Co-worker Relationships Research Articles

Attributes of nursing work environment as predictors of registered nurses’ job satisfaction and intention to leave

To examine how front-line registered nurses' perception of their work environment associates with and predicts nurse outcomes in terms of job satisfaction and turnover intention. Mounting evidence has pointed to an inseparable link between attributes of the nursing work environment and nurse outcomes. However, there is a paucity of research examining nurses' perception of their work environment beyond the Western context. This cross-sectional survey involved 1271 registered nurses working in 135 inpatient units in 10 public hospitals in Hong Kong. The instrument comprised items developed from in-depth interviews with front-line nurses that explored nurses' perception of their work environment. Factor analysis identified five dimensions (professionalism, co-worker relationship, management, staffing and resources, and ward practice) of the nursing work environment. Logistic regression analysis further identified professionalism, management and ward practice as significant factors in predicting nurses' turnover intention, and staffing and resources as an additional factor in predicting their job satisfaction. Attributes of the nursing work environment have a significant bearing on nurses' job satisfaction and intention to leave. Managerial effort should focus on improving nurses' work conditions through detailed resource planning, effective management and removal of work constraints that affect nursing practice.

‘Poppets and parcels’: the links between staff experience of work and acutely ill older peoples’ experience of hospital care

Few empirical studies have directly examined the relationship between staff experiences of providing healthcare and patient experience. Present concerns over the care of older people in UK acute hospitals - and the reported attitudes of staff in such settings - highlight an important area of study. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES. To examine the links between staff experience of work and patient experience of care in a 'Medicine for Older People' (MfOP) service in England. A mixed methods case study undertaken over 8 months incorporating a 149-item staff survey (66/192 - 34% response rate), a 48-item patient survey (26/111 - 23%), 18 staff interviews, 18 patient and carer interviews and 41 hours of non-participant observation. Variation in patient experience is significantly influenced by staff work experiences. A high-demand/low-control work environment, poor staffing, ward leadership and co-worker relationships can each add to the inherent difficulties staff face when caring for acutely ill older people. Staff seek to alleviate the impact of such difficulties by finding personal satisfaction from caring for 'the poppets'; those patients they enjoy caring for and for whom they feel able to 'make a difference'. Other patients - noting dehumanising aspects of their care - felt like 'parcels'. Patients are aware of being seen by staff as 'difficult' or 'demanding' and seek to manage their relationships with nursing staff accordingly. The work experiences of staff in a MfOP service impacted directly on patient care experience. Poor ward and patient care climates often lead staff to seek job satisfaction through caring for 'poppets', leaving less favoured - and often more complex patients - to receive less personalised care. Implications for practice. Investment in staff well-being and ward climate is essential for the consistent delivery of high-quality care for older people in acute settings.

FACTORS AFFECTING EMPLOYEE JOB SATISFACTION OF PHARMACEUTICAL SECTOR

The Pharmaceutical sector plays a vital role in underpinning the economic development of a country. This study attempts to evaluate job satisfaction of employees in different pharmaceutical companies. It focuses on the relative importance of job satisfaction factors and their impacts on the overall job satisfaction of employees. It also investigates the impacts of pharmaceutical type, work experience, age, and sex differences on the attitudes toward job Satisfaction. The result shows that salary, efficiency in work, fringe supervision, and co-worker relation are the most important factors contributing to job satisfaction. The overall job satisfaction of the employees in pharmaceutical sector is at the positive level. The nature of business operation, the work culture and the level of job satisfaction have undergone sea change for the pharmaceutical companies. As a business proposition initiated huge investment whereas majority of their stocks is going down bringing a high level of apprehension related to job security among its employees. This research paper highlights some of these problems and presents a picture of level of job satisfaction among employees of pharmaceutical companies. It also identifies unique issues of job satisfaction in the companies. Pharmaceuticals Companies are selected for the research because they are currently undergoing continued expansion. In order to gain competitive advantage and adapt to the dramatic changing environment, it is important for them to achieve management efficiency by increasing employee satisfaction in the organisation. Hence this research was mainly undertaken to investigate on the significance of factors such as working conditions, pay and promotion, job security, fairness, relationship with co-workers and supervisors in affecting the job satisfaction. This paper presents a comprehensive diagnosis of job satisfaction indices of pharmaceutical business, the factors causing the dissatisfaction & suggestions to improve them.

