Melissa L. Gruys

Productivity, counterproductivity and creativity: The ups and downs of job insecurity

Organizations frequently downsize in the hopes of creating a ‘lean and mean’ company able to be flexible and quick to adapt to changing environmental needs. The purpose of the current research was to assess the effects of job insecurity on productivity, counterproductivity, and creativity in a simulated organizational environment and a field setting. In the first study, 104 non-traditional undergraduate students (M ¼ 30:48 years) participated in a laboratory experiment that manipulated the threat of lay-offs (job insecurity) and measured creativity and productivity over two time periods. Compared to control group participants, results indicate that participant productivity increased in the condition of higher levels of job insecurity, whereas creative problem solving decreased. In the second study, 144 employees in five organizations completed a survey measuring their job insecurity perceptions, enactment of counterproductive work behaviours, and creative problem-solving ability. Regression analyses indicate that job insecurity predicted lower creativity scores, yet was also related to lower numbers of counterproductive work behaviours. Taken together, these studies suggest that job insecurity may have adverse effects on creativity, yet moderately beneficial effects on productivity. Results are interpreted in light of the increasing prevalence of job insecurity and organizational downsizing in today’s workplace. Commercial rivalries around the globe, government deregulation of industry, and the ever-increasing pace of organizational technology change have led organizations worldwide to take extreme measures in order to remain competitive. Organizational restructuring in the form of corporate downsizing, mergers and acquisitions, plant closings, and workforce reorganizations affect millions of workers each year. According to the Society for Human Resource Management (2001), 43% of US organizations conducted employee lay-offs in 2000 and 2001, with corporate reductions averaging 10–13% of the workforce.

Values Enactment in Organizations: A Multi-Level Examination:

Business writers and practitioners recommend that core organizational values be integrated into employee work life for enhanced organizational productivity, yet no published studies have empirically examined the antecedents and outcomes of values enactment. Using longitudinal data on 2,622 employees, hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) results revealed that tenure and department-level values enactment were significant predictors of individual values enactment. Furthermore, employees who demonstrated high levels of values enactment were less likely to leave, and employees of high or low levels of values enactment in departments whose levels of values enactment matched their own were the most likely to be promoted.

Conscientiousness and Agreeableness as Moderators of the Relationship between Neuroticism and Counterproductive Work Behaviors: A Constructive Replication

Several previous studies examining the predictors of counterproductive work behaviors (CWBs) have found positive relationships for neuroticism and negative relationships for conscientiousness and agreeableness. We extend this research by examining whether employee personality traits interact with each other to influence CWBs. Because conscientiousness and agreeableness may suppress ones tendency to engage in CWBs, we hypothesized that the neuroticism–CWB relationship will be weaker among workers who are high in either conscientiousness or agreeableness than among workers who are low in these traits. Data from three independent samples provide support for these hypothesized moderator effects.

Choosing to Report: Characteristics of Employees Who Report the Counterproductive Work Behavior of Others

Managers typically expect employees to report counterproductive work behavior (CWB) when they see or have knowledge of other employees engaging in such acts. However, the degree to which individuals actually report CWB to company officials has not been addressed in the literature. Previous research has also not explored the personality traits, attitudes, and workplace behaviors of those employees who report CWB on the part of others. Hence, we conducted 2 studies with 2 independent samples to provide information on both of these points in an effort to assist organizations in curbing negative workplace acts and in making more informed personnel selection decisions.

Business etiquette in 12 countries: special considerations for female expatriates

The current paper provides a summary and highlights issues that are specific to female expatriates completing assignments in 12 different countries from four regions around the world. The regions and countries reviewed include North America (USA, Mexico, Canada), Europe (Spain, France, Italy), Middle East (Saudi Arabia, Israel, Afghanistan) and Asia (Korea, China, Japan). The information provided will be of assistance to female expatriates who are making preparations to travel to any of the countries reviewed and might also help decision-makers focus on how women can be effectively utilised in global business assignments and transactions.