Individual-level Moderators Research Articles

Data in Policing: An Integrative Review

ABSTRACT The article brings together contemporary research on how new forms of data are reshaping policing and police organizations. A systematic review of 192 papers (1970–2022) identifies the developing effects of data in areas like automated decision-making and predictive policing. We synthesize the findings in an integrative framework that links data sources, data-driven processes, and policing outcomes while highlighting the significance of institutional, organizational and individual-level moderators. The acceleration of data in policing raises critical questions for public administration scholars. We discuss the implications on the evolving nature of discretion and decision-making, the training of police officers, and tensions between data professionals and street-level officers. We further unpack the implications for organizational transformation and the changing nature of policing strategies.

The online world as a means of connection and disconnection during the COVID-19 pandemic: A test of the interpersonal-connections-behaviour framework

BackgroundThe interpersonal-connections-behaviour framework proposes that social media is helpful/unhelpful to the individual to the extent that it facilitates/hinders satisfaction of core needs for acceptance and belonging (connecting and disconnecting pathways). However, little research has, to date, explicitly tested this framework. MethodsBoth pathways were explored in a cross-sectional sample of UK adults at the start of the pandemic (N = 632) and in longitudinal (cross-lagged) analyses (N = 227–240). Participants completed measures of online and offline socialising with friends and family (connecting pathway), and online and offline social comparisons (disconnecting pathway), anxiety, depression and loneliness. ResultsIn cross-sectional analyses higher levels of online comparisons were associated with poorer mental health, an effect that survived after controlling for offline comparisons, and was partially mediated by loneliness. Counter to our predictions, online socialising was also associated with poorer mental health. Longitudinal analyses did not support predicted directions of causality. LimitationsLimitations include a lack of testing of individual-level moderators, the use of single item questions to probe some constructs, and an inability to test for effects potentially operating at different time-scales. ConclusionsThe findings reported partially support the interpersonal-connections-behaviour framework in highlighting a disconnecting (but not connecting) pathway between online engagement and mental health. From a clinical perspective they highlight the importance of including people's online lives when considering mental health risk and resilience, particularly (one might argue) during periods of social isolation.

Virtual meeting fatigue: Exploring the impact of virtual meetings on cognitive performance and active versus passive fatigue.

In this study, we challenge the commonly held belief that virtual meeting fatigue manifests as exhaustion (i.e., active fatigue) resulting from overloading demands and instead suggest that participation in virtual meetings may lead to increased drowsiness (i.e., passive fatigue) due to underload of stimulation. Using subjective and cardiac measures (heart rate variability), we investigated the relationships between virtual versus face-to-face meetings and different types of fatigue (active and passive) among 44 knowledge workers during real-life meetings (N = 382). Our multilevel path analysis revealed a link between virtual meetings and higher levels of passive fatigue, which then impacted cognitive performance. Additionally, our results suggest that work engagement may act as an individual-level moderator, explaining why some knowledge workers are affected, while others are not. Given the growing amount of time spent in virtual meetings, these findings emphasize the risks to mental energy and cognitive performance and highlight the protective role of high general work engagement. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Short but Critical?: How “Fake News” and “Anti-Elitist” Media Attacks Undermine Perceived Message Credibility on Social Media

Citizens increasingly turn to social media for information, where they often rely on cues to judge the credibility of news messages. In these environments, populist politicians use “fake news” and “anti-elitist” attacks to undermine the credibility of news messages. This article argues that to truly understand the impact of these criticism cues, one must simultaneously consider additional contextual cues as well as individual-level moderators. In a factorial survey, we exposed 715 respondents to tweets by a politician retweeting and discrediting a news message of which topic and source varied. We find that both the fake news cue and the anti-elitist cue have limited across-the-board effects but decrease credibility if the message is incongruent with voters’ issue positions. Our results thus offer a more optimistic view on the power of populist media criticism cues and suggest that source and confirmation heuristics are (still) stronger influences on citizens’ credibility evaluations.

