Supervisor Commitment Research Articles

Person–organization and person–supervisor fits: Employee commitments in a Chinese context

AbstractThe present study simultaneously examined people's perceptions of person–organization (PO) and person–supervisor (PS) fit and related these perceptions to employees' commitments. Three‐hundred‐and‐sixty employee–supervisor dyads from Taiwanese organizations reported about their PO fit and PS fit perceptions. In addition, supervisors reported about their perceptions of fit and guanxi with each of their employees. Results indicated that PO and PS fit perceptions both had an independent and additive relationship with organizational commitment. The link between employee PS fit perceptions and organizational commitment was mediated by commitment to the supervisor. Both employee and supervisor fit perceptions contributed to commitment to the supervisor through their influence on the quality of the leader‐member exchange (LMX). Guanxi could not explain additional variance in LMX and supervisor commitment. Implications for theory and practices regarding person–environment fit, commitment, and LMX are discussed. The study findings offered suggestions for a new Theory of Multiple Fits. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Relationships between Supervisory Communication and Commitment to Workgroup: A Multilevel Analysis Approach

The aim of the present study is to establish and interpret the appropriate level of analysis for the correlation between supervisory communication and commitment to workgroup. We intend to examine whether specific forms of correlations between supervisory communication and commitment to workgroup could be distinguished from each other at the individual or higher level of analysis. We present results from an individual, dyadic and group sample taken from a Malaysian organization. We relate the measures of supervisory communication and commitment to workgroup from individuals embedded in a specific workgroup to reflect individual communication with their immediate supervisor as possible antecedents for commitment to their workgroup. To examine this relationship, we follow Within and Between Analysis (WABA) statistical procedures proposed by Dansereau, Alutto, and Yammarino (1984). This procedure involves: (a) testing the total deviation scores for each variable presented within cell, or between cell scores known as WABA I; (b) testing the level of analysis that may underlie relationships among all variables taken two at a time, known as WABA II, and (c) testing the total correlation and component analysis through the combination of WABA I and WABA II. We find that the relationships between supervisory communication and commitment to workgroup are relevant for the whole group. The correlations between these two variables are interpreted as group differences where the individuals in a group are viewed as homogenized, and each workgroup is assigned one score on each variable. Implications of these findings are discussed.

Implementing the Illness Management and Recovery Program in Community Mental Health Settings: Facilitators and Barriers

Implementing the Illness Management and Recovery Program in Community Mental Health Settings: Facilitators and Barriers

Extension Personnel's Self-Esteem and Workplace Relationships: Implications for Job Satisfaction and Affective Organizational Commitment Foci

This study proposes relationships between job satisfaction, affective commitment (organization, supervisor and workgroup), and exchange relations with supervisor, organization and workgroup members among extension personnel. Perceived self-esteem (SE) is hypothesized to moderate relations between the social exchange foci and the corresponding commitment foci and global job satisfaction. One hundred and fifty-six extension personnel (i.e. 93.41% responses) from Ogun State Agricultural Development Programme in Southwest Nigeria provided the useable data for this study. The results of the multiple moderated regression analyses indicate that there are positive relations between job satisfaction and SE (β =0.30, p <0.0001), and relations with organization (β =0.62, p <0.0001). There are positive relations between SE and organizational commitment (β =0.58, p <0.0001), supervisor commitment (β =0.28, p <0.0001), and workgroup commitment (β =0.33, p <0.0001). The notion of most salient foci having the strongest effect on an individual's behavior received mixed support in this study. There is independence between workgroup commitment and relations with workgroup members (β =0.01, ns). The hypothesized moderating effect of SE on the predictors-criterions linkages is not supported by the results. The implications of the results are discussed.

