Vernon D. Miller

Antecedents to willingness to participate in a planned organizational change

Abstract This field study examines factors contributing to employees’ openness to participate in a planned change within a national insurance company. Drawing from recent meta‐analyses indicating that both job characteristics (JCM) and social information processing (SIP) models contribute to job attitudes, a model of factors pertaining to the change is hypothesized and tested using path analytic methods. Results indicate employees receiving “quality” information about the change and having a high need for achievement viewed the change favorably. Contrary to expectations, employees’ anxiety about the change did not influence their attitude about change. These findings are discussed in light of JCM and SIP research and their implications for research on organizational change.

Reconsidering the Organizational Identification Questionnaire.

This study investigates the internal dimensions of the Organizational Identification Questionnaire (OIQ). Results of factorial analytic tests of cross-sectional and longitudinal data indicate that the OIQ is unidimensional across organizations and time, but that only 12 of 25 items contribute meaningfully to the scale. Furthermore, these 12 items essentially constitute an affective measure of organizational commitment, not organizational identification as theorized. A discussion of these results examines the implications of these findings toward the future use of the OIQ scale.

An experimental study of newcomers’ information seeking behaviors during organizational entry

While earlier research highlights the importance of newcomers’ information seeking in their adjustment at work, these investigations are limited by a narrow conceptualization of information seeking behaviors. Using an experimental design, this study tests a broader conceptualization of information seeking tactics and examines factors affecting tactic use. Results indicate newcomers use five distinct information seeking tactics (overt, observe, third party, indirect, and testing) and that tactic use varies with the type of information sought, its source, the social costs associated with seeking the information, and newcomers’ departmental assignment. Implications for newcomers and their managers and for future research are discussed.

The role of communication in managing reductions in work force

Abstract Reductions in work force (downsizing, delayering, resizing, outplacement, layoffs, demassing) are used by organizations to achieve desired economic goals and ensure survival. However, these reductions often negatively affect the work behaviors and attitudes of continuing employees and thus, may detract from the success of the reduction in work force. The purpose of this study was to increase our understanding of the effects of multiple workforce reductions on survivors by extending Brockners (1988) model and outlining the role of communication in the process so that researchers and practitioners can better predict and control for the effects of workforce reductions. In pursuit of this goal, a causal model of effects on survivors was developed and then tested with data collected in a large, midwestern insurance company that implemented two workforce reductions. The hypothesized model was inconsistent with the data and subsequently was rejected. A revised model was then tested and found to fit at ...

Advancing Research in Organizational Communication Through Quantitative Methodology

This article showcases current best practices in quantitative organizational communication research. We emphasize their value in exploring issues of the day and their relation to other research approaches. Materials are presented around four themes: systematic development and validation of measures, including the use of mixed methods; multiple levels of analysis; the study of change and development over time; and relationships among people, units, organizations, and meanings.

A response to criticisms of organizational socialization research: In support of contemporary conceptualizations of organizational assimilation

This essay is a response to a growing body of literature that is critical of tradition conceptualizations of organizational socialization (Bullis, 1993; Clair, 1996; Smith & Turner, 1995). First, it examines how these critics have failed to adequately appreciate conceptual distinctions made by contemporary socialization and assimilation researchers. While recognizing that these scholars have made contributions, it then points to problems in their critiques. Finally, we argue that the study of organizational assimilation would be enhanced by the use of multiple research perspectives rather than by evaluating one perspective as more appropriate than another.

A test of antecedents and outcomes of employee role negotiation ability

Abstract While role negotiation is theorized to serve critical functions in employee role development, researchers have generally focused on role outcomes (e.g., role innovation) rather than the conditions that foster role negotiation or how employees negotiate their roles. This investigation examines conditions leading to employee perceptions of their ability to negotiate their roles and the outcomes of this perception. Results of structural equation analyses indicate that the communication relationship (openness, work facilitation) with their supervisor was associated with perceptions of role negotiation ability. Results also indicate that the perceived ability to role negotiate predicted reduced role conflict and increased job satisfaction, but was unrelated to role ambiguity. Implications of these findings and directions for future research are suggested.

Conceptualizing communicative leadership: A framework for analysing and developing leaders' communication competence

Purpose – The concept of “communicative leadership” is used in organisations that analyse and develop leaders’ communication competence. A scholarly definition of this concept is lacking, and the implications of leaders’ communication and the development of communication competence for organisations are rarely discussed. The purpose of this paper is to create a theoretical framework around the concept of “communicative leadership”, which can contribute to future research and development of leaders’ communication competence.Design/methodology/approach – Three research questions were addressed: what communicative behaviours are central to leaders? How can “communicative leaders” be characterised? What is a “communicative leader”? Literature from the leadership and communication research fields was reviewed and related to these questions.Findings – Four central communicative behaviours of leaders (i.e. structuring, facilitating, relating, and representing), eight principles of communicative leadership, and a tentative definition are presented. A communicative leader is defined as someone who engages employees in dialogue, actively shares and seeks feedback, practices participative decision making, and is perceived as open and involved.Practical implications – A theoretical foundation to the practice of analysing and developing leaders’ communication competence is provided, which is related to employee engagement and organisational performance.Originality/value – Communicative leadership is a concept emerging from organisational needs, articulated by corporate and public organisation leaders. This article links its core constructs to academic quantitative and qualitative research in an integrated framework, which can guide further research and the development of leaders’ communication competence.

The effect of formality and relational tone on supervisor/subordinate negotiation episodes

Although supervisors and subordinates must often negotiate to clarify work expectations and role boundaries in organizations, little research has addressed the communicative dimensions of these workplace discussions. Building upon research in integrative negotiation, this study examines the effect of formality and relational tone on three key dimensions: elaboration, directness, and mutual concessions. Using the Critical Incident Technique (Flanagan, 1954), 271 employed undergraduates completed questionnaires involving recalled supervisory negotiation episodes. More formal negotiations were found to involve greater elaboration and concessions, while a personalized relational tone was positively related to directness. Implications of this study and future directions for research are discussed.

The Interactive Effects of Role Change Goals Andrelational Exchangeson Employee Upward Influence Tactics

Employee upward influence for role changes implicates involvement in decision making, fit, and organizational functioning. Porter, Allen, and Angle’s framework is used to explore employee upward influence with supervisors during role change. Tactic selection is hypothesized to vary as a function of role change goals (i.e., magnitude of change and degree of personal and organizational benefit sought) and the quality of the leader-member exchange (LMX). Regression analyses of employee surveys (N = 128) indicate that employee goals (i.e., both personal and organizational) and the magnitude of role change interact to predict employee use of rationality and coalition. Furthermore, LMX and the magnitude of change interact to predict employee rationality. Implications for research and practice are discussed.