Individual Antecedents Research Articles

The Antecedents and Consequences of Learned Helplessness in Work Life

Technologies, processes and products are easily imitated in today’s business world, so organizations can differentiate themselves from others only with their human capital. Helplessness, which may reflect itself as alienation, withdrawal, turnover intention is a serious problem that could prevent the adequate utilization of human capital. The overarching purpose of this study was to review “learned helplessness literature” with specific focus on helplessness in work context. This study, hopefully provided insights about why employees exhibit passive behaviors and apathy; in other words fall into helplessness even though they could initiate a change. In the first part, development of learned helplessness concept was explained together with initial models and experiments. After providing this background information, the individual and work-related antecedents of helplessness were listed. As part of antecedents, the impact of locus of control, gender, role stressors (i.e., workload, ambiguity) and organization structure was discussed briefly. In the third part, both organizational and individual consequences of helplessness were mentioned. Finally, suggestions were made to both practitioners and researchers in order to contribute advancement of theory and improvement of quality of work life.

Connecting the Dots - Antecedents of Individuals' Thematic Similarity Recognition

Work on thematic thinking, an individuals’ preference for basing decisions and cognitive processes on thematic similarity, developed recently. Research results indicate that there are interindividu...

The stigma of reporting wrongdoing at work: When doing right is perceived as wrong

The stigma of reporting wrongdoing at work: When doing right is perceived as wrong The act of reporting unethical, illegal and illegitimate practices at work, whistleblowing, can be associated with a stigma for the individual in question (Banja, 1985). This article presents the stigmatizing position of reporting wrongdoing at work, types of wrongdoing and individual antecedents. Since empirical studies have shown very few systematic results regarding individual differences, one way to decrease societal stigma can be to relate the act of reporting to other known acts that are perceived upon as more positive within society. We therefore also discuss similarities and differences between the idea of whistleblowing and other concepts such as Organizational Citizenship Behaviour (OCB), in-role, and extra-role behaviour before we make some concluding remarks.

Factors Governing Human Fear of Brown Bear and Wolf

This article analyzes people's subjectively experienced fear in areas with presence of brown bear or wolf. Departing from the Human-Environment Interaction Model (Küller, 1991), a hypothetical model of environmental and individual antecedents of fear was tested using structural equation modeling of survey data (n = 391). In the model of fear of brown bear, the main predictor was the appraisal of the species as dangerous/uncontrollable and unpredictable. In the model of fear of wolf, the greater experience with the species and a stronger appraisal of wolf as dangerous, uncontrollable, and unpredictable led to low social trust and this, together with the appraisal of wolf as dangerous/uncontrollable and unpredictable, increased the likelihood of fear. Efforts to reduce human fear of wolves should focus on building trust between the public and authorities, whereas efforts to reduce fear of brown bear should focus on the individual's appraisal of the species.

Examining the antecedents of work connectivity behavior during non-work time

In this study, we draw from human agency theory to develop the construct of work-related connectivity behavior during non-work time, and conduct a survey to investigate the organizational and individual antecedents of this behavior. Data from 139 full-time working adults in the marketing division of a media organization revealed that work connectivity behavior after-hours is significantly related to the distribution of wireless enabled devices by the organization and organizational norms about connectivity. Our results also indicate that individual characteristics exert different levels of influence depending on the functionality of the device through which connectivity behavior is enacted. Polychronicity was more strongly related to laptop connectivity behavior than to handheld connectivity behavior, whereas role integration preference is only related to handheld connectivity behavior. We also found that organization members were more likely to exhibit continued workplace connectivity behavior during generic “downtime” activities such as traveling or commuting. These results have important theoretical and practical implications.

Someone to Look Up To

Despite a business environment that highlights the importance of executives’ ethical leadership, the individual antecedents of ethical leadership remain largely unknown. In this study, the authors propose that follower perceptions of ethical leadership depend on the executive leader’s cognitive moral development (CMD) and, more importantly, on the relationship between executive leader and follower CMD. In a sample of 143 leader–follower dyads, the authors find a direct positive relationship between leader CMD and perceptions of ethical leadership. Using polynomial regression, they find that ethical leadership is maximized when the leader’s CMD diverges from and is greater than the follower’s CMD. The authors explain these findings using a social learning theory framework. Leaders who are more advanced ethical reasoners relative to their followers are likely to stand out as salient ethical role models whose ethics-related communication and behavior attract followers’ attention. The authors discuss the research and practical implications of these findings.

