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Article
Publication date: 13 September 2023

Andrew Voyce

The purpose of this study is to discuss alienation from a viewpoint of autoethnography. Literature since the 19th century has described the economic determinants of social…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to discuss alienation from a viewpoint of autoethnography. Literature since the 19th century has described the economic determinants of social relations. The proposition is that human beings are strangers in a world they have created. The author revisits this paradigm and aims to show the relevance of alienation in the 20th and 21st centuries.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper uses the qualitative methodology of autoethnography with data from lived experience. The author relates the author’s personal experience to the meta-narrative of alienation.

Findings

Autoethnography is an excellent tool for interpretation of the author’s experiences. The author’s work life correlates to models of alienation put forward by Marxist and Critical Theory thought. The author gave the surplus value of the author’s labour to others, and as such, the author’s autoethnography is an authentic statement. The author’s experiences of poor mental health are in the context of pathology residing in alienation.

Originality/value

Findings reveal that alienation in work and in mental health is a plausible explanation for the way that social situations worked for the author. The author’s experiences support a model of alienation in 20th and 21st century economies. The author shows that the author’s experiences are shared by other vulnerable people.

Details

Mental Health and Social Inclusion, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2042-8308

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 8 March 2024

Fei Kang, Yifei Shi, Jiyu Li and Han Zhang

Despite the growing body of empirical research on leader anger expressions, the issue of how and when leader anger expressions shape newcomers’ proactive career behavior and work…

Abstract

Purpose

Despite the growing body of empirical research on leader anger expressions, the issue of how and when leader anger expressions shape newcomers’ proactive career behavior and work alienation in the construction industry has been largely overlooked. Building upon social information processing theory, this research identifies newcomers’ organization-based self-esteem as a mediator, and suggests that newcomers’ performance goal orientation could moderate the relationship.

Design/methodology/approach

A questionnaire study was conducted on the construction industry in China, and the PROCESS program developed by Hayes was used to test the hypothetical model with 215 valid cases.

Findings

The results suggest that leader anger expressions are negatively associated with newcomers’ organization-based self-esteem, and organization-based self-esteem mediated the link between leader anger expressions and newcomers’ proactive career behavior and work alienation. Furthermore, the newcomers’ performance goal orientation moderates the negative impact of leader anger expressions on newcomers’ organization-based self-esteem.

Research limitations/implications

Due to the cross-sectional nature of this study, causal implications are difficult to draw. Moreover, all data we received was based on participant self-reports, which may raise concerns about common method variance.

Originality/value

In this paper, we contribute to a deeper understanding of the mediating mechanisms and boundary conditions by which leader anger expressions influence newcomers’ proactive career behavior and work alienation from social information processing perspective, in addition to providing valuable insights for management of newcomers in the construction industry.

Details

Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0969-9988

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 11 December 2023

Shalini Srivastava, Anubhuti Saxena, Vartika Kapoor and Abdul Qadir

Gossip spreads like wildfire, damaging relationships, decaying trust and creating a negative work environment. This study aims to investigate the relationship between negative…

Abstract

Purpose

Gossip spreads like wildfire, damaging relationships, decaying trust and creating a negative work environment. This study aims to investigate the relationship between negative workplace gossip (NWG) and quiet quitting (QQ), while considering the mediating effects of workplace stress and emotional exhaustion (EE).

Design/methodology/approach

Drawing upon the conservation of resource theory, the study aimed to comprehend this association in the context of 267 employees from diverse sectors in India, including health care, IT, banking and education. Through a three-wave time lagged survey design, using partial least squares structural equation modeling, significant findings were uncovered.

Findings

The results revealed a positive link between NWG and QQ. There was also a positive correlation between NWG and workplace stress. In addition, workplace stress and EE were found to mediate the relationship between NWG and QQ.

Practical implications

The findings have implications for both theory and practice. Organizations should consider implementing strategies to mitigate the prevalence of negative gossip and foster a healthier work environment, promoting employee well-being and retention.

Originality/value

The study reveals the “black box” between NWG and QQ, adding to the body of knowledge on the novel concept of QQ. Second, the study expands the literature on NWG, by examining impact path of how it leads to stress and EE, leading to QQ.

Details

International Journal of Conflict Management, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1044-4068

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 15 June 2023

Sanket Dash, Sushant Ranjan, Neha Bhardwaj and Siddhartha K. Rastogi

The study aims to understand the phenomenon of workplace ostracism from multiple perspectives (target, perpetrator and observer). The understanding of the phenomenon is used to…

Abstract

Purpose

The study aims to understand the phenomenon of workplace ostracism from multiple perspectives (target, perpetrator and observer). The understanding of the phenomenon is used to thematically analyse the antecedents of workplace ostracism and identify appropriate strategies for each antecedent.

Design/methodology/approach

The study findings are based on face-to-face semi-structured interviews with thirty-three senior and medium-level employees from various public and private sector organizations in India. The interview transcripts were systematically analyzed to identify antecedents of ostracism, which were inductively grouped together based on similarity.

