369 trabalhadores. Após eliminação dos casos extremos, a amostra ficou constituída por 325 funcionários. A análise de regressão linear mostrou que os valores predizem o comportamento proativo, e o tipo motivacional mais significativamente relacionado foi o tipo Estimulação. Entretanto, o impacto dos valores sobre o comportamento proativo foi baixo, explicando apenas 6,7% do comportamento. Essa baixa predição talvez indique a existência de variáveis moderadoras que afetam o impacto dos valores sobre o comportamento. As implicações e limitações dessa pesquisa são discutidas no trabalho.

Sufficient rest breaks are needed for optimal performance in traditional workplaces, but it is unclear how working with a loosely structured work schedule impacts recovery. Students have temporal flexibility and serve as a good proxy for all groups who work unstructured work schedules. Since most students and employees use the weekend to recover, this study investigated the relationship between recovery experiences (i.e., psychological detachment, relaxation, and mastery) over the weekend and the state of being recovered on the following Monday. Further, the relationship between the state of being recovered on Monday and weekday performance indicators (i.e., task performance and personal initiative) was investigated. Data was collected over three consecutive weeks from a cohort of first-year university students (N = 106) using a quantitative diary study design. This study administered seven surveys (i.e., a personal data survey once, a pre-weekend survey three times, and a postweekend survey three times). After three weeks, 66 participants (N = 66) had completed all the surveys at the person level, yielding 148 matched observations at the week-level. Multilevel modelling showed that weekend relaxation positively predicted the state of being recovered on Monday. Weekend psychological detachment and weekend mastery experiences did not predict the state of being recovered on Monday, and the state of being recovered did not predict weekly personal initiative or weekly task performance. The theoretical and practical implications of this study are presented, as are limitations and suggestions for future research.