Emotion regulation and virtual nature: cognitive reappraisal as an individual-level moderator for impacts on subjective vitality

People who make habitual use of an emotion regulation strategy such as cognitive reappraisal may be more sensitive to the emotion cues coming from a surrounding natural environment and, thus, get more benefits from virtual nature exposure such as enhanced subjective vitality. However, no previous study investigated the moderating role of cognitive reappraisal in the relationship between exposure to different types of natural environments (a national park, a lacustrine environment, and an arctic environment vs. an urban environment) and subjective vitality. We designed a between-subject design (four conditions, one per type of environment) with a sample of 187 university students (Mage = 21.17, SD = 2.55). Participants were exposed to four 360° panoramic photos of the environment for one minute each with a virtual reality head-mounted display. The results of a multicategorical moderation analysis attested that there were two significant interactions, respectively between lacustrine and arctic environments and cognitive reappraisal. More specifically, for participants with low levels of habitual use of cognitive reappraisal, the effects of virtual nature (vs. urban) exposure on subjective vitality were not significant, while for participants with high levels, the effects were significant and positive. Findings show how the potential of virtual nature may be boosted with training aimed at increasing the general use of cognitive reappraisal, supports enhancing the applications of virtual nature, and demonstrates the need to take individual differences into account when determining the benefits of these applications.

How trust in coworkers fosters knowledge sharing in virtual teams? A multilevel moderated mediation model of psychological safety, team virtuality, and self-efficacy.

Examining the influence of trust in fostering knowledge sharing behavior (KSB) in virtual teams is of great research value in the current complex, dynamic, and competitive era of a knowledge economy. This study investigated the relationship between trust in coworkers (TC) and KSB. Based on social information processing theory and social cognitive theory, we developed a multilevel moderated mediation model where the team members’ psychological safety (PS) was considered a mediator, while team virtuality (TV) and knowledge sharing self-efficacy (KSSE) acted as team and individual-level moderators, respectively. On surveying 282 individuals in 37 virtual teams of three Chinese internet companies, we found that TC positively affected team members’ KSB and this relationship was fully mediated by team members’ PS. Our findings also demonstrated that the effect of TC on KSB depended on the degree of TV and employees’ KSSE. Specifically, when TV and KSSE were higher, the TC–PS and PS–KSB relationship and the mediating effects of PS in the TC–PS–KSB relationship were all stronger. Our study extends the trust-KSB literature by identifying the psychological mechanism and boundary conditions in the TC-KSB relationship. Moreover, our findings also offer valuable managerial implications for virtual team managers on facilitating team members’ PS and KSB.

Cross-cultural differences in consumers' attention to food labels

PurposeExtended from Hofstede’s cultural framework, this study investigated the differences between the Australian (representing the Western culture) and Chinese (representing the Eastern Culture) consumers in regard to their attention paid to product attribute cues presented on food labels and the degree of such attention controlling for an individual-level moderator of product involvement.Design/methodology/approachData were collected using face-to-face interviews with semi-structured questionnaires for both Australian and Chinese samples. The questionnaire data were analysed using factorial between-groups analysis of variance (ANOVA) to investigate the influence of culture and product involvement on the attention paid/degree of attention to product nature-related (e.g. brand name), product assurance-related (e.g. country-of-origin) and health-related attribute (e.g. nutritional panel) cues.FindingsThe findings revealed that Chinese consumers, as compared to Australian consumers, paid attention to more product-assurance cues (i.e. country of origin) and health-related cues (i.e. bioactivity indicators). The degrees of attention to these cues were also greater among Chinese consumers than for Australian consumers. Product involvement moderated the relationship between culture and attention towards product nature and product assurance-related cues.Practical implicationsResults from this study enable exporters to customize their labelling design by strategically including label information that is more salient to certain export markets.Originality/valueThis study offers a novel insight into the impact of culture on consumers’ attention to food product attributes and the interaction effects of product involvement on these relationships, hitherto underexplored.

Linking Judging Moral to Acting Moral: A Relational Motivations Approach to Judging and Practicing Covid-19 Behaviors.