ANALISIS FAKTOR-FAKTOR DALAM KUALITAS KEHIDUPAN KERJA (QUALITY WORK LIFE) DI FAKULTAS EKONOMI UNIVERSITAS NEGERI JAKARTA

Abstract Many factors determine the meaning of quality of work life (QWL). This research reviews the factors of QWL based on models and past research. The factors of QWL discussed are balance between life and non life, the work itself, skill utilization, working condition, job involvement, co-worker relationship, promotion, salary and supervisory. Confirmatory Factor Analysis is used to determine dominant factors of QWL. This research concludes that all the factors we discussed have the value of Keiser Meyers Oklin Measure of Sampling Adequacy more than 0.5, except salary. It means that eight factors which determine QWL are balance between life and non life, the work itself, skill utilization, working condition, job involvement, co-worker relationship, promotion and supervisory. After varimax rotation process and based on criteria eigenvalue more than 1, this research has formed two component from all the factors. Component 1 consist of the factor: balance between life and non life, working condition, promotion and supervisory. And component 2 consist of the factor: work itself, skill utilization, job involvement and co-worker relationship.

The Influence of Informal Communication on Organizational Identification and Commitment in the Context of High-Intensity Telecommuting

The relationship between types of informal coworker communication and organizational identification and commitment is tested in the context of high-intensity telecommuting. Teleworkers recalled interactions in which they felt included or excluded, and responses were coded for integration of teleworkers' relational and identity aims with organizational goals. Inclusion message level, exclusion message level, and coworker social support predicted teleworkers' level of organizational identification and commitment; collegial talk was weakly associated. The quality of the relationship teleworkers had with the coworker they interacted with the most moderated the effect of exclusion messages on identification and commitment, but the general quality of coworker relationships was not a moderator.

Labor Solidarity in the Era of Neoliberal Globalization

Under the context of neoliberal globalization, governments have pursued marketdriven economic reform policies and large firms have adopted the business model of shortterm profit maximization. In this context, intensification of labor polarization has produced growing concerns over the solidarity crisis faced by the labor movement in Korea, which reveals serious weaknesses in internal and external solidarity requiring rectification in order to overcome labor polarization. Internal solidarity of the labor movement in Korea has been weakened by union members’attitude of self-interest toward job security and economic gain, by fragmented co-worker relations, and by intensified competition among activist factions for political power within unions. The most crucial factor constraining external solidarity of the Korean labor movement is the legacy of enterprise unionism, which has produced differentiated interest structures between organized and unorganized workers, while hindering the two worker groups from fostering a common ground of union activities and political vision. Reflexive leadership of labor movement, substantiation of industrial unionism, and fostering of communitarian activism are recommended for revitalizing labor solidarity.

A moderated mediation model of the relationship between organizational citizenship behaviors and job performance.

Addressing numerous calls for future research on understanding the theoretical mechanisms that explain the relationship between organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs) and job performance, this study focused on how an employee's relationships with coworkers mediate the relationship between his or her OCBs and his or her job performance. It also looked at how task autonomy might moderate this mediated relationship. The results of an empirical study involving 364 jewelry designers, 310 coworkers, and 284 supervisors indicated that coworker relations mediated the relationship between OCBs and job performance. In addition, task autonomy positively moderated both paths of this mediated relationship. Finally, these results hold for OCBs that are targeted at individuals but not for OCBs that are targeted toward organizations.

Knowledge Management Case Study: ‘Knowledge Ownership’ in the Private and Public Sectors in Thailand

The case study has been designed to investigate the concept of “knowledge ownership” within public and private organisations in Thailand. This study is a continuation of a previous study available at http://ssrn.com/abstract=1429540. The purpose of the case study is to examine the relationship between employee ownership perceptions and their willingness to share their knowledge assets, both tangible and intangible. To this end, the case study differentiates between perceptions of the organization’s rights to knowledge created by the employee (organisational ownership) and perceptions of the individual’s rights to knowledge he/she creates (individual ownership).Furthermore, the case study investigates the influence of the work environment (e.g., reward, performance evaluation, organisational procedures, knowledge sharing norms, co-worker relationship, supervisor relationship, etc) on employee ownership perceptions according to the knowledge type (codified or tacit).The data collected as part of this case study are available under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0 License (see paper for a description of the data and how to obtain a copy).

