Robert C. Dailey

Relationship between Locus of Control, Perceived Group Cohesiveness, and Satisfaction with Coworkers

To determine if locus of control and perceived cohesiveness of a group had singular and joint effects on experienced satisfaction with coworkers 281 scientists and engineers in 15 Research and Development organizations were tested. Main effects and the interaction of the predictors were significant. Persons scoring internally were less satisfied with coworkers than were those who scored externally. Cohesiveness was significantly related to the criterion and subjects designated as externally oriented demonstrated a stronger relationship between perceived cohesiveness and satisfaction with coworkers than their internally oriented counterparts.

Perceptions of job characteristics and affective work outcomes for women and men.

One hundred twenty-three men and women participated in a study designed to assess their attitudes about job dimensions and affective work outcomes. This study found that very few differences existed between womens and mens perceptions of job dimensions and work outcomes. It was also shown that little difference existed between mens and womens perceptions of positive relationships between job dimension and affected work outcomes. The authors concluded that differences that exist in work attitudes are artifacts of hierarchical position and sex-role stereotyping and will disappear when women are allowed to move into jobs that are characterized by the presence of high levels of intrinsic job dimensions.

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LOCUS OF CONTROL, TASK CHARACTERISTICS AND WORK ATTITUDES

In the present study those with greater internal orientation perceived greater job involvement, job satisfaction, job motivation, psychological growth satisfaction, task difficulty, and task variability than individuals with greater external orientation. Those with greater internal orientation did not perceive the relationships between task characteristics and work attitudes differently than those with greater external orientation. These findings are discussed relative to past research, management practice in Research and Development organizations, and directions for future research.

Personality and Role Variables as Predictors of Tension Discharge Rate in Three Samples

The study of Type A behavior (Friedman & Rosenman, 1974) is developing a research tradition in related streams of literature in organizational behavior. The predictive characteristics and diversity of these studies are encouraging since they signal improved understanding of the organizational, personal, and economic effects of coping with work-generated tension and stress. The research presented here is consistent with these scholarly developments. The research attempts to illuminate the relationships between: (1) Type A behavior (Friedman & Rosenman, 1974), (2) role conflict and ambiguity (Rizzo House, & Lirtzman, 1970), (3) Locus of control (Rotter, 1966), (4) symptoms of adaptation to stress, and (S) tension discharge rate (Rose, Jenkins, & Hurst, 1978). The relationships between these constructs are studied in three samples: (1) registered nurses, (2) executive MBA students, and (3) female middle level managers in the telecommunications industry. Excellent comparative results were obtained across the occupational groups. Type A behavior and symptoms of adaptation to stress were strong predictors of tension discharge rate. Role variables played a less significant predictive role. These results are discussed relative to current research on adaptation to job stress.

The Family Owned Business: Capital Funding

Family owned corporations face unique constraints in their external business environments. One particularly critical external interface exists with sources of capital funding. This paper discusses the advantages and disadvantages which exist in this interface for family enterprises. Based on interviews with 25 family corporation executives, the study concludes that family firms have the advantages of financial privacy, flexibility, and personalized relationships with local bankers. Disadvantages are also identified. This study concludes by offering the family corporation executive some general guidelines regarding financial management, going public, and corporate survival.

Toward Proper Specification of the Effects of Leader Punitive Behavior: A Research Note

Two samples totaling 457 nursing department employees from four metropolitan hospitals were employed to test the impact of leader punitive behavior on employee satisfaction. With the correlated effect of leader reward behavior statistically controlled for, there remained neither the direct positive effect of leader punitive behavior nor the moderating impact of role ambiguity, which have been suggested by previous research. Also discussed are the importance of considering spuriousness in leader punitive behavior research, some possible explanationsfor the positive relationship between the two dimensions of leader behavior, and some suggested conditions under which punishment may be satisfying to an employee.

Human Resource Management in the Family Owned Company

It is a generally accepted belief that the form of ownership has a significant affect on many of the processes in the organisation. It is true, however, that little research has been conducted to systematically understand these effects. The specific focus of this research paper is an attempt to better understand how salient organisational processes are affected by family corporate ownership as opposed to public ownership. In this paper, we shall look at strengths and weaknesses in American family enterprises with respect to the following personnel practices: hiring, evaluation and promotion, termination and retirement, and managerial training and development. These are critical processes in both family owned and publicly owned corporations, but family firms have some unique characteristics which significantly affect human resource practices.

Differences Among Women in Perception of Their Jobs.

Thirty-four women at two different hierarchical levels in a large procurement function were asked to describe characteristics of their own jobs. As expected, organizational level was associated wit...