Understanding employees' reactions to supervisors' influence behaviors

PurposeThis study seeks to demonstrate that employees' reactions to their supervisors' influence behaviors are governed by meanings inferred from the behaviors. Another aim is to develop a method in which “weights” for predicting employees' reactions are assigned using mean ratings of perceptions of the features and social/organizational implications of the influence behaviors.Design/methodology/approachEmployees of an energy utility completed survey questionnaires concerning the extent of their supervisors' use of specified influence tactics. Employees' organizational commitment, supervisor commitment, turnover intention, and stress also were surveyed. A separate, community sample rated the influence tactics for dimensions of meaning or implications of the tactics. Data from the two samples were combined in a novel arithmetic scoring procedure as one of several analyses looking for evidence of the specified dimensions' effects.FindingsThe study finds that employees' work attitudes and other outcomes were predicted to a statistically significant degree by dimensional, perceptual characterizations of the influence tactics used by their supervisors. In culminating multiple regression analyses, respectfulness was associated with supervisor commitment, turnover intention, and emotional distress; directness was associated with organizational commitment. Additional analyses indicated that other dimensions of meaning also were associated with outcomes.Research limitations/implicationsThe meanings of supervisors' influence behaviors are somewhat culture‐specific, so the generalizability of findings to other cultures is uncertain. However, the central role of social inferences in reactions to supervisors' influence behaviors may be replicable to other cultures if culture‐specific content or ratings are substituted there. This research also has the usual limitations of cross‐sectional, correlational research.Practical implicationsIn their interactions with employees, managers and supervisors should be aware that their influence behaviors, collectively, generate reactions that are significant for employees' motivation and well‐being. Supervisory behaviors and work contexts should be managed so that employees will infer that their supervisors are showing respect and are being honest and direct.Originality/valueProcesses previously assumed to intervene between supervisory influence behavior and employee reactions were operationalized and demonstrated. Novel methods were developed for this research, and these methods may also be applicable to other research domains that involve sets of behaviors that parallel existing schemes for influence behavior.

AMEE Guide No. 27: Effective educational and clinical supervision

Background: This guide reviews what is known about educational and clinical supervision practice through a literature review and a questionnaire survey. It identifies the need for a definition and for explicit guidelines on supervision. There is strong evidence that, whilst supervision is considered to be both important and effective, practice is highly variable. In some cases, there is inadequate coverage and frequency of supervision activities. There is particular concern about lack of supervision for emergency and ‘out of hours work’, failure to formally address under-performance, lack of commitment to supervision and finding sufficient time for supervision. There is a need for an effective system to address both poor performance and inadequate supervision.Supervision is defined, in this guide as: ‘The provision of guidance and feedback on matters of personal, professional and educational development in the context of a trainee's experience of providing safe and appropriate patient care.’ A framework for effective supervision is provided:(1) Effective supervision should be offered in context; supervisors must be aware of local postgraduate training bodies’ and institutions’ requirements; (2) Direct supervision with trainee and supervisor working together and observing each other positively affects patient outcome and trainee development; (3) Constructive feedback is essential and should be frequent; (4) Supervision should be structured and there should be regular timetabled meetings. The content of supervision meetings should be agreed and learning objectives determined at the beginning of the supervisory relationship. Supervision contracts can be useful tools and should include detail regarding frequency, duration and content of supervision; appraisal and assessment; learning objectives and any specific requirements; (5) Supervision should include clinical management; teaching and research; management and administration; pastoral care; interpersonal skills; personal development; reflection; (6) The quality of the supervisory relationship strongly affects the effectiveness of supervision. Specific aspects include continuity over time in the supervisory relationship, that the supervisees control the product of supervision (there is some suggestion that supervision is only effective when this is the case) and that there is some reflection by both participants. The relationship is partly influenced by the supervisor's commitment to teaching as well as both the attitudes and commitment of supervisor and trainee; (7) Training for supervisors needs to include some of the following: understanding teaching; assessment; counselling skills; appraisal; feedback; careers advice; interpersonal skills. Supervisors (and trainees) need to understand that: (1) helpful supervisory behaviours include giving direct guidance on clinical work, linking theory and practice, engaging in joint problem-solving and offering feedback, reassurance and providing role models; (2) ineffective supervisory behaviours include rigidity; low empathy; failure to offer support; failure to follow supervisees’ concerns; not teaching; being indirect and intolerant and emphasizing evaluation and negative aspects; (3) in addition to supervisory skills, effective supervisors need to have good interpersonal skills, good teaching skills and be clinically competent and knowledgeable.

Reflections from USDA Forest Service Employees on Institutional Constraints to Engaging and Serving Their Local Communities

Abstract Although community relationship building has been recognized since the early 1980s as integral to forest management, it has not been widely supported or adopted. Today, relationship building depends largely on the innovation and commitment of forest supervisors and staff. The institutional environment and its culture play an important role in building capacity for relationship building with communities at each unit, as well as supporting employees' attempts to serve local communities. The research presented takes an in-depth look at the institutional constraints to engaging and serving local communities from the perspectives of 20 USDA Forest Service personnel from three units. Research findings reveal agency, unit, and employee level constraints including, diminished resources, increased departmentalism, staff turnover, and long-distance commuting. We recommend that the Forest Service provides opportunities for successful relationship building efforts and assesses innovative techniques in a Community Partnerships Demonstration Project.

Organizational commitment, supervisory commitment, and employee outcomes in the Chinese context: proximal hypothesis or global hypothesis?

