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1 – 10 of over 1000Domenique Jones and Heejin Lim
Addressing stigmatized identity threat cues customers experience, this study aimed to uncover the effects of frontline employees' ethnic and body-size diversity which lead to…
Abstract
Purpose
Addressing stigmatized identity threat cues customers experience, this study aimed to uncover the effects of frontline employees' ethnic and body-size diversity which lead to customer self-objectification and negative store attitude.
Design/methodology/approach
The researchers conducted two studies: Study 1 utilized a one-way ANOVA and a PROCESS mediation model to test the effect of Western beauty-ideal stereotypes on stigmatized identity threat and self-objectification. Study 2 utilized a 2 × 2 experimental design to examine the effects of body-size diversity and ethnic diversity on perceived warmth of sales associates and store attitude.
Findings
Results demonstrate that retail store environments which present Western beauty-ideal stereotypes among sales associates cultivate higher levels of stigmatized identity threat cues with their customers, which leads to self-objectification. Also, our findings demonstrated that a lack of ethnic and body-size diversity (i.e. thin and White) among sales associates decreased the perceived sales associate warmth and in turn lowered store attitude.
Research limitations/implications
Participants of the first study were limited by the White participants. The implications highlight the integral need for retailers to hire sales associates who fall outside the parameters of typical Western beauty standards because today's customers desire inclusive brands who do not discriminate based on ethnicity, body size and other characteristics.
Originality/value
This research utilized social identity theory to uncover the effect of retail sales associate stereotype on customer perception of employees, which has not to our knowledge been previously studied.
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The purpose of this study is to investigate the gender and ethnic diversity–performance relationship in Malaysia from two angles: (1) the impact of political regimes; and (2) a…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to investigate the gender and ethnic diversity–performance relationship in Malaysia from two angles: (1) the impact of political regimes; and (2) a possible nonlinear relationship – at the boardroom and employee level.
Design/methodology/approach
This study uses a sample of firms listed in Bursa Malaysia during a sample period that spans two political regimes. Two-stage least squares controlling for firm-specific effects, corporate governance and lagged variables to account for endogeneity issues is used to test the relationship.
Findings
Findings show that the political alignment of the ruling government affects the significance of the gender/ethnic diversity–performance relationship. The relationship between board gender/ethnic diversity and firm performance is curvilinear while the relationship between employee gender/ethnic diversity is linear and positive.
Research limitations/implications
First, promoting gender/ethnic diversity not only requires strong policy but also political will to lead by example. Political regimes that provide lip-service without effective implementation threaten to derail any efforts in furthering the diversity agenda. Second, the presumption of a linear diversity–performance relationship is fallacious. Further studies, especially in pluralistic societies, must not discount the subtleties of intergroup conflicts. Third, in light of allegations of prejudicial hiring policies, Malaysian firms should embrace diversity, not only in the boardroom, but also among its workforce as employee diversity improves firm performance.
Originality/value
Prior studies on gender/ethnic diversity in Malaysia have returned mixed results but thus far, there has been no satisfactory explanation for this phenomenon. This study attributes it to lack of political will and cultural subgroup conflicts – two pertinent issues that were never considered in the literature. Prior studies have also exclusively focused on boardroom diversity. This study goes further by examining employee diversity – particularly important since most empowerment and diversity initiatives are targeted at lower level employees. This study is also the first to provide an objective benchmark for gender diversity (30–35% female directors) and ethnic diversity (less than 40% from one ethnicity) to achieve optimal performance.
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Diversity in entrepreneurship has become a noteworthy topic of research since consistent differences – and few similarities, if any – exist among entrepreneurial profiles. The…
Abstract
Purpose
Diversity in entrepreneurship has become a noteworthy topic of research since consistent differences – and few similarities, if any – exist among entrepreneurial profiles. The present paper aims to compare different entrepreneurial profiles managing innovation processes in new technology-based firms (NTBFs). In particular, attention is focussed on young entrepreneurs who are in a critical phase of their lifelong learning, the school-to-work transition.
Design/methodology/approach
Statistical elaborations are based on data retrieved from Italian Ministry of Economic Development in January 2021 and carried out through stochastic frontier analyses. Respectively, 1,699 young entrepreneurs, 1,079 female entrepreneurs, 205 ethnic entrepreneurs and 8,224 stereotyped entrepreneurs are considered.
Findings
Factors affecting the performance of innovation processes managed in NTBFs are the same for stereotyped and female entrepreneurs, but they consistently differ for young and ethnic entrepreneurs. Achieved results are not in the position to offer a complete analysis of the phenomenon but – hopefully – can corroborate a very interesting and up-to-date research path that merits further development. In particular, young entrepreneurs disclose an unexpected skills mismatch that should be investigated in-depth.
