Collective Self-concept Research Articles

Work and well-being: collective and individual self-concept, job commitment, citizenship behavior, and autonomy as predictors of overall life satisfaction

ABSTRACT A job may contribute to overall life satisfaction (LS) when it meets basic psychological needs. This study examined aspects of one’s work (organizational commitment, citizenship behavior and autonomy), and individual differences in self-concept (collective versus individual), as predictors of overall LS. 295 employees working at a variety of jobs completed questionnaires online. Results showed that higher collective self-concept predicted greater LS; this was partially mediated by affective job commitment, work autonomy and altruistic citizenship behaviors, all of which also independently predicted greater LS. Higher individual self-concept was also a significant predictor of LS, partially mediated by compliance citizenship behaviors. These results suggest that when work fulfills a need for connectedness (i.e., for people with a collective self-concept), autonomy, and when we feel emotionally committed to our job, and go beyond what it requires, our overall LS is higher. These results clarify some positive ways that our work contributes to overall LS, but important questions remain for future research.

Integrating the big-fish-little-pond effect, the basking-in-reflected-glory effect, and the internal/external frame of reference model predicting students’ individual and collective academic self-concepts

The present research is the first to integrate three major theories of academic self-concept formation into one framework: the big-fish-little-pond effect (BFLPE), the basking-in-reflected-glory effect (BIRGE), and the internal/external frame of reference (I/E) model. For separating the BFLPE and the BIRGE, we introduced students’ collective self-concepts, defined as their perceptions of domain-specific abilities of their group (e.g., their class). We tested our newly developed model, predicting students’ math and verbal self-concepts, in the field (N = 2,001 students from 110 classes) and in the laboratory (N = 315 students in groups of three). In both studies, we found support for (1) the BFLPE (i.e., negative effects of group-average achievements on individual self-concepts within domains), (2) the BIRGE (i.e., positive effects of collective self-concepts on individual self-concepts within domains), and (3) the I/E model (i.e., positive/negative effects of individual achievements on individual self-concepts within/between domains). Moreover, for the first time, we have largely replicated the I/E model relations for predicting students’ collective self-concepts by their group-average achievements. Interestingly, the BIRGE exceeded the BFLPE in both studies. This finding demonstrates the high suitability of collective self-concepts for operationalizing the BIRGE. Overall, our findings substantially enhance our knowledge of the cognitive processes involved in students’ self-concept formation.

Paternalistic leadership and employee well-being: a moderated mediation model

PurposeThis paper aims to explore the psychological mechanism in the relationship between paternalistic leadership (PL) and employee well-being (EWB) in cross-cultural nonprofit organizations. It also aims to further promote the integration of research on PL and self-concept by examining the relationship between PL and collective self-concept (CSC).Design/methodology/approachData were collected on 72 supervisors and 233 expatriate Chinese teachers from 42 Confucius Institutes and 15 Confucius classrooms in Canada and the USA.FindingsPL has a significant effect on EWB. Benevolent and moral leadership are positively related to CSC, while authoritarian leadership is negatively related to CSC. CSC mediates the relationship between PL and EWB. Furthermore, employees’ cross-cultural adaptability positively moderates the relationship between CSC and EWB; the indirect effect between PL and EWB via CSC is stronger for employees with stronger cross-cultural adaptability.Originality/valueThis is the first study that has examined the psychological mechanism under which PL affects EWB in cross-cultural nonprofit organizations. It contributes to the integration of research on PL and CSC by examining its relationship for the first time. It provides important implications for improving the well-being of expatriate employees in cross-cultural organizations.

Social Comparisons, Self-Conceptions, and Attributions: Assessing the Self-Related Contingencies in Leader-Member Exchange Relationships