AbstractThis study examines the relationship between organizational commitment and supervisory commitment (commitment to supervisor) in terms of their effects on employee outcomes in the Chinese context. Based on the principle of compatibility, we hypothesized that organizational commitment and supervisory commitment served as logical mediators (global hypothesis and proximal hypothesis) for predicting organization‐relevant and leader‐relevant outcomes respectively. Moreover, because of the impact of personalism in Chinese culture, we predicted that supervisory commitment also significantly influenced organization‐relevant outcomes, in addition to its effect on leader‐relevant outcomes. Two separate questionnaires were administered to 538 subordinates and their supervisors in Taiwanese companies. Structural equation modeling and hierarchical block regression analysis shows that the principle of compatibility and personalism can explain the proposed relationship in this study. Implications and research directions are discussed in light of Chinese culture for future investigation into organizational commitment and supervisory commitment. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley &amp; Sons, Ltd.

Is there Any Positive Effect of Offering No Performance Appraisal Feedback?

So far researchers have regarded performance appraisal feedback as desirable and have examined feed back issues assuming that feedback is actually provided. The purpose of this article is to investigate whether there is any positive effect of offering no performance appraisal feedback. We studied if the inflated expec tation of employees' own performance appraisal affects the performance of the employee positively when the feedback is held back. The empirical results indicated that expectation was positively inflated and it made significant contributions to compliance with supervisor, job satisfaction and organizational commit ment. The results also showed that expectation of their supervisors' rating is a more significant indicator than the real appraisal rating itself in reviewing some employee attitudes like compliance with supervisor and organizational commitment. Several theoretical and managerial implications of the findings, including the importance of cultural difference, were also discussed.

Ignoring Commitment Is Costly: New Approaches Establish the Missing Link Between Commitment and Performance

The branch network of a bank was used to investigate the link between employee commitment and organizational performance in terms of sales targets met and change in profits. Commitment was measured by the conventional Organizational Commitment Questionnaire (OCQ) and different variations of a specifically designed new commitment scale. The approach taken involved the application of multiple regression analysis. That way a variety of factors assumed to contribute to performance, apart from commitment, could be included in the model and held constant. It emerged that employee commitment is significantly related to the financial success of bank branches. The results varied depending on how commitment and performance were measured. Supervisory commitment appears to have a particularly strong impact on the outcome indicators.

The Influence of Managerial Relations on Waves of Employee Involvement

One of the most enduring issues in the debate about employee involvement (EI) and workers' participation is how it survives over time, and to what extent the dynamics of EI is linked with labour‐management relations. In this article, which draws upon data collected in a two‐year study of 25 organizations, it is suggested that managerial relations is a significant factor in explaining waves of EI, and one that is frequently overlooked. Waves of EI can be assessed in terms of the twin concepts of centrality and prominence, terms that are amplified below. The introduction of EI techniques is motivated by a number of forces, but one of the most important is a desire by managers to be noticed, to engage in ‘impression management’, via the creation of new schemes. Despite having high‐profile introductions, these schemes soon tend to fade in importance, to a large extent because of problems within management such as internal political rivalries, low supervisory commitment to schemes, inadequate training provision or the downgrading of EI by management arising from conflicting priorities.

ACHIEVING EAP COMMITMENT FROM MANAGEMENT

Employee Assistance Programmes cannot function without supervisor co‐operation. Personal experiences of an EAP consultant in Australia and the USA are drawn on to describe case studies of success in developing supervisor and management commitment to EAP. Some of the techniques used are outlined: custom designing of supervisory training; identifying employee problems on the basis of job performance issues; consultation with supervisors prior to employee referrals to EAP, ongoing consultation as follow‐up; monitoring of employee performance on the job.

An Evaluation of Organizational Effectiveness: An Appraisal of How Army Internal Consultants Use Survey Feedback in a Military Setting

The authors report problems they experienced during a rigorous evalua tion of an organization development intervention in a military setting. Army internal consultants introduced survey feedback as an intervention to improve work efficiency, general and specific job satisfaction, and working relationships in engineering companies of the U.S. Army. The authors evaluated the success of the consultants' interventions against the goals they set out to achieve. Four recommendations are made to enhance positive outcomes: (1) units should be insulated from externally imposed requirements that tend to disrupt the ongoing process of the survey-feedback program; (2) a standardized instrument needs to be developed to diagnose problems within units accurately; (3) interven tions should be conducted with a team concept in which one person serves as internal consultant to the client system, while a second serves both as an evaluator of the effectiveness of the intervention and as a shadow consultant; and (4) methods need to be developed to ensure the vital commitment of first-line supervisors to the intervention program and to reduce the threat they experience in participatory modes with subordinates.