David Dawley

Perceived Organizational Support and Turnover Intention: The Mediating Effects of Personal Sacrifice and Job Fit

ABSTRACT This study examines the mediating role of job fit on the relationship between perceived supervisor support (PSS) and perceived organizational support (POS), and the mediating role of personal sacrifice on the relationship between POS and turnover intention. We use structural equation modeling (SEM) with a data set consisting of a sample of 346 individuals in a manufacturing firm to test our proposed model of PSS, POS, and turnover intention. Consistent with prior literature, our hypothesized model confirms that PSS is a predictor of POS and that POS is a predictor of turnover intention. By testing two additional competing and theoretically derived nested models, our findings indicate that job fit partially mediates the relationship between PSS and POS, and that personal sacrifice partially mediates the relationship between POS and turnover intention. Our study is among the first to examine job fit and personal sacrifice as mediators within the POS-turnover intention model.

Mentoring, supervisor support, and perceived organizational support: what matters most?

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide an examination of the relative impact of mentoring, supervisor support, and perceived organizational support on organizational commitment and job search behavior.Design/methodology/approach – In total, 346 employees of a US manufacturing facility were surveyed.Findings – Ordinary least squared regression model revealed that perceived organizational support was a stronger predictor of organizational commitment and job search behavior than was mentoring and supervisor support.Research limitations/implications – The main implication of this study for leadership theorists is that while mentors and supervisors can be effective in endearing the employee to the organization, the perception of organizational support might be more important. The main limitation of this study is that the findings are derived from a single manufacturing organization.Practical implications – The results from this study suggest that organizational leaders must adequately address organi...

Narrowing the Creativity Gap: The Moderating Effects of Perceived Support for Creativity

ABSTRACT This article examines the role of 3 types of perceived support for creativity in moderating the relation between creative self-efficacy and self-perceived creativity. The findings suggest significant interaction effects for perceived work-group support and supervisor support, but not for perceived organizational support. This study is among the first to (a) examine the importance of perceived support for creativity in unlocking creative potential and increasing creativity in organizations and (b) use interaction terms in structural equation modeling (SEM) to investigate moderator effects in an applied research setting. These results imply that organizational interventions focused on training supervisors and work-group members to support creativity in the workplace may be more effective than broader and less focused interventions at the organizational level.

User Perceptions of E-Mail at Work:

This article examines employee sentiments concerning the use of e-mail. An exploratory study at one state agency was used to create a survey of employee perceptions of e-mail use. The survey was then administered to a second state agency. The survey findings show that although most employees found e-mail to be highly useful, they also complained of information overload. The findings also suggest that employees perceive peer misuse and lack of peer training to be culprits of e-mail overload. The article discusses the theoretical implications of the study and makes recommendations for improving e-mail training.

Choice Situation, Refocusing, and Post-Bankruptcy Performance:

The current study sheds additional light on how and when firms improve their performance after having filed for Chapter 11 reorganization protection. Based on the work of Hrebiniak and Joyce [Administrative Science Quarterly 30 (1985) 336] and Marlin, Lamont and Hoffman [Strategic Management Journal 15 (1994) 229], a framework is developed that identifies which distressed firms have the best chances of surviving bankruptcy and the extent to which refocusing, a popularly prescribed remedy for these ailing firms, will aid their plight. The results demonstrate the utility of viewing bankruptcy reorganizations as different choice situations, where firms have varying levels of strategic choice, determined largely by their stockpiles of redeployable resources, and face different degrees of environmental constraint. Only firms with relatively high strategic choice or low environmental constraint were found to benefit from refocusing actions. That is, the performance effects of at least one popular remedy, refocusing-type business portfolio initiatives, appear contingent on the choice situation confronting firms under Chapter 11 protection.

