Joseph C. Ugrin

The effects of sanctions and stigmas on cyberloafing

Cyberloafing has become a pervasive problem for many organizations and some researchers have suggested that a deterrence approach utilizing acceptable use policies for Internet-based applications coupled with mechanisms designed to monitor employee Internet usage and detect unauthorized usage can be an effective way to reduce it. However, the results of studies that have examined the effects of acceptable use policies and detection mechanisms on reducing cyberloafing are mixed. This study attempts to reconcile those inconsistencies by using an experiment to show that the deterrence model affects various types of cyberloafing differently. The results reveal that individually, threats termination and detection mechanisms are effective deterrents against activities like viewing pornography, managing personal finances, and personal shopping, but must be coupled together and actively enforced to dissuade activities like personal emailing and social networking.

An Examination of the Relationship between Culture and Cyberloafing Using the Hofstede Model

ABSTRACT This article explores the relationship between culture and cyberloafing. A survey measuring individuals’ propensity to engage in cyberloafing in the workplace was conducted with people from 17 countries representing a wide range of cultures. Tests were performed to explore relationships between participants’ propensity to cyberloaf and the cultural dimension ratings for their individual countries of origin. The results show that some types of cyberloafing activity relate significantly with culture. This has potential implications for multinational organizations. Employees from different cultures may have different workplace tendencies.

A Study of How Underperforming Firms Follow Industry Leaders When Adopting ERP Systems and the Economic Effects of Their Adoption Decisions

Researchers have proposed but not tested that early-stage adopters of ERP systems tend to be higher-performing firms that adopt as a means of gaining or maintaining a competitive advantage. In contrast, they have proposed that late-stage adopters are underperforming firms that experience institutional pressures and make adoption decisions partly in response to those pressures and to try to improve performance and catch-up to industry leaders. In this study, we examine the relationship between firm performance and ERP adoption. We found that late-stage adopters tend to have lower financial performance relative to the overall market in the years leading up to adoption decisions as compared to early-stage adopters that tended to outperform the market in years leading up to adoption decisions. This finding demonstrates the relationship between firm performance and ERP adoption. We also found that, postadoption, the relative performance of late-stage adopters tends to improve more than early-stage adopters. This finding suggests that following the actions of industry leaders and adopting ERP systems can have economic benefits for underperforming firms.

Negativity Bias in Investors’ Reactions to Board of Directors’ Risk Oversight Disclosure

Abstract This study investigates how disclosure of the board of directors’ leadership and role in risk oversight (BODs oversight disclosure) influences investors’ judgments when information on risk exposures is disclosed. The theoretical lens through which we examine this issue involves negativity bias. Sixty-two stock market investors who engage in the evaluation and/or investment of stocks on a regular or professional basis participated in our study. Our results reveal that the addition of BODs oversight disclosure (positive information) does not carry significant weight on investor judgments (i.e., attractiveness and investment) when financial statement disclosures indicate a high level of operational and financial risk exposures (negative information). In contrast, under the condition of a low level of risk exposures, BODs oversight disclosure causes investors to assess higher risk in terms of worry, catastrophic potentials and unfamiliarity about risk information and, in turn, make less favorable investor judgments. Our findings add to the literature on negativity bias and contribute to the debate on the usefulness of disclosures about risk.