Abusive supervisory reactions to coworker relationship conflict

This study extends research on abusive supervision by exploring how supervisor reports of conflict with their coworkers are related to abusive behaviors and resulting outcomes. We utilize research on displaced aggression, conflict, and leader–member exchange (LMX) theory to formulate our hypotheses. Results from two samples of 121 and 134 matched supervisor–subordinate dyads support the idea that supervisors experiencing coworker relationship conflict are likely to engage in abusive behaviors directed toward their subordinates and that LMX quality moderates this relationship. Additionally, abusive supervision was associated with decreased work effort and organizational citizenship behaviors (OCB). Results also indicate that in both samples abusive supervision mediates the relationships between supervisor reports of coworker relationship conflict and OCB, and in one sample mediates the association between supervisor-reported coworker relationship conflict and work effort.

Unfair Treatment in the Workplace and Worker Well-Being

Recent attention has been given to the supportive relationships that may develop among coworkers, and researchers have produced evidence that coworker support can be beneficial for worker well-being. However, studies that have examined the role of social support at work in protecting workers from the detrimental effects of a poor work environment have reported mixed results. The effects of coworker support appear to depend on the type of stressor experienced. This research focuses on stress from exposure to mistreatment by others. This type of stress may be particularly harmful for interactive service workers as they must negotiate interactions with others of various statuses in the workplace. Drawing on data from a large survey of workers, the ability of perceived coworker support to help protect workers from the negative effects of mistreatment by supervisors, customers, and coworkers is examined. The results offer some support for the stress-buffering hypothesis. Although being treated unfairly by others in the workplace is associated with low levels of job satisfaction and high levels of psychological distress, workers who report supportive coworker relationships appear to be protected from some of the negative effects of mistreatment.

A cross‐cultural study of coworker trust

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between an employee's trust of coworkers and that employee's enterprising behavior. The extent to which cultural dimensions, in‐group collectivism and power distance, moderate the trust‐behavior relationship is considered.Design/methodology/approachA rigorous research methodology was employed to minimize potential problems with common method variance. Trust ratings were provided by 135 US, 203 Turkish, 100 Polish, and 86 Russian focal employees. Their 524 coworkers provided enterprising behavior ratings for these focal employees.FindingsThe results show that both cognitive‐ and affect‐based trusts of coworkers is associated with enterprising behavior. The findings also indicate that the affect‐based trust/enterprising behavior relationship is stronger in higher power distance cultures than in lower power distance cultures. In‐group collectivism, however, does not moderate the trust enterprising behavior relationships.Originality/valueTrust is thought to nurture enterprising behavior in the workplace. This study looks at the relationship between trust of coworkers and enterprising behavior, an under investigated but key behavior in the modern organization. The moderating role of power distance implies that organizational interventions promoting affect‐based trust in coworker relationships may have bigger payoffs as far as behavior change in the high‐power distance context than in the low.

Incident reporting culture: scale development with validation and reliability and assessment of hospital nurses in Taiwan

To examine the psychometric validity and reliability of the incident reporting culture questionnaire (IRCQ; in Chinese) following an exploration of the reporting culture perceived by hospital nurses in Taiwan. Scale development with psychometric examination and a cross-sectional study. Ten teaching hospitals. A total of 1064 nurses participated with an average response rate of 83% between November 2008 and June 2009. The factorial construct, criterion-related validity, homogeneity and stability of the IRCQ were evaluated. The nurses' perceptions of the IRCQ were also explored. The four-factor structure of the 20-item IRCQ had satisfactory construct validity (explained variance: 49.37%), criterion-related validity (r = 0.42; P = 0.001), reliability (Cronbach's alpha: 0.83) and stability (3-week-interval correlation: r = 0.80; P = 0.001). These factors included 'application of learning from errors', 'readiness to provide feedback on incident reports', 'collegial atmospheres of unpleasantness and punishment' (CA) and 'incident management: confidential and system driven'. The nurses perceived a moderate overall reporting culture (mean positive response = 49.25%; range: 67.2-24.94%). They weakly agreed on the CA factor of five items (mean positive response = 24.94%; range: 33.0-17.2%). This study provides empirical evidence for the psychometric properties of the IRCQ and the reporting culture which nurses perceive in Taiwan. To Taiwanese nurses, the reporting culture within their work environments especially as it relates to coworker relations, inter-professional collaboration and non-punitive atmosphere is their major concern. Healthcare administrators should consider nurses' perceptions related to incident reporting when managing underreporting issues.

