María del Carmen Triana

Demographic Diversity in the Boardroom: Mediators of the Board Diversity - Firm Performance Relationship

Whereas the majority of research on board diversity explores the direct relationship between racial and gender diversity and firm performance, this paper investigates mediators that explain how board diversity is related to firm performance. Grounded in signalling theory and the behavioural theory of the firm, we suggest that this relationship operates through two mediators: firm reputation and innovation. In a sample of Fortune 500 firms, we find a positive relationship between board racial diversity and both firm reputation and innovation. We find that reputation and innovation both partially mediate the relationship between board racial diversity and firm performance. In addition, we find a positive relationship between board gender diversity and innovation.

The Double-Edged Nature of Board Gender Diversity: Diversity, Firm Performance, and the Power of Women Directors as Predictors of Strategic Change

Diverse boards have been seen as providing impetus for initiating change. However, diversity may introduce conflict and impede decision making, which could hinder the ability of the firm to make strategic change, especially in times when firm performance is low. Integrating threat-rigidity theory and team diversity research, we examine how board gender diversity, firm performance, and the power of women directors interact to influence the amount of strategic change. Results support a three-way interaction, indicating that when the board is not experiencing a threat as a result of low firm performance and women directors have greater power, the relationship between board gender diversity and amount of strategic change is the most positive. However, when the board is threatened by low firm performance and women directors have greater power, the relationship between board gender diversity and amount of strategic change is the most negative. Results suggest that diversity is double-edged because it can propel or impede strategic change depending on firm performance and the power of women directors.

Predictive Criterion-Related Validity of Observer Ratings of Personality and Job-Related Competencies Using Multiple Raters and Multiple Performance Criteria

The purpose of this study was to assess the predictive validity of observer ratings of personality and job-related competencies in a selection setting. Based on ratings from multiple raters of both the predictors and the criteria in a sample of MBA students, results indicated that observer ratings of Conscientiousness, Emotional Stability, leadership, and interpersonal skills predicted work performance, team performance, and academic performance. For work performance and team performance, a composite of the four predictors had incremental predictive validity over general mental ability, even after controlling for how well the rater knew the ratee.

Mediation in Strategic Management Research: Conceptual Beginnings, Current Application, and Future Recommendations

Mediating effects allow strategic management researchers to understand “black box” processes underlying complex relationships whereby the effect of an independent variable is transmitted to a dependent variable through a third variable. Since the seminal work of Baron and Kenny (1986), advancements have been made in mediation analysis. Thus, literature on the latest techniques for analyzing mediating and intervening varibales is presented. In addition, strategy literature published in the Academy of Management Journal and the Strategic Management Journal between 1986 and 2005 employing tests of mediation is reviewed to better understand how mediation techniques are used by strategy scholars. Finally, implications and limitations of current mediation analysis in strategy research are discussed, and recommendations are provided to strategy scholars examining mediation.

Self-Enhancement in a Job Search Context

The purpose of this study was to examine the role of self-enhancement in a job search context. Based on previous theoretical and empirical research on positive illusions and core self-evaluations, we examined the relationships among core self-evaluations, self-enhancement, perceived job alternatives, and job search behaviors. Participants in two different studies were students attending a career fair at a university in the southwestern United States to look for a job. Results showed that self-enhancement is positively related to preparatory job search and mediates the relationship between core self-evaluations and perceived job alternatives. The implications of this study are discussed.

Subordinates’ perceptions of supervisor paternalism: a scale development

Purpose – Drawing from social dominance theories and conceptualizations of paternalism, the purpose of this paper is to define and develop a measure of subordinates’ perceptions of supervisor paternalism (SPSP). Design/methodology/approach – The authors assess the validity of the measure using Hinkin’s (1998) scale development steps. Findings – The authors found evidence of the convergent and discriminant validity of the measure of subordinates’ perceptions of supervisor paternalism drawing from three different samples. Participants in the study were also able to differentiate a low from a high paternalism condition using the measure of paternalism. Finally, as expected, the interaction between a supervisor’s benevolence and control was significantly associated with subordinates’ perceptions of supervisor paternalism. Research limitations/implications – The authors provide evidence for the validity of a measure of subordinates’ perceptions of supervisor paternalism while controlling for various status sig...