Originality/value
Most contributions offer a narrow view of entrepreneurial profiles since they focus on one profile per time. The present paper, instead, considers four entrepreneurial profiles and compares them. Moreover, young entrepreneurs reveal an unexpected skills mismatch that underlines the relevance of specific activities of on-the-job training and apprenticeships in order to try to overcome it and improve the results achievable by young entrepreneurs.
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Chrystalla Vassou, Antonis L. Theocharous and Anastasios Zopiatis
The importance of inclusive leadership has been recognized by scholars and practitioners alike. However, the ways in which inclusive leadership can be achieved and implemented in…
Abstract
Purpose
The importance of inclusive leadership has been recognized by scholars and practitioners alike. However, the ways in which inclusive leadership can be achieved and implemented in hospitality seem to be unclear. In order to answer how inclusive leadership can be put into practice in hospitality, this paper explores (1) employees' and managers' perceptions of inclusion and (2) diversity practices in hotel organizations.
Design/methodology/approach
By espousing a qualitative methodology, semi-structured interviews with management representatives, as well as local and foreign employees of 4- and 5-star hotel organizations, were utilized in order to identify what inclusive leadership looks like in theory and in practice. Data were analyzed via thematic analysis and the utilization of the NVivo software.
Findings
Findings suggest that an inclusive leader should be caring and respectful, pursue fair treatment, support employee development, express employee appreciation and recognize their role in social inclusion more widely.
Originality/value
This original work reduces the research-practice gap in the field of diversity management by providing succinct recommendations to hospitality managers in the form of an adaptable best practice framework. The diagrammatic framework includes the values related to inclusive leadership as they emerged, as well as the practices through which each theme could be enacted.
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Mohamed Osman Shereif Mahdi Abaker, Lindsey Kemp, Boo Yun Cho and Louise Patterson
The purpose of this article was to investigate the employee perceptions of diversity management and employee performance. To achieve this, employee respondents’ perceptions and…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this article was to investigate the employee perceptions of diversity management and employee performance. To achieve this, employee respondents’ perceptions and perspectives have been tested, and findings are discussed.
Design/methodology/approach
To address this study's purpose, survey data were collected from 250 employees of two organizations in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Data were analyzed by age, gender and nationality for two variables: diversity management and employee performance.
Findings
Results showed that respondents perceived an improvement in employee performance when diversity was managed for employees of different age groups, females/males working together and a workplace composed of employees from various nationalities.
Research limitations/implications
The implication of this limited study is that further studies on the perception of diversity management for employee performance in the Middle East region needs to be conducted. The social implication is that organizational leaders can initiate diversity management to improve employee performance. The research is limited by the geographical context and access to the collection of data during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Social implications
The implication of this limited study is that further studies on the perception of diversity management for employee performance in the Middle East region needs to be conducted. The social implication is that organizational leaders can initiate diversity management to improve employee performance.
Originality/value
The contribution to academic knowledge from this research is two-fold: findings from a novel study conducted in the Middle East evidenced diversity management improved perceptions of employee performance. The value of the study for praxis is to incorporate employees' belief in diversity management for its potential to improve employee performance.
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The immature research endeavor on refugee entrepreneurship has not adequately covered the success factors of refugees. The current work aims to address this gap through the theory…
Abstract
Purpose
The immature research endeavor on refugee entrepreneurship has not adequately covered the success factors of refugees. The current work aims to address this gap through the theory of planned behavior and the theory of procedural utility to identify the success factors of refugee entrepreneurs in the tourism and hospitality industry.
Design/methodology/approach
The current work is based on a qualitative approach drawing on data from 24 semistructured interviews with refugee entrepreneurs in Istanbul-Türkiye.
Findings
The thematic analysis of the data set revolved around three interrelated themes: personal, organizational and environmental factors, which offer a better understanding of the elements defining successful refugee entrepreneurs.
Practical implications
The paper also offers various practical implications and policy recommendations for the economic integration of refugee entrepreneurs in the public and private sectors.
Originality/value
The results enhance the understanding of successful refugee entrepreneurship in their new hosting environment, contributing to the existing research agenda by identifying the key themes of refugee entrepreneurs’ success factors.
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Cynthia Lum, Christopher S. Koper, Michael Goodier, William Johnson and James Krause
We present the results of one of the only in-depth studies of a police agency’s internal and external response to the coronavirus pandemic of 2020 (COVID-19). This study…
Abstract
Purpose
We present the results of one of the only in-depth studies of a police agency’s internal and external response to the coronavirus pandemic of 2020 (COVID-19). This study emphasizes the importance of law enforcement agencies conducting comprehensive case studies and after-action assessments to prepare, prevent and respond to prolonged public health crises and showcases the profound (and lingering) effects of COVID-19 on police organizations.
