David Brougham

Consequences of cultural satisfaction at work: A study of New Zealand Māori

To expand our understanding of indigenous workers and the importance of indigenous culture in the workplace, we tested the outcomes of cultural satisfaction at work using structural equation modelling with a sample of 174 Māori employees. We show that, consistent with social exchange theory, Māori who are more satisfied with the level of understanding of their cultural values in the workplace report better job outcomes. Cultural satisfaction at work directly predicted loyalty and organisational citizenship behaviours (OCBs). Furthermore, direct-effects and mediation models were tested, showing that loyalty fully mediated the influence of cultural satisfaction at work on OCBs. The implications for HRM are that indigenous workers who are more satisfied with the way their cultural beliefs are valued in the workplace are likely to be more loyal and may be superior performance. The findings highlight the importance for employers of having regard to the culture of their indigenous workers.

Māori leaders’ well-being: A self-determination perspective:

This research draws on interviews with 18 Māori leaders from various leadership positions within business, community, political and marae organisations, to garner an understanding of how their leadership roles interact with their own well-being. Analysis of interviews revealed that cross-cultural developments in self-determination theory could be gained by incorporating Māori tikanga and values into a model of well-being for Māori leaders. Largely, the principles of tino rangatiratanga (autonomy and self-determination), mana (respect and influence), whānau (extended family), whakapapa (shared history) and whanaungatanga (kin relations, consultation and engagement), were united into a model of leader well-being. This ensured that mātauranga Māori (Māori knowledge) informed our model of Māori leader well-being, while also drawing on the burgeoning Western research in the area of well-being, specifically self-determination theory. Overall, we find that similarities exist with self-determination theory and Māori tikanga and values. However, in contrast to self-determination theory, autonomy and competence are developed within relationships, which means that ‘others’ underpin Māori leaders’ well-being. From this perspective, we present a view of the psychological and well-being resources that Māori leaders draw on to guide them through complex times.

Smart Technology, Artificial Intelligence, Robotics, and Algorithms (STARA): Employees’ perceptions of our future workplace

Abstract Futurists predict that a third of jobs that exist today could be taken by Smart Technology, Artificial Intelligence, Robotics, and Algorithms (STARA) by 2025. However, very little is known about how employees perceive these technological advancements in regards to their own jobs and careers, and how they are preparing for these potential changes. A new measure (STARA awareness) was created for this study that captures the extent to which employees feel their job could be replaced by these types of technology. Due to career progression and technology knowledge associated with age, we also tested age as a moderator of STARA. Using a mixed-methods approach on 120 employees, we tested STARA awareness on a range of job and well-being outcomes. Greater STARA awareness was negatively related to organisational commitment and career satisfaction, and positively related to turnover intentions, cynicism, and depression.

Employee assessment of their technological redundancy

ABSTRACT Many futurists and business people suggest that we are in the midst of the fourth industrial revolution because of rapid advancements in smart technology, artificial intelligence, automation, robotics, and algorithms (STAARA). However, very little research has been conducted on how employees view their jobs and careers in the age of these potential changes. Structural equation modelling was used on a sample of 196 employees to test a number of job-related predictors regarding employees’ perceptions of their job insecurity from STAARA: job control, job complexity, job repetition, and STAARA awareness. These employee-rated predictors were then used to predict STAARA redundancy. Overall, all constructs played important roles in understanding the prediction of STAARA redundancy. Unusually, STAARA awareness was found to be negatively related to STAARA redundancy, indicating that employees may not be the best judge of technology’s potential to replace their jobs. The implications are important when we consider how employees assess their jobs and long-term career prospects in relation to STAARA.