Set Up to Fail: Explaining When Women-Led Businesses Are More Likely to Fail

Drawing on role congruity theory, we examine whether and when women-led ventures are more likely to fail than men-led ventures. We investigate the relationship between the gender of the leading entrepreneur and business failure and three important moderators of this relationship: whether the leadership assignment is consistent with merit, whether the venture operates in a female-dominated industry, and whether the venture is operated by a spousal team. Drawing on a unique, nationally representative data set of entrepreneurial firms sampled from the U.S. population in 2005 and followed yearly until 2011, we demonstrate that female entrepreneurs’ businesses are more likely to fail than those of their male counterparts. Regarding the moderating effects, our results show that female entrepreneurs’ businesses are more likely to fail when their merit-based competence is inferior to that of their cofounders. However, in the same scenario, male entrepreneurs are still able to lead their businesses successfully. We also find that women entrepreneurs’ disadvantages in leading new businesses are amplified in contexts that many have expected to be supportive of women, including in industries dominated by women and within spousal teams. Together, our results suggest that women’s disadvantages in leading their businesses may be perpetuated by gender beliefs that discount women’s leadership. Based on our findings, we discuss our contributions to theory and practice, and we offer implications for future research.

Perceived Workplace Gender Discrimination and Employee Consequences: A Meta-Analysis and Complementary Studies Considering Country Context

We draw on relative deprivation theory to examine how the context influences the relationship between employees’ perceptions of gender discrimination and outcomes at work using a meta-analysis and two complementary empirical studies. Our meta-analysis includes 85 correlations from published and unpublished studies from around the world to assess correlates of perceived workplace gender discrimination that have significant implications for employees. We extend relative deprivation theory to identify national differences in labor laws and cultural norms as contextual factors that affect the threshold for feeling deprived and moderate the relationship between perceived workplace gender discrimination and employee outcomes. Findings show that perceived gender discrimination is negatively related to job attitudes, physical health outcomes and behaviors, psychological health, and work-related outcomes (job-based and relationship-based). Correlations between perceived workplace gender discrimination and physical health outcomes and behaviors were stronger in countries with more broadly integrated labor policies and stringently enforced labor practices focused on promoting gender equality. Correlations were also stronger in countries with more gender-egalitarian cultural practices across multiple employee outcomes of perceived workplace gender discrimination. Further, results from two complementary studies (one employee survey and one experiment) supported the meta-analytic findings and provided evidence of the relative deprivation rationale central to our theory. Implications for research and practice include the need to consider the influence of the country context in organizational decisions to prevent and address gender discrimination and its consequences for employees and ultimately, for employers.

Why and When is an Integration and Learning Approach to Diversity Effective

This paper extends the scope of justice theory to examine the relationship between an organizational integration and learning approach to diversity and two employee outcomes: organizational citizen...

Do ethnicity and occupational status interact to influence anxiety? An investigation of anxiety among Hispanic emergency responders

Although anxiety is a universal emotion, some of the most severe job-related levels of anxiety are among emergency responder occupations, jeopardizing their well being and positive job performance. The literature suggests that certain ethnic groups report higher levels of anxiety than other ethnic groups. Using Lazarus and Folkmans transactional model of stress, this study examines whether ethnicity predicts differing anxiety levels across occupations. We sampled emergency and non-emergency responders in the state of Texas in the USA. The strongest positive relationship between occupational status and anxiety was observed for Hispanics compared with non-Hispanics. However, the findings reveal no significant effect between Hispanic ethnicity and anxiety. Our findings show that ethnicity may explain the differences in experienced anxiety across occupations. Implications for theory and practice are discussed.