The Relationship between Social Climate and Loneliness in the Workplace and Effects on Employee Well-Being

Although loneliness in the workplace has received relatively little attention in the literature, loneliness in the workplace has a negative impact on quality of both work and private life of employees. While some researchers stress on individual antecedents and ignore the organizational factors, studies in psychology and sociology literature found significant relationship between social relationships and loneliness, which is the start point for this study. Therefore, the overall aim of this study was to investigate the effect of social climate (as an organizational level factor) on loneliness of employees (as an individual level factor) and results for employee well-being. This point makes the study a multilevel research which is less studied in workplace psychology literature. In this article, first, existing literature is reviewed about the loneliness in the workplace, organizational climate and employee well-being. Then a research model questioning the relationships among social climate, workplace loneliness and employee well-being is structured and hypotheses related to the research model are developed in order to answer the research question 1 “Is there a relationship between loneliness of employees and social climate of the organizations?” and research question 2 “Does loneliness of employees and social climate of the organizations effect employee well-being?”. In the light of the research questions, hypotheses are tested on the data gathered by questionnaire method including 203 participants from various sectors and different sized companies. Findings support significant relationships among the variables.

Antecedentes organizacionales y personales de las intenciones de compartir conocimiento: apoyo, clima y compromiso con la organización

The main goal of this study is to investigate the influence of three organizational and individual antecedents on knowledge-sharing intention: perceived organizational support, psychological climate and organizational commitment. To analyze the direct and indirect relationships among variables, a structural equations model is proposed. The object of analysis is, specifically, the direct relationship between organizational support and psychological climate (task orientation and support for innovation) on knowledge-sharing intentions and the indirect relationship of these antecedents through employees´ affective commitment. Results, based on a survey of 168 employees in the tile industry, show that task orientation has only a direct effect on knowledge-sharing intentions, whereas the two dimensions related to support (support for innovation and organizational support) have an indirect effect on knowledge-sharing intention because they increase employees´ affective commitment. This article ends with a discussion on the results from a practical point of view.

Antecedents of knowledge sharing – Examining the influence of learning and performance orientation

Knowledge sharing is an important process in creating competitive advantage. Previous literature mainly identifies environmental and organizational factors that influence the effective transfer of knowledge. However, the focus shifts to the analysis of personal determinants as antecedents for the individual’s engagement in knowledge sharing activities, like personality traits. In this paper, we introduce employees’ goal orientations (i.e. learning orientation or performance orientation) to the individual antecedents of knowledge sharing behavior. It is argued that learning orientation positively influences knowledge sharing, whereas performance orientation is a negative influence factor. As goal orientations are determined by personality traits, we can also confirm existing hypotheses regarding this relationship. The theoretical model developed in this paper is empirically tested on a sample of 124 engineers of an internationally operating engineering company, and significant relationships among the constructs were found.

Examining Student Identification With The Alumni Organization At A 4-Year Commuter Campus

Past research has identified several institutional and individual antecedents that lead to greater intent to support an organization. This paper takes an organizational identification approach in developing an Alumni Relationship Model (ARM) that can be used by universities to generate greater support for their Alumni services activities. This paper shows that by going beyond traditional organizational identification models and by introducing new variables, it is possible to broaden and enrich both practice and theory of organizational identification within a university setting.

Risk Factors for Conduct Disorder and Oppositional/Defiant Disorder: Evidence from a New Zealand Birth Cohort

To examine the social, family background, and individual antecedents of conduct disorder (CD) and oppositional defiant disorder (ODD), the extent to which CD and ODD symptoms were predicted by common environmental risk factors, and the extent to which the antecedents of CD and ODD accounted for the comorbidity between the two disorders. Data were gathered from 926 members of a New Zealand longitudinal birth cohort. The outcome measures were DSM-IV symptom count measures of CD and ODD at age 14 to 16 years. Predictors measured during the period from 0 to 14 years included the following: maternal smoking during pregnancy; exposure to socioeconomic adversity; parental maladaptive behavior; childhood exposure to abuse and interparental violence; gender; cognitive ability; and affiliation with deviant peers in early adolescence. Associations between the predictors and outcome measures were modeled using structural equation modeling. The analyses showed that each of the predictors was significantly (p < .05) associated with CD and ODD, with the exception of gender and ODD. After model fitting, the profile of risk factors that predicted CD and ODD were largely similar. The analyses revealed that approximately 40% of the comorbidity between disorders could be accounted for by common factors. The data showed that CD and ODD had largely similar social and environmental antecedents. One implication of this finding is that treatment and prevention approaches that are developed for use with a particular behavior disorder may in fact reduce the incidence of both disorders.