Findings

The antecedents of workplace ostracism were grouped into four major heads: perceived non-alignment with organizational needs; emotional reaction; unconscious social processes and structural and demographic differences. Based on interview transcripts, strategies to reduce the effect of each of the broad antecedents of ostracism were identified.

Practical implications

Workplace ostracism has been linked with multiple negative outcomes including increased stress and turnover intention. The study provides managers with a framework that enables them to evaluate and understand incidences of ostracism among their subordinates. The study also equips managers with the knowledge of specific strategies for dealing with specific antecedents of ostracism.

Originality/value

The study answers the need to look at the phenomenon of ostracism through multiple perspectives. It identifies multiple potentially new antecedents and strategies to deal with workplace ostracism and groups them in a coherent manner. It is among the few studies on ostracism in India and extends the generalizability of the construct.

Details

Personnel Review, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0048-3486

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 14 September 2023

Gong Yunpeng and Umer Zaman

The traditional Chinese culture has always emphasized the authority of leaders and their “top-down” influence over subordinates tangled with “bottom-up” management. Paternalistic…

Abstract

Purpose

The traditional Chinese culture has always emphasized the authority of leaders and their “top-down” influence over subordinates tangled with “bottom-up” management. Paternalistic leadership can both nurture and restrict growth in mega-construction projects, due to the unique consequences (i.e. positive vs negative implications) for project teams. Hence, the present study aimed to explore the impact of paternalistic leadership (PL), team members’ voice (TMV) and team resilience (TR) on the mega-construction project success (MPS) in China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

Design/methodology/approach

A surveyed-based sample of project professionals (N = 563) directly linked with the BRI was employed for statistical estimations with partial least squares (PLS) structural equation modeling (SEM).

Findings

Paternalistic leadership styles, including authoritarian leadership (AL), moral leadership (ML) and benevolent leadership (BL), significantly influence the mega-construction project success in BRI. The findings empirically validated that both BL and ML increase the likelihood of mega-construction project success. However, AL could impose a threat through its underlying negative influence. In addition, leaders with benevolence and morality have a positive influence on TMV and TR, while leaders with authoritarianism signal a negative impact. Furthermore, both TMV and TR significantly and positively mediate the relationships between AL-MPS (Model-1), BL-MPS (Model-2) and ML-MPS (Model-3), respectively.

Originality/value

The present study is a groundbreaking endeavor that fills a crucial research gap by investigating mega-construction project success in the BRI through paternalistic leadership, project team members' voice and team resilience in a multi-mediation model. These novel findings offer valuable strategic insights for managing mega-construction projects in countries with paternalistic solid cultural foundations, enabling project managers to navigate cultural nuances and optimize megaproject outcomes.

Details

Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0969-9988

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 24 April 2024

Wen Zhang, Bohang Xia, Daantje Derks, Jan Luca Pletzer, Kimberley Breevaart and Xichao Zhang

Integrating person-job fit theory with the stressor-emotion model of counterproductive work behavior (CWB), the current study aims to examine which behavioral pattern (fight: CWB…

Abstract

Purpose

Integrating person-job fit theory with the stressor-emotion model of counterproductive work behavior (CWB), the current study aims to examine which behavioral pattern (fight: CWB vs flight: withdrawal) employees are more likely to adopt when they experience perceived overqualification (POQ). We further investigate anger as the underlying emotional mechanism for these relations because anger can be expressed and thus reflected in CWB, or constrained and thus reflected in withdrawal behavior. Furthermore, different stressor-attenuating strategies including relaxation during work breaks and mastery experiences at work are examined as mitigating factors of these relations.

Design/methodology/approach

Time-lagged data were collected from 176 full-time employees in China using a field survey research design.

Findings

We found that employees who experience POQ are more likely to engage in withdrawal than in CWB. Anger mediated the relations of POQ with both CWB and withdrawal. Relaxation moderated the relation between POQ and anger, as well as the indirect relations of POQ with CWB and withdrawal through anger.

Research limitations/implications

This study enhances understanding of employees’ affective and behavioral reactions to POQ. However, the survey design was not longitudinal and causality cannot be established.

Practical implications

POQ is associated with undesirable employee behaviors and should therefore be avoided by organizations. If POQ is unavoidable, organizations can use job design and offer training to foster relaxation in between tasks among employees.

Originality/value

In the framework of person-job fit theory, our study provides insight about employees’ “fight” or “flight” responses to POQ, and further illustrates the mechanism and the attenuating factors in this processes.

Details

Journal of Managerial Psychology, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0268-3946

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 20 February 2024

Safeya Almazrouei, Shaker Bani-Melhem and Faridah Mohd-Shamsudin

Job characteristics can potentially influence employees’ attitudes and behaviors. However, their impact on employees’ innovative behaviors, particularly in public sector…

Abstract

Purpose

Job characteristics can potentially influence employees’ attitudes and behaviors. However, their impact on employees’ innovative behaviors, particularly in public sector organizations, has received little scholarly attention. Based on relational job design theory and the broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions, this study aims to examine the effect of job contact on public sector employees’ innovative work behavior through the mediator of happiness at work. It also assesses whether prosocial motivation strengthens the influence of job contact on innovative work behavior (via happiness at work).