Building on the Relational Motivation Theory, the present research argues that relational motivations (RM) underlie both the regulation and the moral judgment of socially (un)responsive Covid-19 behaviors (e.g., physical distancing) and links these two via moral identity. We hypothesize that different types of socially unresponsive behaviors are judged morally wrong through perceptions of RM violations and that a stronger concern for unity predicts the extent to which individuals self-report to perform socially responsive Covid-19 behaviors. Additionally, the role of moral identity as an individual-level moderator variable linking perceptions about RM violation to the practice of Covid-19 responsible behaviors is explored. The results support the predictions with data collected from participants living in Turkey and the USA. In both cultures, socially unresponsive Covid-19 behaviors of others were judged morally wrong through RMs, plus individuals' general concern for unity predicted their self-reported socially responsive Covid-19 behaviors. Additionally, for the sample from Turkey, results revealed that the general concern for unity was positively associated with self-reported tendencies to perform Covid-19 socially responsive behaviors only among individuals with a low or moderate moral identity, but not when moral identity was high.

Conspicuous consumption: A meta-analytic review of its antecedents, consequences, and moderators

This paper documents a comprehensive theoretical framework that has been developed to understand conspicuous consumption behavior. The proposed framework identifies three antecedents and two consequences of conspicuous consumption. We tested hypotheses concerning this framework using a meta-analytic approach. We also meta-analytically tested the effect of contextual, methodological, and individual-level moderators on the relationship between conspicuous consumption and its consequences. Additionally, we examined the mediating role of conspicuous consumption behavior in the relationship between its antecedents and consequences using meta-analytic structural equation modeling. After an extensive literature search based on multiple selection criteria, we use 59 independent research studies and 97 unique effect sizes to test hypotheses. The findings theoretically contribute to the stock of knowledge on conspicuous consumption and provide new insights for practitioners.

How a direct vote and public deliberation contribute to the legitimacy of political decision-making: examining situational and individual-level moderators

How a direct vote and public deliberation contribute to the legitimacy of political decision-making: examining situational and individual-level moderators

Do as I Say, Not as I Do? Examining Possible Individual-Level Moderators in the Relationship Between Criminal Attitudes and Offending

Several criminological theories and numerous research studies suggest that criminal attitudes are related to delinquency and criminal behavior. In contrast, there is also an emerging body of literature that suggests that the behavior of many individuals is not consistent with their attitudes. This study addresses this contradiction in the literature by examining two possible individual-level moderators (i.e., self-control and depressive symptoms) that may explain why some adolescents may be involved in delinquent behavior when they report having attitudes disapproving of delinquency. The findings reveal that attitudes disapproving of delinquency are negatively associated with delinquent involvement; however, many respondents with attitudes of disapproving of delinquency still engaged in delinquent behavior. In addition, the findings suggest that self-control and depressive symptoms may moderate the association between attitudes disapproving of delinquency and delinquent involvement.

Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on New Hire Engagement

The purpose of this paper is to simultaneously advance theory and practice by understanding the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on new hire engagement, along with State- and individual-level moderators of such effects. Prior research suggests starting a new job is an uncertain experience; here we theorize that the COVID-19 pandemic creates additional environmental uncertainty that leads new hires to reduce their engagement. First, we hypothesize that new hires become less engaged in uncertain times, such that engagement negatively covaries with unemployment rates caused by the pandemic. Second, drawing from strategic management theory, we test whether U.S. States that introduce stronger COVID policies help reduce uncertainty and thus enhance the engagement of new hires. Third, we theorize that the effects of the pandemic become more disruptive on new hire engagement as they gain tenure within the organization. Examining a U.S. national sample of 12,577 newly hired (90 days or less) quick service restaurant employees over nine months (January to September, 2020), we find support for these hypotheses. Together, these findings advance new research directions for understanding relationships between macro contextual influences on new hire perceptions and socialization. They also offer practical implications by helping organizations understand the importance of explicitly managing environmental uncertainty, particularly in terms of COVID policy.

Power analyses for moderator effects with (non)randomly varying slopes in cluster randomized trials

Researchers often apply moderation analyses to examine whether the effects of an intervention differ conditional on individual or cluster moderator variables such as gender, pretest, or school size. This study develops formulas for power analyses to detect moderator effects in two-level cluster randomized trials (CRTs) using hierarchical linear models. We derive the formulas for estimating statistical power, minimum detectable effect size difference and 95% confidence intervals for cluster- and individual-level moderators. Our framework accommodates binary or continuous moderators, designs with or without covariates, and effects of individual-level moderators that vary randomly or nonrandomly across clusters. A small Monte Carlo simulation confirms the accuracy of our formulas. We also compare power between main effect analysis and moderation analysis, discuss the effects of mis-specification of the moderator slope (randomly vs. non-randomly varying), and conclude with directions for future research. We provide software for conducting a power analysis of moderator effects in CRTs.

