Annika Nübold

Considering the orphan: Personal identification and its relations with transformational leadership, trust, and performance in a three-path mediation model

Transformational leadership research investigating the identification processes of followers has mostly focused on social identification. In contrast, empirical evidence on the role of followers’ personal identification with their leader is still scarce. Furthermore, there has been no attempt to test the links between personal identification and other proposed mediators of transformational leadership. This study examined how a group’s identification with and trust in its leader sequentially combine to mediate the relationship between transformational leadership and supervisor-rated group performance. Using a sample of 343 employees and their supervisors (N = 80), we tested a model in which trust functions as a proximal mediator and personal identification as a distal mediator in the leadership–performance relationship. Results support the hypothesized three-path mediation model. Our findings indicate the importance of trust for the development of personal identification in the leadership process and provide evidence that the group’s identification with the leader results in positive outcomes for organizations.

Validation of a German Version of the Ethical Leadership at Work Questionnaire by Kalshoven et al. (2011).

The present study evaluates the psychometric properties of a German version of the Ethical Leadership at Work questionnaire (ELW-D), and further embeds the construct of ethical leadership within its nomological network. Confirmatory factor analyses (CFAs) based on the total sample of N = 363 employees support the assumed seven-factor structure of the German translation. Within a sub-sample of N = 133, the ELW-D shows positive correlations with related leadership behaviors (transformational leadership, contingent reward, and servant leadership), and negative correlations with destructive ones (passive leadership, autocratic leadership, and abusive supervision), approving convergent validity of the scale. Comparisons of correlated correlation coefficients reveal restrictions of its discriminant validity. In support of the criterion-related validity (N = 100), the ELW-D relates to work-related attitudes (e.g., job satisfaction, satisfaction with the leader, trust in the leader) and follower behaviors (e.g., extra effort, organizational citizenship behavior) in the way expected. Besides, ELW-D-dimensions show incremental validity over and above the Ethical Leadership Scale, emphasizing the added value of this questionnaire.

Führung in Zeiten des demografischen Wandels

In Deutschland sehen wir, ebenso wie in den meisten westlichen Industrienationen, einer „doppelten Alterung“ der Gesellschaft entgegen. Die Menschen in Deutschland werden immer alter, gleichzeitig sinkt die Geburtenrate. Diese „doppelte Alterung“ hat nicht nur Auswirkungen auf private und soziale Lebensbereiche, sondern sie hat auch dramatische Konsequenzen fur Organisationen, Fuhrungskrafte und Beschaftigte. Die enorme Herausforderung fur Unternehmen und deren Fuhrungskrafte wird u. a. darin bestehen, Arbeitsprozesse und -inhalte an die Bedurfnisse, Kompetenzen und Fahigkeiten einer alter werdenden Beschaftigungsgruppe auszurichten, Stereotypen gegenuber alteren Mitarbeitern entgegen zu wirken und die Gesundheit der Mitarbeiter zu erhalten. Schon jetzt zu antizipieren, dass altere Mitarbeiter dazu ermutigt und bewegt werden mussen, moglichst lange und aktiv in ihrem Beruf zu verbleiben, ist aus volkswirtschaftlicher Perspektive ebenso wie aus Perspektive einzelner Unternehmen notwendig und wichtig. Fur Unternehmen wird es unausweichlich zu einem Mitarbeitermangel kommen, sollten sie nicht in der Lage sein, auch ihre alteren Beschaftigten langfristig an sich zu binden und deren Arbeitsengagement nachhaltig zu fordern. Fuhrungskraften als Vermittler zwischen Unternehmenszielen und Mitarbeiterbedurfnissen kommt dabei eine herausragende Rolle zu. Nur durch die Einflussnahme im Sinne einer effizienten, altersgerechten und gesundheitsforderlichen Fuhrung ist es einer Organisation moglich, die Herausforderungen des demografischen Wandels und die damit verbundenen Aufgaben erfolgreich zu bewaltigen, wettbewerbsfahig zu bleiben und das Potenzial ihrer Mitarbeiter optimal auszuschopfen. Daher wird demografiegerechte Fuhrung, Fuhrungsverhalten, das dazu beitragt, dass altere Beschaftigte ihren Beruf lange motiviert, engagiert und leistungsfahig ausuben, in Zukunft eine grundlegende Kompetenz erfolgreicher Fuhrungskrafte sein.

Developing a Taxonomy of Dark Triad Triggers at Work – A Grounded Theory Study Protocol

In past years, research and corporate scandals have evidenced the destructive effects of the dark triad at work, consisting of narcissism (extreme self-centeredness), psychopathy (lack of empathy and remorse) and Machiavellianism (a sense of duplicity and manipulativeness). The dark triad dimensions have typically been conceptualized as stable personality traits, ignoring the accumulating evidence that momentary personality expressions – personality states – may change due to the characteristics of the situation. The present research protocol describes a qualitative study that aims to identify triggers of dark triad states at work by following a grounded theory approach using semi-structured interviews. By building a comprehensive categorization of dark triad triggers at work scholars may study these triggers in a parsimonious and structured way and organizations may derive more effective interventions to buffer or prevent the detrimental effects of dark personality at work.

Psychological Contributions to Competition Law Compliance

Price fixing and corruption cause immense economic damage. Measures of competition law compliance present a possibility to prevent price fixing and cartelisation. Taking a psychological perspective may help to understand which individual, group, and organisational factors may foster compliance. We explore factors driving compliance and propose the psychological onion model of competition law compliance. The model contains individual, group, and organisational factors determining competition law compliance. These factors are influenced by environmental factors. Within each layer of the onion model, we focus on particularly relevant examples by discussing implicit motives and core self-evaluations (individual), justice (group), and corporate social responsibility (organisation) in detail. Practical recommendations for the establishment of compliance structures in organisations are given, accompanied by theoretical considerations and future research directions.