Terry L. Campbell

Testing a Model of Cognitive Budgetary Participation Processes in a Latent Variable Structural Equations Framework

Abstract Previous accounting research has suggested that subordinate participation in the budgetary process has two cognitive aspects: (1) participation enhances budget quality, and hence the utility of budgets, by allowing subordinates to introduce private knowledge into the budgetary process, and (2) participation enables subordinates to obtain information that is relevant to performing their jobs. This study tests a model that encompasses both cognitive aspects of budgetary participation. Data were gathered with a questionnaire distributed to managers from a variety of different national origins who were working in many different global locations. The data were analysed with latent variable structural equation modelling, which provides several advantages over more conventional analytic methods generally used in budgetary participation and other behavioural accounting research. The results indicated that participation enhances budget quality and that budget quality, in turn, has a positive effect on bud...

Developing and Measuring the Learning Organization

Definitions, development and measurement must be applied to the concept of the learning organization to move it towards implementation. Many definitions have captured the essence of the learning organization but, until the characteristics or “attributes” are defined, it will remain difficult to move the concept forward, because it is the definition of these attributes that allows an examination of the behaviours which will either encourage or inhibit organizational learning. These behaviours can be measured using behaviourally anchored rating scales which indicate strengths and weaknesses which can be improved through action.

Examining the impression management orientation of managers

The motive to manage impressions has been broken down into protective and acquisitive orientations. A protective orientation exists when an individual is concerned primarily with encountering disapproval, rather than approval, from the relevant audience. An acquisitive orientation exists when an individual is concerned primarily with obtaining approval from the audience. This study tests the proposition that organizational managers have primarily an acquisitive orientation. The affective sentiments of 95 international middle‐ and upper‐level business managers toward their organization, its leaders, and its business control mechanisms were compared with their perceptions of the acquisitiveness and protectiveness of their work environment. The results indicate that affective sentiments of managers are correlated with the acquisitiveness, but not the protectiveness, of the work environment, supporting the notion that managers have primarily an acquisitive orientation.

Job satisfaction, commitment, and involvement of information systems professionals

Eighty-three information systems professionals were randomly selected from a US state government agency, three information consulting firms and five FORTUNE 1000 firms. Multiple regression analyses were used to assess how age, career stage, most realistic position in five years, and such work environment factors as feedback, task independence, task identity, variety, uncertainty and autonomy contribute to job satisfaction, job commitment and job involvement. It was found that about 49 percent of variation of satisfaction, 55 percent of variation of commitment, and 21 percent of involvement could be explained in the multivariate regressional models.<<ETX>>