Research on leader-member exchange (LMX) has demonstrated that, in addition to the value of LMX as an indicator of quality relationships with leaders, employees also evaluate how their relationship with the leader compares to other employees’ relationship with the leader. This finding led to the emergence of LMX social comparison (LMXSC). This study examines how LMX vs. LMXSC relates to work outcomes and considers the employee and perceived supervisor self-concept levels as moderators. We posit that LMX predicts work performance through increased organizational commitment. We further suggest that the relational and collective levels of the self-concept act as contingencies of the relationships among LMX, LMXSC, commitment, and performance. A sample of 250 employee-supervisor dyads was used to test the hypotheses. LMX predicted commitment and, indirectly, performance. The employee and perceived supervisor relational self-concepts acted as moderators of LMXSC, and the perceived supervisor collective self-concept acted as a moderator of LMX and LMXSC. However, not all moderation hypotheses were supported. Unexpected moderating effects involving the employee and perceived supervisor individual self-concepts, as well as main effects, were also uncovered. This study helps differentiate LMX from LMXSC and understand the role of self-conceptions, including self-conceptions attributed by employees to the leader, in leader-member relationships.

Self-relevant processing of stranger’s name in Chinese society: Surname matters

Stimuli that have been frequently used to induce self-relevant processing are highly familiar to individuals (e.g., self-name [SN] and self-face). One’s surname is an important form of collective self-concept; it represents the line of ancestry, and is psychologically salient. According to this concept, a stranger with the same surname may also elicit salient self-relevant processing, despite unfamiliarity; however, this has not yet been directly investigated. The present study adopted a three-stimulus oddball paradigm and multimodal electroencephalography to study the potential self-relevant processing of such stimuli. Behavioral results indicated that same-surname unfamiliar (SSU) names were rated more self-relevant than different-surname unfamiliar (DSU) names, although they were rated equally unfamiliar to subjects. Analysis of EEG data showed similar P2 enhancement in response to SN and SSU when compared to DSU. In contrast, the self-relevant effect on P3 amplitudes and theta synchronization decreased linearly from SN, SSU, to DSU conditions. Thus, both the behavioral and electrophysiological data indicate that unfamiliar names with the same surname can evoke reliable self-relevant processing.

“Born Black and Male”: Counseling leaders’ self-discovery of strengths

Africentric/Afrocentric psychology frames the interview findings on five African-American male leaders in a racial, ethnic, and culturally diverse counseling association. The consensual qualitative research method was used to extrapolate themes from the five interviews. Africentric cultural strengths suggested in the themes are (a) autogeny, (b) primacy of the person in the context of community, (c) consubstantiality of primordial substance, (d) perpetual evolution, and (e) living forever. Two themes related to counseling practice are (f) social justice and (g) cultural empathy. Common trends in statements across interviews are illustrated with rich quotations and summaries. Although the framework of continental African world view facilitated understanding a few African-American male counseling leaders, the study evidences a larger universal human dimension of individuals’ pain, resilience, self-discovery of strengths, and leadership bound to a collective self-concept by which leadership can take place both individually and collectively.

Role Breadth Self-Efficacy and Foci of Proactive Behavior: Moderating Role of Collective, Relational, and Individual Self-Concept

ABSTRACT.This study aims to identify the interactive effect of role breadth self-efficacy (RBSE) and the three levels of self-concept (collective, relational, and individual) in predicting of different foci of proactive behaviors. Results from 259 matched responses from an airline company in Taiwan showed that RBSE had a positive effect on (1) pro-organizational proactive behavior among those with higher collective self-concept, (2) pro-supervisor proactive behavior among those with higher relational self-concept, and (3) pro-self proactive behavior among those with higher individual self-concept. Our findings provide insights into the moderating role of different levels of self-concept on RBSE-proactive behavior process in terms of specific targets or beneficiaries. Further implications for organizational research and practice are discussed.

По Ту Сторону Коллективизма: (Авто)Биографические Подходы к Изучению Российской Истории

SUMMARY: The aim of this article is a twofold one: On the one hand to show the long and multifaceted tradition of describing the Self in Russian History, and by this means to adjust the widespread Western approach to Russia as a society based only on collective self-concepts. And on the other hand to raise the question to which extent the imperial dimension of the subject in Russian history was reflected by research so far?