Targets for intervention to prevent substance use in young people exposed to childhood adversity: A systematic review.

Background and aimsChildhood adversity is a strong, and concerningly prevalent, risk factor for the later development of substance misuse. Yet despite substantial accumulating evidence for causal mechanisms, there has been little attempt to synthesize the strength of the evidence. Importantly, these mechanisms may be amenable to intervention, providing targets for substance use prevention among those exposed to childhood adversity. The present review aimed to systematically identify mediating and moderating mechanisms operating between childhood adversity and substance use.MethodsA systematic review was conducted. Electronic databases (PubMed, MEDLINE, PsycINFO, Web of Science and CINAHL) were searched from 1998 to 2020 for modifiable mediators and moderators of the relationship between childhood adversity and substance use in people aged 10–24. Data was qualitatively synthesised, using a socio-ecological perspective to group mediators/moderators into individual, interpersonal, community, and public policy/cultural levels of behaviour.ResultsAfter screening against eligibility criteria, 50 studies were included in the current review. The mediators at the individual level of behaviour showing the largest and most consistent effect sizes included externalising behaviour, anger, coping motives for substance use, and post-traumatic stress symptoms. Among individual-level moderators, religiosity, future orientation and depressive symptoms all attenuated the relationship between childhood adversity and substance use. At the interpersonal level, peer relationships and mother-child relationships mediated the effect of adversity on substance use. Moderators included family cohesion and relationship quality. Community factors were less commonly studied, though school mobility and educational achievement mediated 14% and 28% of the total effect of childhood adversity on substance use respectively. No mediators or moderators were identified for public policy/culture.ConclusionsA substantial proportion of the relationship between childhood adversity and substance use in youth is mediated through individual, interpersonal and community factors. Coupled with the knowledge that existing, evidence-based programs effectively address many of the identified mediators and moderators, this review advances knowledge on optimal targets to prevent substance misuse among those exposed to childhood adversity.

Learning From Cluster Randomized Trials in Education: An Assessment of the Capacity of Studies to Determine What Works, For Whom, and Under What Conditions

Over the past 15 years, we have seen an increase in the use of cluster randomized trials (CRTs) to test the efficacy of educational interventions. These studies are often designed with the goal of determining whether a program works, or answering the what works question. Recently, the goals of these studies expanded to include for whom and under what conditions an intervention is effective. In this study, we examine the capacity of a set of CRTs to provide rigorous evidence about for whom and under what conditions an intervention is effective. The findings suggest that studies are more likely to be designed with the capacity to detect potentially meaningful individual-level moderator effects, for example, gender, than cluster-level moderator effects, for example, school type.

Now You Do It, Now You Don't: The Mixed Blessing of Creative Deviance as a Prosocial Behavior.

Creative deviance, the act of developing an idea by an employee even when it was banned by the manager, is a novel and interesting construct that can bring both positive and negative outcomes to organizations. The construct of creative deviance is neglected in the existing literature and the theory development for creative deviance is still in the nascent stages. We expand the theoretical nomological network of creative deviance by introducing prosocial motivation as an antecedent of creative deviance and developing a multilevel model of the moderators of this relationship. Creative deviance can occur due to pro-self or prosocial intentions. In our paper, we focus on the prosocial intentions behind acts of creative deviance. We illustrate how the prosocial motivation can lead to creative deviance and how creative deviance in turn, can act as a double-edged sword leading to positive outcomes of creative performance and innovation as well as negative outcomes of wastage of resources and deteriorated leader member exchange. Our model delineates the boundary conditions influencing the relationship between creative deviance and its outcomes. Specifically, we explore the theoretical foundations of social skills and perspective taking, as the individual level moderators; team network structure and climate of excellence, as moderators at team level; organizational structure at organization level; and uncertainty as the external environmental level moderator.

