Mary Dana Laird

Toward a Theory of Reputation in Organizations

In everyday life, as well as in work organizations, we engage in frequent and quite comfortable discourse about the nature of reputations, and wealso see personal reputation used as a basis for important human resources decisions (e.g., promotions, terminations, etc.). Unfortunately, despite its recognized importance, there has been very little theory and research on personal reputation in organizations published in the organizational sciences. The present paper attempts to address this need by proposing a conceptualization of personal reputation in organizations. In this conceptualization, reputation is presented as an agreed upon, collective perception by others, and involves behavior calibration derived from social comparisons with referent others that results in a deviation from the behavioral norms in ones environment, as observed and evaluated by others. Implications of this conceptualization are discussed, as are directions for future research.

Board Up the Windows: The Interactive Effects of Hurricane-Induced Job Stress and Perceived Resources on Work Outcomes

The authors conducted five studies to examine the interactive effects of hurricane-induced job stress and perceived resources on job satisfaction, job tension, and work effort. The authors hypothesized that heightened hurricane-induced job stress would increase adverse reactions for those with fewer perceived resources. Conversely, the authors expected higher levels of perceived resources to neutralize these effects. Results support the hypothesis across studies. Interestingly, job satisfaction improved for those with high levels of perceived resources as hurricane-induced job stress increased in two studies. The authors discuss theoretical implications for traumatic and general stress research, as well as practice, and provide directions for future research.

Nonlinear Politics Perceptions—Work Outcomes Relationships: A Three-Study, Five-Sample Investigation

This research reports the findings of three studies (involving a total of five samples) developed to explore the nonlinear relationships of organizational politics perceptions with practically and theoretically relevant work outcomes. Study 1 hypothesized a nonlinear relationship between organizational politics perceptions and job satisfaction. In Sample 1 of this study, a nonlinear relationship was identified, best depicted as an inverted-U form, and Sample 2 replicated this finding. Study 2 hypothesized a U-shaped relationship between politics perceptions and job tension, which was identified in Sample 3 and corroborated in Sample 4. In a single-sample investigation (i.e., Sample 5), Study 3 extended nonlinear conceptualizations by considering moderation (i.e., in the form of perceived resources) and, thus, the possibility of restricted nonlinearity. Results indicated that politics perceptions demonstrated a nonlinear association with job tension (i.e., U-shaped form) only for those with fewer perceived resources. For those with higher levels of perceived resources, no relationship between politics perceptions and job tension existed. Implications of these findings for scholarship and practice are offered.

Accountability, entitlement, tenure, and satisfaction in Generation Y

Purpose – Given the entitlement and job mobility associated with Generation Y, the purpose of this paper is to investigate the moderating effects of psychological entitlement and tenure on the felt accountability-job satisfaction relationship. Design/methodology/approach – Survey data from a sample of resident assistants were examined using hierarchical moderated regression analysis. Findings – Entitled employees responded to accountability favorably, demonstrating lower job satisfaction than non-entitled employees when accountability was low, but nearly equal levels when accountability was high. All participants reported higher job satisfaction when job tenure was lower, but entitlement-driven satisfaction differences were observed only when accountability was low. Research limitations/implications – Cross-sectional data warrants longitudinal replication to establish causation and to give insight into how much time must pass before accountability begins to reduce the negative effects of entitlement. Prac...

A development of the dimensions of personal reputation in organizations

Purpose The current, established scale used to measure personal reputation treats the construct as a unidimensional measure. For example, the scale fails to distinguish between individuals who are known for being socially popular versus those who are known for being experts in their field. This study aims to address this issue by developing a multidimensional personal reputation scale. Design/methodology/approach Based on existing theory, a scale is developed and validated against existing, similar constructs. First, a panel of three academic experts who have done research on personal reputation, and also two professional experts who have rich experience in the management field, evaluated the items for face validity. Then 112 working adults were asked to rate the reputation of a co-worker. Each dimension of personal reputation was validated against an existing, similar scale (e.g. social reputation was validated against an existing “popularity” scale). Findings A multi-dimensional, personal reputation scale is presented. This measure purports that personal reputation has three dimensions: task, social and integrity. Originality/value The presented scale allows researchers to distinguish different types of reputations in the workplace. This is significant because both anecdotal evidence and empirical findings suggest that to simply assume that reputation based upon being a person of high integrity and upon being an expert at a specific task will present the same outcomes is a fallacy. To further the knowledge of personal reputation, a need exists to be able to measure the different dimensions of reputation.

Consumer Entitlement’s Moderating Role on the Impact of Salesperson Credibility on Perceptions of Sales Pressure: An Abstract

Although it has been generally reported that high-pressure sales tactics can have negative effects on both the customer and the salesperson/firm (e.g., Chu et al. 1995), the amount of attention devoted to the subject in the marketing literature is less than optimal. As such, our understanding of factors, such as salesperson credibility, that can contribute to consumer perceptions of sales pressure could also benefit from more research effort. Additionally, with the millennial generation playing an ever-increasing role in the consumer population, the need exists to examine the role of consumer entitlement in this relationship. Using a sample of 326 consumers, this research seeks to address these gaps in the literature.

On the Service Quality and Satisfaction Relationship: The Moderating Role of Consumer Entitlement

While the study of service quality and its impact on customer satisfaction has a rich history within the services marketing literature, there have been recent calls for research that provides a deeper understanding of this relationship, given its fundamental role in ensuring outcomes such as customer retention and profitability (Anderson 2007). This research study seeks to add to the literature by exploring the role of an under-researched construct known as consumer entitlement on the service quality-satisfaction relationship. Using a sample of season ticket holders of a professional sports franchise, this study hypothesized and found that consumer entitlement moderates the service quality-satisfaction relationship such that higher levels of consumer entitlement mitigate the positive impacts of service quality on satisfaction.