Coworker Relationships and Informal Communication in High-Intensity Telecommuting

Given that high-intensity telecommuters report feeling socially isolated, this study uses structuration and constructivist theories to examine the role of coworker relationships and informal communication in the context of high-intensity telecommuting. Teleworkers' organizational commitment, job satisfaction, informal communication with peers, and coworker liking were examined. Coworker liking was positively related to teleworkers' informal communication satisfaction with coworkers, and with their organizational commitment and job satisfaction. Complaining talk was negatively related to teleworkers' commitment and satisfaction; informal communication satisfaction was positively related to organizational commitment. Coworker liking moderated the effect of teleworkers' complaining talk on organizational commitment, but not job satisfaction. The buffering effect of coworker relationships is discussed as a resource for organizational members engaged in high-intensity telecommuting.

Stabilizing and destabilizing forces in the nursing work environment: A qualitative study on turnover intention

Background The nursing work environment, which provides the context of care delivery, has been gaining increasing attention in recent years. A growing body of evidence points to an inseparable link between attributes of the nursing work environment and nurse and patient outcomes. While most studies have adopted a survey design to examine the workforce and work environment issues, this study employed a phenomenological approach to provide empirical evidence regarding nurses’ perceptions of their work and work environment. Aim The aim of this study was to advance our understanding of the phenomenon of increasing nurse turnover through exploring frontline registered nurses’ lived experiences of working in Hong Kong public hospitals. Methods and participants A modified version of Van Kaam's controlled explication method was adopted. Individual semi-structured interviews were conducted with 26 frontline nurses recruited from ten acute regional, district and non-acute public hospitals in Hong Kong. Their perspectives in regard to their work and work environment, such as workload, manpower demand and professional values, were extensively examined, and a hypothetical description relating the nursing work environment with nurses’ turnover intention was posited. Results Contemplation of nurses’ experiences revealed the vulnerable aspects of nursing work and six essential constituents of the nursing work environment, namely staffing level, work responsibility, management, co-worker relationships, job, and professional incentives. These essential constituents have contributed to two sets of forces, stabilizing and destabilizing forces, which originate from the attributes of the nursing work environment. Nurses viewed harmonious co-worker relationships, recognition and professional development as the crucial retaining factors. However, nurses working in an unfavorable environment were overwhelmed by destabilizing forces; they expressed frustration and demonstrated an intention to leave their work environment. Conclusions The nursing work environment is a complex entity comprising multiple constituents; its attributes affect nurses’ perceptions of their work and work environment, which warrant special attention in addressing the phenomenon of increasing nurse turnover.

Salespeople’s Knowledge-Sharing Behaviors with Coworkers Outside the Sales Unit

Managers and academics alike acknowledge that salespeople can play a pivotal role in intraorganizational knowledge-sharing behaviors with coworkers outside the sales unit (i.e., finance, engineering, production, design, etc.). To this end, this study contributes to the extant sales literature by delineating how and under what conditions salespeople’s knowledge-sharing behaviors are motivated. The study reports two sets of findings that contribute to the sales literature. First, in response to a strong autonomy climate, self-efficacy and coworker relationship quality mediate the relationship between autonomy climate strength and knowledge-sharing behaviors. Second, drawing on situational strength theory, the research finds that knowledge-sharing behaviors benefit from coworker relationship quality under weak but not strong norms. The hypotheses are tested by employing a multilevel modeling technique that uses a sample of 222 salespeople from 38 organizations. Implications for sales theory and practice are discussed.

Linking organizational support to employee commitment: evidence from hotel industry of China

Employee commitment is an important issue for both practitioners and academicians. Although antecedents of employee commitment have been examined in previous literature, organizational support, which is an important organizational characteristic to be developed by managers, and its relationship with employee commitment have not attracted enough academic attention nowadays. Meanwhile, enough empirical evidence of relationship between various dimensions of employee commitment, such as affective and normative commitments is not there. This article focuses on exploring the relationships among organizational support, affective commitment, and normative commitment, based on the data from the hotel industry of China. The results indicate that affective commitment has significant positive effect on normative commitment. Among the three dimensions of organizational support, i.e. managerial support, coworker relationship, and role ambiguity, managerial support has the greatest influence on employee commitment. Theoretical discussions and practical implications have also been provided.