Design/methodology/approach
This multi-method case study combines document analysis, a workforce survey, a community survey, interviews and analysis of administrative data to detail and assess the agency’s internal and operational responses to the pandemic and the reactions of employees and community members to those responses.
Findings
Despite agency strategies to mitigate the pandemic’s effects, employees cited very high stress levels one year after the pandemic and a third of sworn officers considered leaving the policing profession altogether during the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic. Several policies intended by the agency to protect employee health and maintain staffing needs kept workforce levels steady but may have increased feelings of organizational injustice in both sworn and non-sworn individuals, with variation across racial and gender groups. A jurisdiction-wide community survey indicated general support for the police department’s responses but a preference for in-person rather than telephone-based responses to service calls. Officers, however, preferred continuing remote responses even after the pandemic subsided.
Originality/value
To the best of our knowledge, this is one of the only in-depth case studies that examine a police agency’s internal and external responses to COVID-19 and the sworn, non-sworn and community reactions to those responses.
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Martin David Owens and Elizabeth Johnson
The paper aims to understand how state and non-state domestic terrorism impacts MNEs in foreign markets. Despite the burgeoning literature on terrorism within international…
Abstract
Purpose
The paper aims to understand how state and non-state domestic terrorism impacts MNEs in foreign markets. Despite the burgeoning literature on terrorism within international business (IB), most research has focused on international terrorism, or terrorism generally. Consequently, there has been limited research examining how domestic or local based terrorism impacts foreign firms.
Design/methodology/approach
This is a conceptual paper.
Findings
Domestic terrorism is the most common form of terrorism in the world today and involves the state and non-state actors. Non-state domestic terrorism can be low intensity or high intensity. High intensity non-state-domestic terrorism typically involves regular and protracted political violence, along with inter-communal violence. This can expose MNEs to considerable operational, governance and legitimacy pressures.
Originality/value
The paper contributes to the gap in IB terrorism research with regards domestic or local based terrorism. Drawing on IB theory and critical terrorism research, the paper addresses the nature and impact of domestic terrorism within IB. The authors’ paper shows the operational, governance and legitimacy pressures of both state and non-state domestic terrorism for MNEs in host markets. While most IB scholars consider the threat of non-state terrorism for international firms, this study shows how domestic state terrorism benefits and constrains foreign firms.
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Lydia Olakumbi Oluyadi and Wenjin Dai
This paper explores the workplace experiences of aesthetic labour among racially diverse frontline women workers in a fashion retail store.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper explores the workplace experiences of aesthetic labour among racially diverse frontline women workers in a fashion retail store.
Design/methodology/approach
This qualitative study is based on an ethnographic study, drawing on findings from participant observation and interviews with frontline workers at a fashion retail store in the UK.
Findings
This paper explores how the embodiments of aesthetic labour are perpetually produced and commodified through the discipline of management in a fashion retail store. It challenges the notion of phenotypical Whiteness as the beauty standard within fashion retail and demonstrates how embodiments differ according to race. While White women are continuously scrutinised by their appearance, the aesthetic demands for women of colour tend to focus on speech and racialised bodies to provide “authentically” exotic experiences for customers. Additionally, this study highlights how the mobilisation of aesthetic labour can create work humiliation and work alienation.
Research limitations/implications
Despite this study being based on an ethnographic study at one British fashion retailer, this paper seeks to give voices to an underrepresented group by exploring the lived experiences of racially diverse women workers.
Originality/value
This paper contributes to the intersection between aesthetic labour and race from an embodiment perspective, exploring the workplace experiences of racially diverse women workers in fashion retail and how their various forms of embodiment are racialised and commodified.
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Gizem Arat, Suna Eryigit-Madzwamuse and Angie Hart
In this study, the authors investigated ways to cultivate resilience through a social justice lens among ethnic minorities against COVID-19 in Hong Kong.
Abstract
Purpose
In this study, the authors investigated ways to cultivate resilience through a social justice lens among ethnic minorities against COVID-19 in Hong Kong.
Design/methodology/approach
A qualitative (case study) methodology was adopted to interview 15 social service providers from diverse ethnic backgrounds serving disadvantaged ethnic minority groups (South and Southeast Asian groups from low-income households, foreign domestic workers and asylum seekers/refugees).
Findings
Two major protective factors were identified, contributing to the development of resilience among diverse ethnic groups: (1) individual-based resilience (including being optimistic) and (2) socio-environmental factors (including ongoing support from strong family, peer and religious settings' support, consulates' support, on-going material and nonmaterial donations, support of young volunteers and importance of online connection and communication) using the integration of resilience and social justice frameworks.
Originality/value
This study showed that the protective factors were found to dynamically interact with each other and the environment. The present study recommends additional culturally sensitive service and policy implications for preventing the long-term impact of mass crises among Hong Kong's marginalized minorities.
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