Tejinder K. Billing

Work–family conflict in four national contexts: A closer look at the role of individualism–collectivism.

In this study, we examine the role of cultural variations conceptualized in terms of vertical and horizontal individualism and collectivism in the prediction of work–family conflict in four distinct national contexts of the United States, Australia, South Korea, and Japan. The results of our study suggest that vertical individualism is a strong predictor of work–family conflict across cultural and national boundaries. The findings indicate the importance of cultural dimensions as correlates or predictors of work–family conflict—especially, it highlights the role of the two components of the polythetic construct of individualism–collectivism: horizontal and vertical. Implications are discussed for future research in the area of international and cross-cultural studies of work–family conflict-related issues.

On Becoming a Global Manager: A Closer Look at the Opportunities and Constraints in the 21st Century

The schematic diagram shown in Fig. 1 suggests that a global mindset evolves in the cultural context of industry-specific, organization-specific, and person-specific antecedents that are salient in the context of the global manager and the environment in which he or she functions. Taken clockwise, we discuss the relevance of various factors that comprise these three important domains and how these domains interact with the overarching cultural contexts salient in the domestic as well as in the international business environment. In Table 1, we present the various factors in industry-specific, organization-specific, and person-specific domains that either facilitate (provide opportunities) or hinder (act as constraints) the development of global mindset and global managers.

Hostile territory: employers’ unwillingness to accommodate transgender employees

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to enhance the understanding of employers’ responses to the restroom requests of transgender employees, and to assess the ability as educators to reduce transphobia in the students. Design/methodology/approach – Subjects were 194 undergraduate business students at a medium-sized public university in the northeastern USA who were enrolled in an undergraduate course in organizational behavior. During class, they read a brief case which asked the students to play the role of a CEO in Little Rock, Arkansas, receiving a complaint from a female employee about using the same restroom as a coworker who is transitioning from male to female. Findings – The most inclusive response was also the rarest, with only 27 percent of students recommending unisex bathrooms. Hostile actions, forcing the transitioning employee to use the mens restroom, were recommended by 38 percent of those who correctly realized that an employee would be unprotected by sexual orientation discrimination ...

Task structure and work outcomes: Exploring the moderating role of emphasis on scheduling

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to investigate the moderating role of the emphasis placed by individuals on scheduling of activities on the relationship between task structure and work outcomes (i.e. job satisfaction and job involvement). Design/methodology/approach - Data were collected using surveys from 387 employees working in US-based organizations. Regression analyses were used to test the hypothesized relationships. Findings - The results of the study show that for individuals who place high emphasis on scheduling of work and non-work activities, the negative impact of highly structured tasks was weaker than for individuals who do not emphasize scheduling of activities. The results also provide support for the hypotheses concerning the direct relationships between task structure and work outcomes. Originality/value - Past research has largely ignored the role of individual differences in examining task structure. By providing empirical support for the moderating role of emphasis on scheduling on the task structure outcome relationships, this study not only paves the way for future studies but also emphasizes the importance of incorporating the role of time in examining task structure.

Transforming Attitudes about Transgender Employee Rights.

Transgender employees may suffer from discrimination due to transphobia. This article evaluates a pedagogical intervention designed to reduce the transphobia of North American undergraduate business students. Participants were enrolled in an organizational behavior course. They resolved a simulated dispute between coworkers over accommodating the bathroom choices of a transgender employee. Answers were classified as demonstrating inclusion, compliance, or hostility with the inclusive response being the establishment of gender-neutral restrooms and the hostile response being refusal to accept the transgender employee’s bathroom choice. In the first year, 194 students completed the exercise with no advance preparation, while in the second year, 221 students performed the same task after reading a brief article about transgender employees. Results suggest that the intervention was effective as the inclusive response was most popular in the second year even though it had been least popular in the first year. Complete success was not attained, as one sixth of the students in the second year chose hostile responses. Implications for research, teaching, and practice are discussed.

Organizational stress, psychological strain, and work outcomes in six national contexts

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the moderating roles of two distinct styles of coping and decision latitude on the relationship between three facets of role stress and psychological strain in six national contexts. Design/methodology/approach – The objective of the research is to examine the relative predictive efficacies of three theory specific moderators in six countries which differ on the cultural dimension of individualism-collectivism. The data are analyzed using moderated regression analysis. Findings – The results show that problem-focused coping is a better moderator in the individualistic countries and that emotion-focused coping is a better moderator in the collectivistic contexts. None of the three moderators moderate the relationships in Germany and South Africa – the two countries which had scores in the mid-range of the individualism-collectivism continuum. Findings are discussed for their significance into the interplay of cultural variations and coping with work stress in predicting psychological strain or distress on the job. Practical implications – Practical implications for managing human resources in various subsidiaries of multinational and global organizations are discussed. Originality/value – This paper confirms existing theories and expands the authors’ understanding of role stress and psychological strain in different cultural contexts.

Cultural Correlates of Crony Capitalism in India

India experienced unprecedented economic growth since economic reforms were launched in 1991 in the wake of India’s balance of payment crisis. These economic reforms adopted the free market philosophy and aimed to eradicate the License Raj. Although the Indian economy has improved significantly since the reforms, India still remains a difficult place to start and run a business. In a report titled ‘Doing Business’ by the World Bank, India ranked 142nd out of 189 countries in the favorable institutional business environment (World Bank Report, 2014). India is ranked even lower (156th out of 189 countries) when it comes to the ‘starting business’ indices of this report. Similarly, India’s arduous business climate is echoed in its low ranking on the Global Entrepreneurship Development Index (75th out of 120 countries), which examines the entrepreneurship ecosystems (mix of attitudes, resources, and infrastructure) of countries across the globe.

Penis panic in the workplace: Differential responses to MTF and FTM transgender employees

Transgender individuals can be defined as all who cross gender barriers. Most may be classified as female-to-male (FTM) or male-to-female (MTF) where the first gender listed is the one assigned at birth. Transgender employees are not always legally protected from discrimination in the United States, but research suggests that FTM transgender employees enjoy greater organizational acceptance and superior economic outcomes compared to MTF transgender employees. This poses challenges for our understanding of transphobia which is typically defined as fear of those who transgress dominant standards of gender identity. It would seem that FTM transgender employees are just as transgressive as MTF transgender employees, so why should they trigger less transphobia? In this paper, we review the theoretical rationales that have been developed to explain the phenomenon of greater organizational acceptance of FTM than MTF transgender employees: bigenderism, passing problems, and penis panic. We then share the results ...

Moderating role of Type-A personality on stress-outcome relationships

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the moderating role of Type A/Type B personality on job stress-work and non-work outcomes. While research on the etiology of this predisposition has become important in recent years, there seems to be a lack of agreement regarding its exact moderating effects on important work and non-work outcomes. Design/methodology/approach – Data collected from US-based organizations were analyzed using moderated regression analyses. Findings – The results of the study reveal that Type A personality moderates the relationships between job stress and job satisfaction, job involvement and personal life satisfaction. Findings indicate that individuals with Type A personalities do not necessarily experience concomitant decreases in these outcome measures when organizational stress increases. Originality/value – Although there has been an increased interest on the significance of Type A/Type B personality in the area of human stress and cognition, there is no consensus in t...