Neurocognitive performance in children aged 9–12 years who present putative antecedents of schizophrenia

Background We previously developed a novel method of identifying children aged 9–12 years who may be at elevated risk of developing schizophrenia and the spectrum disorders because they present a triad of putative antecedents of schizophrenia (ASz). The present study aimed to determine whether ASz children also present neurocognitive deficits that are commonly observed in patients with schizophrenia. Methods Twenty-eight ASz children and 28 typically-developing (TD) children without the antecedents of schizophrenia completed a battery of neurocognitive tests assessing seven domains of function: General intelligence, scholastic achievement, verbal memory, visual memory, working memory, executive function (EF)–verbal fluency, and EF–inhibition. Results Relative to TD children, the ASz group showed poorer performance on all neurocognitive tests (mean Cohen's d effect size = 0.52). In linear regression analyses, group status (ASz vs. TD) significantly predicted scores on the general intelligence, verbal memory, working memory, and EF–inhibition domains ( p < 0.05). The severity of problems on each of the individual antecedents comprising the antecedent triad did not relate strongly to performance on the neurocognitive domains. Conclusions Children aged 9–12 years who present multiple antecedents of schizophrenia display poorer neurocognition than healthy peers on several domains showing pronounced deficits in schizophrenia, first-episode psychosis, and youth with prodromal symptoms. Longitudinal follow-up is necessary to determine the extent to which poorer neurocognitive performance is specific to those who develop schizophrenia.

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PERSONALITY AND BEING EXPOSED TO WORKPLACE BULLYING OR MOBBING

Workplace bullying which is frequently in discussion at organizations and academia, and effects badly quality of both work and private life of victims and witnesses can be prevent if the antecedents of the phenomenon is known. Some researchers stress on organizational and individual antecedents while some others refuse personality factor. School-based studies found significant relationship between personality and bullying which is the start point for workplace bullying studies about personality factors. The study is done in order to investigate the relation between workplace bullying and personality of employee being exposed to such behaviors that is stated as “victim”. Because there are few academic studies in Turkey about workplace bullying, which is just new and less known issue and personality of victim, by investigating international researches, personality of victim is found to have taken into consideration as one of antecedent of workplace bullying. A cross sectional survey is done in a single company in order to investigate the relationship between variables and similarly to the international researches significant correlations found.

A Global Investigation into the Cultural and Individual Antecedents of Banner Advertising Effectiveness

This study introduces and tests a framework to show the influence of national-level cultural and sociodemographic variables on banner advertising effectiveness. The authors analyze online survey data from 7775 respondents from 34 countries using hierarchical linear modeling and also analyze click-through rates from 2192 users from 26 countries. The findings show that banner advertising effectiveness in terms of attitudes toward banner advertising and intention to click on banner ads varies along Hofstede's cultural dimensions of individualism, uncertainty avoidance, power distance, and masculinity. In particular, consumers from individualist countries show less acceptance of banner advertising than those from collectivist countries. The acceptance of Web banner advertising is related to the consumers’ click behavior. Individual-level variables contribute only marginally to explain banner advertising effectiveness, which strengthens the significance of the direct effects of national-level cultural variables. The findings suggest that marketers should view banner advertising, though largely standardized when targeting a global audience, as a culture-specific issue.

Predicting workplace aggression: reciprocal aggression, organizational, and individual antecedents

Although researchers have suggested that aggression is multiply determined, most studies examine only a small set of predictors, focusing on either situational or individual or reciprocal motives. Research has not studied extensively the relative strength of multiple antecedent sets. Using questionnaire data (n = 366), the current study examines eleven antecedents of employees engaging in aggression: situational antecedents (i.e., procedural, distributive, and interpersonal justice; organizational, work group, and job related stress), individual difference antecedents (i.e., Type A behavior, trait anger, reactions to anger), and reciprocal effects (i.e., being the target of aggression). Individual difference antecedents and being the target of aggression influence the frequency with which employees report engaging in aggression. Situational antecedents are not significant predictors once other antecedents are taken into account.