Design/methodology/approach

The model was examined on a sample of 180 employee-supervisor dyads (90 supervisors and 180 employees) recruited from various government departments in the United Arab Emirates.

Findings

The findings support the proposed moderated mediation model in which job contact positively and significantly impacts innovative work behavior. The association between job contact and innovative behavior via happiness at work is found to be stronger for employees who are highly prosocially motivated.

Originality/value

The findings offer prescriptive insights into public sector employee happiness and prosocial motivation by illustrating when and how job contact influences innovative work behavior. The authors also present relevant managerial recommendations for promoting public sector employees’ innovative behavior.

Details

International Journal of Innovation Science, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1757-2223

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 26 June 2023

Dirk De Clercq, Mohammed Aboramadan and Yasir Mansoor Kundi

This study aims to understand how and when employees' pandemic fears influence their lateness attitude, with a particular focus on how this influence is mediated by emotional…

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to understand how and when employees' pandemic fears influence their lateness attitude, with a particular focus on how this influence is mediated by emotional exhaustion and moderated by a perceived safety climate.

Design/methodology/approach

Survey data were collected among employees in the retail sector.

Findings

A core mechanism that explains the escalation of pandemic fears into beliefs that tardiness is acceptable is employees' sense that employees are emotionally overextended by work. The extent to which employees perceive that their organization prioritizes safety issues subdues this detrimental process though.

Practical implications

For human resource management (HRM) practice, the findings point to the notable danger that employees who cannot stop ruminating about an external crisis, and feel emotionally overburdened as a result, might compromise their own organizational standing by devoting less effort to punctuality. To disrupt this dynamic, HR managers can create organizational climates that emphasize safety practices.

Originality/value

This study adds to HRM research by revealing a pertinent source of personal adversity, pandemic fears, and how the fears affects tendencies to embrace tardiness at work. The study explicates how emotional exhaustion functions as a core conduit that connects this resource-draining condition with propensities to show up late, as well as how safety climate perceptions can buffer this translation.

Details

Personnel Review, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0048-3486

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 26 March 2024

Seep Sethi and Poornima Madan

Undertaking the theoretical lens of “The need to belong” theory, the present study intends to explore the aftermath of internal whistleblowing and the behavioral outcomes that…

Abstract

Purpose

Undertaking the theoretical lens of “The need to belong” theory, the present study intends to explore the aftermath of internal whistleblowing and the behavioral outcomes that follow by linking it to the literature on workplace ostracism, loneliness and intentions to quit.

Design/methodology/approach

The respondents were hotel employees in the Delhi NCR region of northern India. A hypothesized sequential mediation model was tested on a sample of employees from a hotel using a three-wave time-lagged multistudy design.

Findings

The findings of the study established that internal whistleblowing leads to intentions to quit via workplace ostracism and loneliness at work.

Originality/value

The unique contribution of this study lies in understanding the underlying mechanisms and discussing the behavioral outcomes that follow post-whistleblowing. HR managers need to develop a work environment that protects whistleblowers and has a zero-tolerance policy against employees engaging in any form of retaliation or unethical business practices. Managers must be more proactive and sensitive to the social cues that will make them aware of the presence of acts of ostracism. Upon encountering such acts, managers can consider counseling employees engaging in such unhealthy practices.

Details

Employee Relations: The International Journal, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0142-5455

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 11 January 2024

Rupesh Rajak, Binod Rajak, Vimal Kumar and Swati Mathur

This study aims to provide a causal framework for teacher burnout (BO) and work engagement (WE) by examining the factors that contribute to it and evaluating how progressive…

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to provide a causal framework for teacher burnout (BO) and work engagement (WE) by examining the factors that contribute to it and evaluating how progressive education (PE) affects teachers' performance in Higher education institutions (HEIs).

Design/methodology/approach

This study uses a multi-stage sampling technique with the help of computer random generation data from a selected list of teachers. The survey has two sections; the first consisted of a questionnaire of PE, BO, WE and organizational outcomes and the second contained four items to measure the demographic variables. The researcher contacted 745 teachers and asked them to fill up the questionnaire but the authors received only 498 useable responses.

Findings

The results of the study confirmed that moderating role PE reduces the BO of the teachers of HEIs and increases WE. The job demand-resource (JD-R) model was also validated in the Indian context and the model was found suitable for the Indian sample.

Research limitations/implications

The study has been conducted to manage BO and teachers' engagement in HEIs and the result suggests that the Management of HEIs should value PE characteristics as a crucial component of the educational process. PE encourages academic engagement among professors and students in HEIs.

Originality/value

The study tests the moderating role of PE with the JD-R and the JD-R model in the higher education system in India, which is rarely tested. The study's integrated approach to BO and WE, which provide insight into both viewpoints and aids in employees' poor health.

Details

Journal of Applied Research in Higher Education, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2050-7003

Keywords

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