Aarti Ramaswami

Linking distributive and procedural justice to employee engagement through social exchange: a field study in India

Research linking justice perceptions to employee outcomes has referred to social exchange as its central theoretical premise. We tested a conceptual model linking distributive and procedural justice to employee engagement through social exchange mediators, namely perceived organizational support (POS) and psychological contract, among 238 managers and executives from manufacturing and service sector firms in India. Findings suggest that POS mediated the relationship between distributive justice and employee engagement, and both POS and psychological contract mediated the relationship between procedural justice and employee engagement. Theoretical and practical implications with respect to organizational functions are discussed.

Interaction of gender, mentoring, and power distance on career attainment: A cross-cultural comparison:

This article examines how demographics (gender) and cultural values (power distance) differentially moderate the relationship between mentoring (mentor presence) and career attainment (compensation and organizational position) among 390 managers and professionals in two contrasting cultures (Taiwan versus the USA). The four-way interaction of gender x mentor x power distance x country was significant for both dependent variables, supporting our hypotheses based on theories of power distance and gender egalitarianism. In hierarchical cultures such as Taiwan’s, mentored women with high power distance reported higher career returns than did mentored women with low power distance. In contrast, in egalitarian cultures such as the USA’s, mentored women with low power distance reported higher career returns than did mentored women with high power distance. Our findings demonstrate variation in mentoring outcomes, not just across, but also within, cultures for men and women. We discuss results along with implications for mentoring and cross-cultural theory, research, and practice.

The Interactive Effects of Gender and Mentoring on Career Attainment: Making the Case for Female Lawyers

The moderating effects of biological gender on the relationships between mentoring and career attainment were explored among legal professionals. Research results indicated that male and female lawyers were equally likely to have senior male mentors. However, senior male mentors were associated with higher career attainment only for female lawyers. Compared to male lawyers with senior male mentors, female lawyers with senior male mentors had higher compensation, higher career progress satisfaction, and were more likely to be partners or senior executives. The authors highlight the importance of simultaneously considering mentor gender and position, when studying the role of mentoring and gender in career attainment, contributing to the literature on the career development of women in the legal profession and in male-dominated professions, in general.

Expatriate categorisation and evaluation: an empirical investigation in Poland and India

Using data from 205 Host Country Nationals (HCNs) (100 in Poland and 105 in India), we examined the impact of nationality and performance standards information on HCN willingness to provide role information, and their evaluations of expatriate colleagues. Results confirmed that both nationality and performance standards information were significantly related to HCN willingness to provide role information. However, nationality was not significantly related to task or trait type performance ratings, but when performance standards were provided, expatriates were given more favourable trait ratings than HCNs. We discuss the results in terms of their theoretical and practical implications.

Indian Employees' Attitudes toward Poaching

Given the paucity of research on poaching (hiring employees who are already employed by another, sometimes competitor, company) in India, this study used an experimental design with data from 164 Indian managers and professionals working in a variety of industries, to examine their perceptions of employees who are poached, of companies who engage in poaching, and of their possible reasons for switching jobs. Participants were engaged in three tasks as follows: in the first task, participants were randomly assigned to one of the four scenarios (in a 2 (Agency: Company vs. Employee) x 2 (Decision: Joining rival firm vs. Not joining rival firm) design); in the second task, participants were given a description of a company that either poaches or one that does not poach; and finally, in the third task, participants were asked about the reasons that would lead an employee to getting poached. The studys results indicated that participants perceived employees who get poached as less moral and more business-minded. They also perceived companies who engage in poaching as being competitive, and also perceived such companies more negatively than companies that did not poach. Improvements in salary, status, and social environment emerged as primary reasons for participants to consider switching jobs.