Toxic Work Environments: What Helps and What Hurts

Toxic or harmful working conditions are an important problem for workers and organizations. Fully understanding the consequences of such conditions has been difficult because in-depth information across organizational contexts is scarce. The current article makes use of a new data set based on content coding the full population of organizational ethnographies ( N = 212) to secure in-depth evaluations across a wide range of organizational contexts. The analysis confirms the role of lack of autonomy and lack of skills as toxic working conditions but suggests an equally important role for organizational chaos. Importantly, returning to the narrative accounts allows exploration of the buffering and exacerbating roles of coworker relations and employee involvement and the mechanisms through which these work to moderate other conditions.

Leveraging multi-generational workforce values in interactive information societies

Background: The success of organisations relies on various factors including the ability of its multi-generational workforce to collaborate within the interactive information society. By developing an awareness of the different values of a diverse workforce, organisations may benefit from diversity. Various diversity factors, such as ethnicity, age and gender, impact on the way people interact, especially in the interactive information society.Objectives: This article advocates the need for generational awareness and addresses how this awareness presents benefits to companies, such as, increased productivity, improved succession planning policies and strategies to recruit and retain a diverse workforce. The research problem is directed at how diversity management influences Traditionalists, Baby Boomers, Generation X and Generation Y in terms of their work performance and co-worker relationships.Method: The research design combines Critical Theory and Generational Theory within the mixed-method paradigm. The sequential exploratory design was decided upon as it studies the unknown relationships between different generations of employees. The literature review was followed by a quantitative empirical research component and data was collected by means of a questionnaire. Results: The findings highlight specific differences between generations regarding their perspectives on work values and co-worker relationships, rewards, work-life balance and retirement.Conclusion: The article concludes with recommendations on the role diversity management plays in terms of work performance and co-worker relationships. By leveraging generational awareness in the interactive information society organizations with a multi-generational workforce will succeed in the competitive business environment.

Job satisfaction and turnover intent of primary healthcare nurses in rural South Africa: a questionnaire survey

This paper is a report of a correlational study of the relationships between demographic variables, job satisfaction, and turnover intent among primary healthcare nurses in a rural area of South Africa. Health systems in Southern Africa face a nursing shortage fuelled by migration, but research on job satisfaction and turnover intent of primary healthcare nurses remains poorly described. A cross-sectional study with survey design was conducted in 2005 in all local primary healthcare clinics, including nurses on duty at the time of visit (n = 143). Scale development, anova, Spearman's rank correlation, and logistic regression were applied. Nurses reported satisfaction with work content and coworker relationships and dissatisfaction with pay and work conditions. Half of all nurses considered turnover within two years, of whom three in ten considered moving overseas. Job satisfaction was statistically significantly associated with unit tenure (P < 0·05), professional rank (P < 0·01) and turnover intent (P < 0·01). Turnover intent was statistically significantly explained by job satisfaction, age and education (P < 0·001), with younger and higher educated nurses being more likely to show turnover intent. Satisfaction with supervision was the only facet significantly explaining turnover intent when controlling for age, education, years of nursing and unit tenure (P < 0·001). Strategies aimed at improving job satisfaction and retention of primary healthcare nurses in rural South Africa should rely not only on financial rewards and improved work conditions but also on adequate human resource management.

Who Abuses Their Coworkers? An Examination of Personality and Situational Variables

ABSTRACT This study examines predictors of abusive employee behavior toward coworkers. We examined two personality variables, negative affectivity and political skill, and two situational relationship variables—team member exchange and coworker relationship conflict. We tested our hypotheses with data obtained from a sample of 232 working employees. We found that political skill and team member exchange were negatively related to coworker abuse, whereas negative affectivity and relationship conflict were positively related. Additionally, we found statistical support for the negative affectivity-relationship conflict, political skill-team member exchange, and political skill-relationship conflict interactions. Practical implications and directions for future research are provided.