Challenged Histories and Collective Self-Concepts: Politics in History, Memory, and Time

Societies, like individuals, strive to have positive self-concepts. They endow stories of their origin and associate their course through history with ethical principles that attest to who they are and how they want to be seen. Such principles define the society for its members and for the world at large. But all societies must at some time confront evidence of actions undertaken in their name that violate their fundamental principles and conflict with their desired self-image. Following a glance at the basic elements of the politics of history and identity, the author suggests two sources of the tensions between “bad acts” and positive self-concepts. Both relate to shifts in developmental time. First, actions not considered wrong when they were undertaken in the past are inconsistent with current expectation. Second, transsocietal differences in normative frameworks lead to cross-boundary criticisms of behavior in which the critics' societies likely engaged at an earlier time. Accusations or criticisms generally meet with defensive, often hostile responses. Hypocrisy tends to rule in most cases, with little or no normative learning.

Developmental Trajectories of Personal and Collective Self‐Concept Among American Indian Adolescents

Developmental trajectories of personal and collective self-concept were examined among American Indian adolescents. Personal self-concept (self-esteem) and collective self-concept (American Indian identity, Euro-American identity, community-mindedness) were assessed 6 times over 3 years in 4 cohorts of adolescents from 3 American Indian cultural groups (N=1,252). An accelerated longitudinal design was used to estimate developmental trajectories from 14 to 19 years; parallel-process and covariate models were used to examine variation in trajectories. Both personal and collective self-concepts were generally positive and showed small gains; they were moderately related to one another and differentially related to cultural group, gender, and perceived social support. The findings highlight the complexity of self-concept for American Indian youth and the significance of both personal and collective identity.

When organizational justice and the self-concept meet: Consequences for the organization and its members

In two studies, we examined the joint effects of employed participants’ self-concept levels and perceptions of fairness on organizational attitudes and citizenship behavior intentions. We examined the effects of chronic self-concept activation in Study 1, whereas we primed the working self-concept in Study 2. Combining the results of both studies, we found support for our hypotheses that particular self-concept levels and organizational justice dimensions interact to predict various work-related outcomes. Specifically, we observed interactions between the relational self-concept and interactional justice, and between the collective self-concept and procedural justice, such that the justice–outcome relationships were stronger for those experiencing higher activation on the relevant self-concept level. Thus, as hypothesized, justice information is weighted differently depending on the particular level of self-concept that is active. In addition, interesting direct effects of employees’ self-concepts were also observed. We discuss the implications of these findings and the importance of considering the self-concept in conjunction with organizational justice.

ISO9000, consultants and paradoxes: a sociological analysis of quality assurance and human resource techniques

This article analyses ISO9000 normalization processes as sources of organizational isomorphism according to the new institutional theory. We present two in-depth case studies in the French computer industry showing that there are two manners to implement ISO9000 standards: an in-depth procedure (concerned with organizational effectiveness and with external legitimacy) and an instrumental one (only concerned with external legitimacy). Our findings show that resistance to change is a common phenomenon in ISO9000 implementation programs having high impact on organizational power games and informal structures. In order to face these issues we suggest that consultants must go beyond engineering consultation methods that are only concerned with the structural fit between the organizational standards and the ISO9000 requirements. The paradox HRM model shows that information that threatens an organization's collective self-concept is often ignored, rejected, reinterpreted or hidden. The manifestation of social defenses - the ways of groups of people deal with non-contained forms of anxiety and fear, can be seen as sources of behaviors blocking organizational change.

On Collective Identity

I argue that a number of persons form a when they share a first person plural perspective. This perspective is shaped by a collective self-concept which, along with its causal history, uniquely identifies the collective. Collectives persist through changes in membership by maintaining this collective self-concept. Changes in the collective self-concept may be identity preserving, however, if they result from processes naturally flowing from the identity of the collective, which are appropriately caused by (or accepted by) the collective.

Measurement of group self-concept of intermediate students through systematic observation and parallel self-reports

The assumption that persistent and stable behaviors of intermediate groups of students indicated a collective and dominant self-concept was investigated. Descriptive indicators of overt behaviors were organized to form a systematic observation schedule and a parallel self-report instrument. Pairs of trained observers independently and simultaneously rated groups of students in grades four, five, and six for a period of 20 minutes. All of the students within the fourth, fifth, and sixth grades responded to the self-report instrument. Interrater agreement was established on the observation schedule. A reliability coefficient of .84, p < .05 on the self-report was gained through test-retest procedures. Factor analysis of self-report data revealed interpretable underlying factors. Content validity was established on both instruments.