Martin G. Evans

A Monte Carlo study of the effects of correlated method variance in moderated multiple regression analysis

Abstract It has been suggested that hierarchical regression analysis provides an unambiguous conclusion with regard to the existence of moderator effects (Arnold & Evans, 1979) . This paper examines the impact of correlated error among the dependent and independent variables in order to explore whether or not artificial interaction terms can be generated. A Monte Carlo study was performed to investigate the effects of correlated error on noninteraction and interaction models. The results are clear-cut. Artifactual interaction cannot be created; true interactions can be attentuated. Some practical suggestions are provided for drawing inferences from hierarchical regression analysis.

Job satisfaction and turnover among nurses: integrating research findings across studies.

A meta-analytic study investigated the causal relationships among job satisfaction, behavioral intentions, and nurse turnover behavior. A theoretical model was proposed in which behavioral intentions were viewed as a direct antecedent to turnover behavior. Job satisfaction was expected to be indirectly related to turnover by virtue of the mediating role of behavioral intentions. Consistent with these expectations, a strong positive relationship was indicated between behavioral intentions and turnover; a strong negative relationship between job satisfaction and behavioral intentions; and a small negative relationship between job satisfaction and turnover. The results of the modifier analysis suggested that effect sizes are fairly robust to differences in study designs, response rates, and methods of measuring job satisfaction, but the manner in which behavioral intentions were operationalized appeared to moderate the relationship between behavioral intentions and turnover and job satisfaction. Of variables related to nursing job satisfaction, work content and work environment had a stronger relationship with job satisfaction than economic or individual difference variables.

Testing multiplicative models does not require ratio scales

Abstract A method is outlined to test unambiguously for the presence of interaction when variables are measured on ratio, interval, or ordinal scales. The hierarchical multiple regression methodology is developed with specific reference to the expectancy model of motivation which hypothesizes that motivational force is a function of the product of expectancy (E) and valence (V). The test is shown to be invariant under all linear transformations of the form aX + b of E, V, or both E and V. This invariance is demonstrated with four hypothetical data sets, and is contrasted to the wide fluctuations in zero order correlations between motivational force and the E × V product shown by Schmidt 1973. Several criticisms of hierarchical multiple regression techniques are dealt with. The empirical indistinguishability of alternative formulations of multiplicative models is pointed out, and the interdependence of model testing and measurement is emphasized.

A partial test and extension of the job characteristics model of motivation

Abstract This paper reports the results of a partial test and extension of the job characteristic model of motivation using data from supervisors and managers of an automobile assembly plant. The model has also been extended to include an expectancy theory type of outcome in addition to the ones outlined in the original formulation. The individual moderating effects of growth need strength and need for achievement are also investigated. The results provide partial support for the hypothesized relationships. Job characteristics relations with outcome measures were low but statistically significant. The correlations with expectancy type outcomes were encouraging given their exploratory nature in the model. The moderator effects of growth need strength, to the extent tested, showed rather weak relationships while need for achievement had no such effects. The validity and superiority of the double multiplicative model has also been tested but found unsupported.

LIFE AND DEATH ALONG GASOLINE ALLEY: DARWINIAN AND LAMARCKIAN PROCESSES IN A DIFFERENTIATING POPULATION

Despite the topics centrality to theorizing in organizational ecology, no study has examined in detail how founding, failure, and transformation events combine over time to achieve population-level change. We examined Darwinian and Lamarckian processes of population reconfiguration within the gasoline retail industry at two nested levels of analysis, studying both individual outlets and parent companies. Our findings demonstrate how Darwinian processes at the unit (outlet) level may lead to Lamarckian adaptations at the organization (company) level through purposive replication of successful forms.

Measurement of staff empowerment within health service organizations.

A measure of empowerment was developed and its psychometric properties evaluated. Employees (n = 52) of two hospitals participated in semistructured interviews and a pilot test of the research instrument. A second study was undertaken with professional, support, and administrative staff (n = 405) of four community hospitals. Psychometric evaluation included factor analysis, reliability estimation, and validity assessment. Subjects responded to questionnaires measuring empowerment, leadership behavior, organizational citizenship behavior and job behaviors related to quality improvement. Factor analysis indicated three dimensions of empowerment: behavioral, verbal, and outcome empowerment. Coefficient alphas ranged from .83 to .87. The three dimensions were positively related to leadership behavior that encouraged self-leadership and negatively related to directive leadership. The three dimensions discriminated between the empowerment level of managers compared to that of nonmanagement staff. Empowerment predicted organizational citizenship behavior and job behaviors related to quality improvement.

Organizational Behavior: The Central Role of Motivation

This review of the organizational behavior literature posits that the prime research focus should be the behavior of individuals in organizational settings rather than their affective reactions to those settings. Individual behavior is discussed in terms of motivation theory, with emphasis on the antecedents of goals and goal acceptance, feedback, and attributions, and on the consequences of performance. Factors such as leadership and job design are viewed as affecting behavior through their effects on motivation. The implications of the motivational modelfor researchers and practitioners are discussed.

On the Asymmetry of g

In this paper the strength of general intelligence at different levels of g is explored. This represents a replication of 1996 work by Dreary, et al. using a very large sample of young persons. By examining differences in correlation between subscales and by undertaking a confirmatory factor analysis of a standard ability measure, the Armed Services Vocational Ability Battery, at high and low levels of g (n = c. 600 at each level), it is shown that at lower levels of g the factor structure is quite similar to, although not as well defined as, the factor structure for the complete sample, that is, a single general factor; however, at higher levels of g, the factor structure is not as clear-cut. The differences in mean correlations between the high and low intelligence groups ranged from .12 to .46 depending on the specific analysis. We established the level of g in three different ways using different indicators of g with different strengths and weaknesses. Results of all three analyses converged. The results imply that people with high intelligence demonstrate this in quite different ways, while those with low g have intellectual deficits in all domains of intelligence. The dominance of g in the factor structure reflects this similarity of scores at the low end of the set of abilities. The prevalence of specific abilities is due to the variety of ways in which people can demonstrate high ability. One can visualize this in three dimensions by imagining the various abilities as flowers arranged in a narrow vase—at the bottom they are bound together tightly, at the top they spread out broadly.

The Role of Job Outcomes and Values in Understanding the Union's Impact on Job Satisfaction: A Replication

In this paper, the consequences of being a union member for a persons job satisfaction is explored. Berger, Olson, and Boudreau (1983) suggest that union membership is related to the job outcomes that people receive and the job values that they hold (or else that people with particular values choose unionized work settings); so that if these factors are controlled, it is hypothesized that there is no effect of union membership on job satisfaction. Using a sample of male employees in union and non-union worksites in southwestern Ontario, this hypothesis is explored with a focus on satisfaction with work itself and satisfaction with pay. Berger et al.s (1983) findings were replicated, i.e., after controlling for job complexity, there was no relationship between unionization and satisfaction with work itself. However, contrary to the hypothesis, a relationship between unionization and satisfaction with pay was found. This result may be due to (1) unionization enhancing perceived fairness of pay, or (2) the fact that measuring and controlling for fringe benefits in this analysis could not be done.

Opportunistic Organizational Research: The Role of Patch-up Designs

In research involving the evaluation of organizational changes, it is rarely possible to obtain the desired experimental controls. A number of possible “patch-up” designs are discussed. Such design...