Low Self-Control, Victimization, and Financial Hardship: Does Low Self-Control Moderate the Relationship Between Strain and Criminal Involvement?

General strain theory has been widely supported by empirical research. Research concerning possible individual-level moderators of the effects of strain, however, has yielded considerably mixed results. The current study addresses this gap in the literature by examining whether levels of self-control moderate the relationship between strain and criminal involvement in a large nationally representative sample. Our findings reveal that strain and levels of self-control have both additive and interactive effects on criminal involvement. To illustrate, respondents who were exposed to higher levels of strain reported more criminal involvement than respondents exposed to lower levels of strain. Similarly, lower levels of self-control were associated with higher levels of criminal involvement. In addition, levels of self-control were found to moderate the association between experiencing strain and two of the criminal involvement measures. Furthermore, the results suggest that the relationships among strain, self-control, and criminal involvement may vary across gender and forms of strain.

Adolescents’ transitions between different views on democracy: Examining individual-level moderators

This study aims to identify individual patterns of adolescents' views on democracy, adolescents' transitions between the patterns over time, and individual-level predictors of these transitions. Two waves of longitudinal survey data from 768 Czech high school students (T1 mean age 15.97) were analyzed using latent transition analysis. Results suggested three basic patterns of adolescents' views on democracy: majority-oriented (disregarding minority rights and interests), conventional (having narrowed understanding of civil liberties), and liberal (supporting both minority rights and civil liberties). Of these, the liberal view pattern was the least stable over time, and its stability was linked to adolescents' institutional trust and civic participation. Specifically, adolescents who were less trusting of institutions were more likely to adopt the majority-oriented (vs. liberal) view, while less civically active adolescents were more likely to switch to the conventional view. Authoritarianism was linked to adolescents' initial views, but it did not predict change over time.

Expatriation, alcohol and drugs: antecedents and consequences of substance use in expatriation

Purpose Expatriation is known to be stressful. The purpose of this paper is to examine stress as an antecedent of substance use (SU) during expatriation and related effects on expatriates’ work adjustment. Moreover, the study sheds light on individual-level moderators (i.e. gender and prior international experience) and organizational-level moderators (i.e. organizational social support) that might condition the stress–SU link. Design/methodology/approach This work adopts a quantitative survey approach. It is based on two studies, one of 205 expatriates and one of 96 expatriate–supervisor dyads. The data were collected through personal networks and with the help of multinational companies. Findings This research shows that stress at a medium- to high-level increases SU among male expatriates, but not among female expatriates. Expatriates with substantial prior international experience were identified as being more prone to react to stress by resorting to SU. It also provides evidence that SU to aid coping harms professional adjustment. Moreover, some implications relating to professional adjustment are discussed. Research limitations/implications SU was self-reported; this may have deterred users from accurately reporting their consumption levels. Moreover, convenience samples have been used. Preventive actions limiting SU, such as well-being programs, could be sponsored by local human resource managers in order to limit this phenomenon. Originality/value This work is one of the first to analyze SU among expatriates. It shows that some expatriates are more at risk than others of resorting to such use to cope with the hardships of expatriation.

The social enterprises’ organizational commitment

This study was to investigate the organizational commitment of members of social enterprises, and the effects of the individual and the organizational variables. The social entrepreneurship was defined as the organizational-level value that includes balanced social and economic purposes to differentiate social enterprises from commercial enterprises or non-profit organizations. The study examined the effect of psychological ownership on organizational commitment, and the moderating effect of social entrepreneurship using multilevel methodology. Also, it tested the effect of perceived organizational support as an individual-level moderator. A survey research was conducted by gathering 140 employees of 32 companies(social enterprises=16, smaller enterprises=16), and HLM 6.08 was used to analyze the cross-level relationships. In terms of the results of affective commitment. the positive effect of psychological ownership and the moderating effect organizational support were significant, while cross-level moderating effect of social entrepreneurship was not found. The results of continuance commitment showed a different pattern where the cross-level moderating effect of social entrepreneurship was found significant, indicating that the non-significant effect of psychological ownership needs to be examined in more detail. From the results, the study provided theoretical and practical implications for the human resource management to improve members’ organizational commitment of Korean social enterprises.