Margaret E. Brooks

An Organizational Impression Management Perspective on the Formation of Corporate Reputations

Researchers have only recently turned their attention to the study of corporate reputation.As is characteristic of many early areas of management inquiry, the field is decidedly multidisciplinary and disconnected. This article selectively reviews reputation research conducted mainly during the past decade. A framework is proposed that views reputation from the perspective of organizational impression management. Corporations are viewed as social actors, intent on enhancing their respectability and impressiveness in the eyes of constituents.

Familiarity, ambivalence, and firm reputation: Is corporate fame a double-edged sword?

This research questioned the proposition that corporate familiarity is positively associated with firm reputation. Student images of familiar and unfamiliar Fortune 500 corporations were examined in 4 experiments. The results suggested that, consistent with behavioral decision theory and attitude theory, highly familiar corporations provide information that is more compatible with the tasks of both admiring and condemning than less familiar corporations. Furthermore, the judgment context may determine whether positive or negative judgments are reported about familiar companies. The notion that people can simultaneously hold contradictory images of well-known firms may help to explain the inconsistent findings on the relation between familiarity and reputation.

Predicting professional preferences for intuition‐based hiring

Purpose – Many human resource professionals erroneously believe that they can hire the best employees without the assistance of decision aids. The purpose of this study is to examine personal and situational characteristics that may relate to preference for intuition‐based approaches to hiring employees.Design/methodology/approach – A representative sample of 206 managers and directors of human resources management was asked to complete an online questionnaire addressing psychological constructs and career information.Findings – The authors found that the profile of a professional who prefers intuition‐based hiring is one who is an experiential thinker (i.e. tends to make everyday decisions based on feelings), is less experienced, works for a smaller organization, and does not possess advanced professional certification. Hiring context (i.e. selecting hourly versus salaried employees) did not influence preferences for intuition‐based hiring.Research limitations/implications – Elements of the study are cro...

Distinction Bias in Applicant Reactions to Using Diversity Information in Selection

Two studies investigated applicant reactions to alternative methods of incorporating diversity in employee selection decisions. Of particular interest was the hypothesized interaction between specific approach to incorporating diversity in the selection policy (holistic vs mechanical) and mode of receiving information about this approach (viewing policies in isolation vs viewing policies simultaneously). Results indicate preference for holistic approaches to incorporating diversity in selection. The magnitude of the preference was much greater when participants evaluated both approaches simultaneously. Results are consistent with the distinction bias, which suggests that people differentiate between options more when they consider them simultaneously than when they view them separately. Findings have implications for applicant reactions research, human resource decision making, and policy formation.

Are common language effect sizes easier to understand than traditional effect sizes

Communicating the results of research to nonscientists presents many challenges. Among these challenges is communicating the effectiveness of an intervention in a way that people untrained in statistics can understand. Use of traditional effect size metrics (e.g., r, r²) has been criticized as being confusing to general audiences. In response, researchers have developed nontraditional effect size indicators (e.g., binomial effect size display, common language effect size indicator) with the goal of presenting information in a more understandable manner. The studies described here present the first empirical test of these claims of understandability. Results show that nontraditional effect size indicators are perceived as more understandable and useful than traditional indicators for communicating the effectiveness of an intervention. People also rated training programs as more effective and were willing to pay more for programs whose effectiveness was described using the nontraditional effect size metrics.

Is a .51 validity coefficient good? Value sensitivity for interview validity

Human‐resource professionals (n = 201) were presented with meta‐analytic validity coefficients associated with unstructured and structured employment interviews. When presented alone, the unstructured interview received a higher effectiveness rating—despite having a smaller validity coefficient—than the structured interview received (d = −.30). When presented together, however, the structured interview was strongly favored (d = .61). The inclusion of the endpoints of the range of operational validities for all selection methods made the presentation‐mode by interview‐structure interaction disappear.

Status Seeking and Manipulative Self‐Presentation

Three studies examine the relation of dispositional status‐seeking with workplace self‐presentation behaviors. The first study showed that the status‐seeking motive provided incremental prediction, over and above narcissism and self‐monitoring, in self‐reported exaggerating, faking, and fabricating in job search. The second study showed that, after controlling for the traits from the five factor model of personality, status‐seeking predicted the undesirable job‐search behaviors, as well as use of impression‐management tactics at work. A field study showed that employee status seeking explained supervisor impressions of employee supplication and ingratiation, even after controlling for task and contextual performance. Male status‐seekers were also more likely to engage in intimidation. Status‐seeking appears to be an important motive for understanding manipulative self‐presentation at work.