Enhancing the Ties that Bind: Mentoring as a Moderator.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the moderating role of mentoring on the relationships between perceived organizational support, supervisor support, and job fit on turnover intentions.Design/methodology/approach – The paper explains the topics, provides background and discussion of the main concepts. The study uses regression analyses to test the moderating relationships using a total sample of 610 employees split among three separate organizations.Findings – The results suggest that mentoring becomes more effective in reducing turnover intentions as employees experience increasing levels of perceived organizational support, supervisor support, and job fit.Practical implications – The results suggest mentoring can be beneficial to both organizations and individuals. Organizations benefit by improving employee retention. Likewise, individuals benefit through strengthened relationships provided by mentoring and the associated positive outcomes.Originality/value – The paper makes a contribut...

Staying Put Off-the-Job Embeddedness as a Moderator of the Relationship Between On-the-job Embeddedness and Turnover Intentions

This study examined the relationship between two forms of embeddedness and turnover intentions using a sample of 1,189 employees of a government agency and an additional sample of 346 nurses at a hospital. The authors propose that while both on-the-job and off-the-job embeddedness factors are negatively related to turnover intentions, on-the-job embeddedness is more strongly related to turnover intentions. More important, off-the-job factors moderate the relationship between on-the-job embeddedness and turnover intentions such that this relationship is weaker when off-the-job embeddedness is higher. These results highlight the mitigating role of off-the-job factors in helping to retain employees. Implications for researchers and practitioners are discussed.

Strategic Management of Forensic Laboratory Resources: From Project FORESIGHT Metrics to the Development of Action Plans

Abstract The project FORESIGHT stated objectives begin with the development of metrics applicable to the activity of forensic science laboratories. These metrics enable a laboratory to assess how they fit within the forensic science industry and offer a glance at the levels of performance that they might be able to achieve. FORESIGHTs mission goes on to state the intent for laboratories to use those measurements to “preserve what works, and change what does not” (Houck et al. 2009, p. 85). This paper addresses the strategic implications of those additional aspects of the FORESIGHT mandate with a view of the strategic planning process for a forensic science laboratory. The keys to the development of an ongoing strategic planning and execution process are outlined, and then the actions of one laboratory, Ontarios Centre of Forensic Sciences, are examined to demonstrate the move from metrics to action. While there cannot yet be made a claim of “best practices,” this Canadian example offers some guidance to “better practices” in the quest for continual improvement in the provision of forensic science services.

Enhancing Employee Outcomes in Crime Labs: Test of a Model

Abstract This study developed and tested a model identifying determinants of employee turnover intentions and desirable performance behaviors, including helping others and engaging in knowledge sharing. Data collected from 798 employees at 10 FORESIGHT laboratories suggest that job satisfaction and embeddedness are the primary antecedents of turnover intentions and knowledge sharing, and that embeddedness is a stronger predictor variable of both outcomes. The employees’ understanding of the labs strategic vision is the primary predictor of embeddedness, and job autonomy is the primary predictor of job satisfaction.

The Effects of Politics on Job Satisfaction in Crime Lab Employees

Abstract This study examined the effects of crime lab workers’ perceptions of intra-lab politics on job satisfaction. In addition to finding that political behavior reduces employee job satisfaction, the study also identified ways in which crime lab managers can mitigate the negative effects of political behavior, increasing employee job satisfaction when political behavior is high within a given unit. Data collected from 874 employees at twelve FORESIGHT laboratories suggest that increasing crime lab worker job autonomy, job efficiency, strategic vision, and task significance are especially effective interventions that increase job satisfaction when political behavior is high. We discuss practical implications of these findings for crime lab managers. The purpose of this paper is to investigate how perceived political behavior affects the job satisfaction, or morale, of crime lab workers. The study was motivated by several interactions we had with forensic crime lab managers at the 2013 American Society of Crime Lab Directors (ASCLD) meeting. In ASCLD human resources and FORESIGHT meetings, we received consistent inquiries concerning the potential role of organizational politics as a detrimental factor on employee attitudes. These conversations highlight the unfortunate ubiquity of political behavior at work, including work in crime labs. Organizational politics often create disharmony among employees and can negatively affect employee job satisfaction and other attitudes (Breaux et al. 2009; Ferris et al. 1996). Thus, we sought to explore how political behavior affects the job satisfaction of crime lab employees, and potential managerial strategies that could be useful in mitigating for this potential negative effect.