Barbara A. Fritzsche

E-Learning in Organizations

E-learning, an instructional strategy for imparting needed knowledge, skills, and attitudes in organizations, is here to stay. Its viability, effectiveness, and potential to return tangible benefits to organizations depend largely on how it is designed, delivered, and evaluated. This article provides a comprehensive review of the state of the art of e-learning methods in organizations. The authors also critically examine e-learning’s effectiveness by reviewing the current literature on the outcomes of e-learning. Finally, they offer a research agenda designed to bridge the gap between the practice and science of e-learning.

Individual differences in academic procrastination tendency and writing success

This study examined the relation between academic procrastination tendency and student writing success. We found that the tendency to procrastinate on writing tasks was associated with general anxiety, anxiety about writing the paper, writing the paper later than usual, less satisfaction with writing the paper, and lower grades. Additionally, receipt of feedback on writing was associated with better writing outcomes for high procrastinators. These results have implications for understanding academic procrastination and the use of academic interventions to address procrastination.

The usefulness of the NEO PI-R positive presentation management scale for detecting response distortion in employment contexts

Abstract This study examined the usefulness of the NEO PI-R Positive Presentation Management (PPM) scale for detecting response distortion in employment contexts. In study 1, personality and performance data from 90 customer service representatives were used to examine the possible moderating effect of positive presentation management on the personality–performance relation. In study 2, 150 students were given either job applicant or standard instructions before completing the NEO PI-R and the Balanced Inventory of Desirable Responding (BIDR). Results indicated that PPM did not moderate the personality–performance relationship; instead, it positively correlated with productivity ratings. PPM differentiated between applicant and general instruction conditions, but the BIDR Impression Management scale was more effective in this regard. And, PPM was more highly correlated with BIDR Self-Deceptive Enhancement than Impression Management. Thus, PPM may be a personality-related tendency to view oneself positively rather than an overt impression management tactic, and it may not be helpful in adjusting applicants’ personality scores for “faking”. These results emphasize the importance of construct validity studies of social desirability scales for use in employment contexts.

What do Students Want in Advising? A Policy Capturing Study

A policy capturing approach was used to examine the advising variables that contribute to student satisfaction. Students (N = 468) rated 48 scenarios in which advising approach, relationship, advisor gender, emotional nature of the relationship, and type of advisor were manipulated. Results show that being known to the advisor, having a professional advisor, and receiving warmth and support from the advisor were important factors to advisee satisfaction. Ratings differed by student gender, advising experience, and age. Relational variables can exist across multiple advising approaches, and satisfaction likely depends more on the advisor’s interpersonal skills and style than advising approach.

Learner Control and Workplace E-Learning: Design, Person, and Organizational Issues

In this paper, we review the literature on learner control and discuss the implications that increased control may have for training in e-learning environments. The purpose of this paper is to provide a comprehensive review of the learner control literature, focusing on adults and workplace training. We begin by reviewing the literature on learner control, focusing on the positive and negative effects associated with providing adult learners with control in e-learning environments. We organize our review into instructional design factors that have been manipulated to provide learners with control and person issues that moderate the relation between learner control and outcomes. Then, we summarize developments in training research and in adult learning that relate to learner control in order to provide a theoretical context for understanding learner control in adult workplace e-learning.

One size doesn’t fit all Toward a theory on the intersectional salience of ageism at work

Much of the research on the effects of age in the workplace has ignored the role of contextual factors, and the intersection of multiple group identities. In seeking to address these shortcomings, we provide a theoretical integration and review. First, we review the literature on contextual factors that determine age salience. We then provide a review of the major and competing theories on the consequences of multiple subordinate group status on work outcomes. Finally, we seek to integrate these multiple streams of thought into a unified framework, by identifying when and how competing aspects of group membership become salient, and the consequences of category membership constellations for various subgroups of older workers. A theoretical framework and accompanying propositions are presented.

The importance of representative design in judgment tasks: The case of résumé screening

A policy capturing study was conducted to determine if resumeprofile judgments are generalizable to judgments of actual resumes. Forty recruiters judged 60 resumes or corresponding profiles on interview suitability. When profiles were judged, more variance in suitability judgments was accounted for, there was higher agreement among recruiters, the judgments were more favourable, and cue usage was different than when actual resumes were judged. Thus, inferences based on profiles were not generalizable to actual resumes. The importance of representative design and limitations of policy capturing for understanding resume screening judgments were discussed.

Validation of the work-related age-based stereotypes (WAS) scale

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to focus on developing and validating a multidimensional measure of work-related age-based stereotypes (WAS) scale. Design/methodology/approach – Based upon a review of the literature, a three-dimensional stereotype content model including both negative (incompetence, inadaptability) and positive (warmth) stereotypes of older workers was created. Construct, convergent, discriminant, and criterion-related validity for the WAS scale were examined across three independent samples constituting both lab-based experimental studies and a field-based survey (total n=1,245). Findings – Across all samples, the WAS evidenced good construct, convergent, discriminant, and criterion-related validity. Originality/value – As evidenced by a review of the literature, the WAS is unique in that it measures both negative and positive stereotypes of older workers. Implications for research are discussed.

Diagnosing Friction Points in Multicultural Team Performance: A Rationale and Measurement Approach

In modern military and civilian organizations, teams are increasingly composed of members from very different cultural backgrounds. This heterogeneity in cultural composition poses a unique set of challenges on the process of building and maintaining effective teams. This paper describes the concept of friction points in multicultural team performance, establishes their importance, and outlines an approach to measurement. Information from the proposed measurement process can be used to identify friction points in multicultural teams for the purposes of research as well as for developing various interventions in the field such as job aides (e.g., team metacognitive checklists), and generating feedback and remediation during training.

Sweethearts and Sages: Initial Evidence for Prejudice Archetypes & Links to Work Outcomes

Although the notion of archetypes have a long history in the psychological literature, the notion of prejudice archetypes for different categories of workers, based upon unique combinations of individuals’ tripartite of intergroup demography, including age, sex, and communal affiliation, is a new development. The current study aims to test the absence or presence of prejudice archetypes and further examine whether particular demographic categorical combinations will lead to different patterns of work outcomes for members of different age-related demographic subgroups. Across four studies (N = 963), including both lab and field studies, and including two distinct societal cultures, the US and Turkey, results found support for the notion that different demographic combinations result in different stereotype sets (i.e., archetypes). All of the posited archetypes found at least some support, excepting that of older white males, where results seemed most obfuscated (Studies 1 and 2). The interactive effects of...