Emotion antecedents in schizophrenia

Emotion antecedents are defined as external or internal events that cause emotions in individuals. Their study brings us insight into individuals' emotion processing. Emotion antecedents have rarely been studied in schizophrenia. Thirty individuals with schizophrenia and 30 non-patient comparison subjects, matched by gender and age, related events when they felt extremely angry, disgusted, fearful, happy, sad and surprised. Each antecedent was summarized in a written sentence and 20 judges matched the antecedent with the correct emotion. The antecedents of individuals with schizophrenia were less frequently matched with their emotion than the antecedents of non-patient comparison subjects for all emotions. Moreover, error pattern analyses revealed distinct deficits for the emotion “fear”. In the schizophrenia group, fear antecedents were more frequently judged as non-emotional, and non-fear antecedents were more often judged as fear antecedents when compared to the control group. A deficit in fear processing correlated with the Suspiciousness item on the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale. Our results indicate differences in emotion processing in schizophrenia. Error pattern results are consistent with impairment in the appraisal of fear. Lower accuracy rates with schizophrenia subjects' antecedents may reflect lower emotion awareness for all emotions in schizophrenia. This study furthers the understanding of deficits in basic emotion processing in schizophrenia.

Stakeholder Relationship Management in Multi-Sector Innovations

Despite the societal benefits multi-sector innovations provide, researchers’ understanding of the stakeholder issues surrounding them is limited. This study utilizes an inductive, theory-building approach to identify the means through which firms introducing multi-sector innovations can actively shape relationships between public stakeholders in order to better ensure innovation success. Individual, organizational, structural, and attitudinal antecedents emerged from an analysis of published documents detailing multi-sector innovations over a 2-year span. These antecedents are integrated with existing literature to produce a conceptual model and accompanying propositions. Managerial and theoretical implications are discussed, and future research directions provided.

Socialization and Individual Antecedents of Adolescents’ and Young Adults’ Moral Motivation

Socialization and individual differences were examined as antecedents of moral motivation in representative samples of 15-year-old adolescents (N = 1,258; 54% female) and 21-year-old young adults (N = 584; 53% female). The adolescents' primary caregivers (N = 1,056) also participated. The strength of moral motivation was rated by participants' responses to two hypothetical moral dilemmas in terms of action decisions, emotion attributions, and justifications. Socialization was measured by the perceived quality of friendship, parent-child relationships, and educational background. The importance attached to social justice and various personality traits were also assessed. Adolescents' moral motivation was positively associated with the quality of their parent-child relationship and the importance of social justice. Young adults' moral motivation was predicted by the perceived quality of friendships, the importance of social justice, and agreeableness. For both groups, moral motivation was greater in females. The theoretical implications of the findings for the development of moral motivation are discussed.

Offspring of suicide attempters at greater risk of suicide events

Comments on: Melhem NM, Brent DA, Ziegler M, et al. Familial pathways to early-onset suicidal behavior: familial and individual antecedents of suicidal behavior. Am J Psychiatry 2007;164:1364–70. The article by...

Individual and contextual antecedents of older managerial employees' willingness to accept intra-organizational job changes

This study examines the respective influence of individual characteristics and contextual factors on employees' willingness to accept major internal job changes – i.e. domestic relocation, international assignment and change of discipline – in their late careers. Data were obtained from a two-wave longitudinal survey of 584 management-level employees from different private-sector organizations located in France. Three separate hierarchical regression equations were run to test the relationships of interest in this study, one for each of the three internal mobility opportunities. The set of attitudinal variables was found to explain a significant proportion of the variance in the willingness to change discipline, but its influence was weak or null respectively in explaining willingness to accept an international posting or domestic relocation. Off-the-job embeddedness and spouse's unwillingness to move were confirmed as strong deterrents to relocation. As for the individual characteristics, openness to experience was identified as a major determinant of all the types of mobility included in this study. The results suggest that a much more dynamic role could be envisaged for late-career managers, at least for respondents corresponding to certain individual and contextual variables.