Thesis (M. A.)--Brock University, 2006. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 95-103). Also available online (PDF file) by a subscription to the set or by purchasing the individual file.

M.Comm.

“The question of employee turnover has come to gain greater attention especially in the 21st century where organisations all over the world, in various industries, have faced this problem at some stages of their evolution” (Zahra et al, 2013:78). Turnover intentions have further become a vital study for organisations and researchers as research has found that once an employee has actually implemented the behaviour to quit, it is highly unlikely that an employer will be able to “gain access to them to understand their prior situation” (Darroux, Johnathan & Thibeli, 2013:78). Several studies have been devoted to examine the impact of various factors such as organisational commitment, work engagement, age, gender and tenure on turnover intentions in an attempt to assist organisations in alleviating the challenges associated with turnover (Darroux, Johnathan & Thibeli, 2013). The results of these studies have continually shown that both work engagement and organisational commitment have a significant effect on turnover intentions (Yin & Yang, 2002; Meyer, Stanley, Herscovitch & Topolnytsky, 2002 and Tett & Meyer, 1993).

The aim of this study was to determine whether a relationship exists between organisational commitment (OC) and employer branding (EB). The purpose was to Identifying whether employer branding effects organisational commitment (affective, normative and continuance commitment) and how significant that effect may be. Questionnaires were personally distributed by the researcher directly to employees under study. Non-probability sampling was used in the form of judgement sampling. The sample consisted of 124 employees from various retail outlets throughout Port Elizabeth, Eastern Cape. Five hypotheses were set for evaluation. A practically significant relationship was established between organisational commitment (OC) and employer branding (EB). A small practically significant relationship was found between gender and normative commitment. A medium practically significant relationship was found between gender and training and development as well as between gender and work/life balance. Statistically significant relationships were discovered with regards to age and leadership and also between age and rewards and recognition. A statistically significant difference was established between age and overall employer branding (EB). These findings suggest that a more positive employer brand will lead to improved organisational commitment (OC). More so, retail organisations aiming to improve on organisational commitment should incorporate those employer branding (EB) factors which employees’ place greater emphasis on, within their employer brand, which in turn will lead to greater organisational commitment.

Thesis (Ed.D.)--Boston University / Discretionary effort (DE) is energy over which an individual has control, beyond that which is minimally required by the organization, expended pro-organizationally (to benefit the organization), consistent with organizational goals and requiring both a behavioral as well as a cognitive expenditure by the individual. The major question motivating this study was, "what relationships exist between DE and the previously established measures of organizational commitment (OC), psychological attachment (PA) and organizational citizenship behavior (OCB)?" A Discretionary Effort Scale (DES) was developed and integrated into a larger, 64-item Workplace Questionnaire (consisting of items from established measurement tools for OC, PA and OCB) and administered to 212 members of three business organizations (using both paper-and-pencil and electronic versions of the Questionnaire). Using principal components analyses, the original 15-item DES was reduced to a 10-item scale loading on two, key factors: In Role DE (IRDE) and Extra Role DE (ERDE). Analysis of results generally supported positive correlations between DE and OC, DE and PA, and DE and OCB. Analyses of relationships between IRDE (and ERDE) and specific components of the other dimensions (OC, PA, OCB) yielded pattems and results consistent with the nature of the constructs. The ve:ry early, rudimentary findings (1983) regarding levels of DE exhibited by workplace members were replicated in this study. The construct of DE does appear to merit further attention as one that may offer researchers and organizational managers opportunity for a better understanding of the relationship between organizational members and their organizations.

This quantitative research was a descriptive, statistical analysis that answered the question: "How does authentic leadership practices and the leader's quality of communication relate to organizational commitment?" / Doctor of Philosophy / Leadership practices / Leadership history / Leadership diversity / Leadership Communication / Organizational commitment / Communication Satisfaction Questionnaire / Organizational Commitment Instrument / Authentic Leadership Questionnaire.

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This research was designed to investigate the potential mediating role of personal power and of trust in the relationship between servant leadership and affective organizational commitment. The research responds to calls for increased understanding of the mechanisms at work between leadership models and outcomes. Especially unique in the available literature is the quantitative study of the relationship between servant leadership and personal power. All of the constructs in the research model are based on existing instruments, including those developed for personal power (PP; Hinkin & Schriesheim, 1989; Raven, Schwarzwald, & Koslowsky, 1998), trust (T; Mayer & Gavin, 2005), servant leadership (SL; Winston & Fields, 2015), and affective organizational commitment (AOC; Allen & Meyer, 1990), and were measured as follower perceptions and attitudes. Social exchange theory was used as the theoretical basis of the proposed model (Blau, 1964; Emerson, 1962). This includes the perspective of social power and trust being characteristic of exchange relationships as opposed to attributes of an individual. Linear regression was performed using IBM® SPSS® (SPSS), and mediation was evaluated using the approach from Baron and Kenny (1986). The hypotheses for the positive relationship between SL and AOC, and for mediation of the SL-AOC relationship by PP were supported. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used in confirmation analysis. The hypothesis for T as a mediator in the relationship between SL and AOC was not supported. Further ad hoc analysis suggests SL and PP as serial mediators in the relationship between T and AOC. Implications for academic and practitioner applications are discussed.