Oscar Holmes

The Subjective Well-Being Political Paradox: Happy Welfare States and Unhappy Liberals

Political scientists traditionally have analyzed the effect of politics on subjective well-being (SWB) at the collective level, finding that more liberal countries report greater SWB. Conversely, psychologists have focused primarily on SWB at the individual level and shown that being more conservative corresponds in greater SWB. We integrate the theoretical foundations of these 2 literatures (e.g., livability and system justification theories) to compare and contrast the effects of country- and individual-level political orientation on SWB simultaneously. Using a panel of 16 West European countries representative of 1,134,384 individuals from 1970 to 2002, we demonstrated this SWB political paradox: More liberal countries and more conservative individuals had higher levels of SWB. More important, we explored measurement as a moderator of the political orientation-SWB relationship to shed some light on why this paradox exists. When orientation is measured in terms of enacted values (i.e., what the government actually does), liberalism corresponds in higher SWB, but when politics is measured in terms of espoused values (i.e., what individuals believe), greater conservatism coincided in higher SWB. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2014 APA, all rights reserved).

Spirituality, recruiting, and total wellness: overcoming challenges to organizational attraction

As individuals and organizations are more consciously exploring the intersection of spirituality and work the question arises as to what impact spirituality will have in terms of organizational recruitment. Drawing on the literature surrounding recruitment, as well as signaling theory, diversity, and person-organizational fit, we explore the potential influence of spirituality on organizational attractiveness. After considering the various organizational motivations for projecting spirituality into recruitment efforts, we develop attraction-related propositions associated with those distinct motivations. Finally, we propose that a singular approach to contextualizing spirituality will have the most positive effect on organizational attraction regardless of organizational motivation.

Redefining the way we look at diversity: a review of recent diversity and inclusion findings in organizational research

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to summarize the findings of studies presented at the 24th annual conference of the Society of Industrial and Organizational Psychology (SIOP) in relation to how diversity is studied, microaggressions, when diversity is perceived, and employment outcomes for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered (LGBT) job applicants.Design/methodology/approach – A select group of presentations are summarized based on observation, notes, discussions, and reading of material.Findings – Researchers are beginning to redefine how diversity is studied as well as focus more on within‐group variation that might uncover considerable interpretation differences based on study results. More subtle forms of racism are being explored in addition to examining experiences of sexual orientation minorities.Originality/value – The diversity and inclusion presentations at the 2009 SIOP conference continue to evolve diversity theory and inform evidence‐based organizational practice. This report summa...

Exploring the social identity threat response framework

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore what individuals perceive as social identity threats, the sources of the threat, individuals’ responses, and the consequences of the threat. Design/methodology/approach – Narratives from 224 individuals were collected. A sample of 84 narratives were analyzed in depth using a qualitative content analysis approach. Findings – Initial support for identity threat response theory was found. Three new distinct threat responses – constructive action, ignore, and seek assistance – were uncovered. Additionally, harm/loss appraisals were found to be perceived and reacted to similarly to Petriglieri-defined identity threats. Originality/value – This study contributes to identity scholarship by shedding further light on the “theoretical black box” associated with identity threat. Such insight is necessary in further enhancing our understanding of the impact that identity threat has at the individual and organizational level.