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Performance, satisfaction and turnover in call centers: The effects of stress and optimism
Abstract
This paper reports the results of a study, which measured the role of optimism and its effect on stress in call centers. Service providers at inbound call centers answered questionnaires designed to measure their personal orientation towards optimism, perceptions of job stress, work/nonwork conflict, performance, absenteeism and intent to turnover. We found that optimists did perceive lower levels of job stress and lower work/nonwork conflict. However, pessimists reported higher levels of performance and satisfaction and lower turnover intent. Implications for future research are discussed.
... Job stress can be defined as "a psychological response to a disturbance experienced by the individual as he or she perceives his or her demands at work, or a restriction found at work" (Parasunaman and Alutto, 1984, p. 332). Even though there are other definitions in the literature (Blau, 1981;Edwards, 1992;Motowidlo, Packard & Manning, 1986;Schuler, 1980; among others) with some differences to the one mentioned above (Sarger and Wilson, 1995), in general, there is agreement on the main elements that comprise job stress (Boles, Johnson & Joseph, 1997;Flaherty et al., 1999, Tanner, Dunn & Chonko, 1993, Taylor et al., 2000Tracy andNeidermeyerb 2004, Sarger et al. 1998). These elements include: (1) role conflict: difference between the expectation of the performance of their work and the perception of its assessment (Kahn, Wolfe, Quinn & Snoek , 1964;Rizzo, House & Lirtzman, 1970), and (2) role ambiguity: inadequate amount of resources and information to carry out the tasks (Kahn et al., 1964;Rizzo et al., 1970). ...
... Together with the definition of the term in the literature, the researches related to the construct of "stress" have covered both the study of its antecedents (Adams, 1965;Boles, Johnson & Joseph, 1997, Cameron et al., 1996Osman et al., 2006, Rizzo et al., 1970, Sanjeev & Ramaswami, 1993Sarger, 1991; among others) and its consequences (Flaherty et al., 1999;Patton and Questell, 1986;Singh, Goolsby & Gary, 1994;Taylor et al., 2000;Tracy & Neidermeyerb, 2004;Sarger et al., 1998;among others). ...
... Regarding the consequences caused by stress, the literature identifies studies focused on analyzing the effects on self-esteem, socialization and mental well-being of the individual (Patton and Questell, 1986), dissatisfaction at work (Tracy & Neidermeyerb, 2004), motivation (Taylor et al., 2000), the lack of energy (Sarger et al., 1998), and conflicts with other individuals at different levels of the organization (Flaherty et al., 1999;(Sanjeev and Ramaswami, 1993), etc. In all cases, the consequences of stress are very negative (Patton and Questell, 1986), especially for the organization (Sanjeev and ramaswami, 1993). ...
... Optimism has been found to influence several outcomes such as general health and well-being, stress reduction, and coping capacities (for a review: Carver & Scheier, 2014;Carver et al., 2010;Forgeard & Seligman, 2012). In the workplace, optimism has been associated with higher work performance (Alessandri et al., 2012;Madrid, Diaz, Leka, Leiva, & Barros, 2018;McColl-Kennedy & Anderson, 2002), higher work engagement (Xanthopoulou, Bakker, Demerouti, & Schaufeli, 2007, 2009, stronger commitment to change (Kool & van Dierendonck, 2012), acute organizational citizenship behaviors (Alessandri et al., 2012), higher job satisfaction (Munyon, Hochwarter, Perrewé, & Ferris, 2010;Tuten & Neidermeyer, 2004), and lower stress, emotional exhaustion, or mental distress at work (Mäkikangas & Kinnunen, 2003;Tuten & Neidermeyer, 2004). ...
... Optimism has been found to influence several outcomes such as general health and well-being, stress reduction, and coping capacities (for a review: Carver & Scheier, 2014;Carver et al., 2010;Forgeard & Seligman, 2012). In the workplace, optimism has been associated with higher work performance (Alessandri et al., 2012;Madrid, Diaz, Leka, Leiva, & Barros, 2018;McColl-Kennedy & Anderson, 2002), higher work engagement (Xanthopoulou, Bakker, Demerouti, & Schaufeli, 2007, 2009, stronger commitment to change (Kool & van Dierendonck, 2012), acute organizational citizenship behaviors (Alessandri et al., 2012), higher job satisfaction (Munyon, Hochwarter, Perrewé, & Ferris, 2010;Tuten & Neidermeyer, 2004), and lower stress, emotional exhaustion, or mental distress at work (Mäkikangas & Kinnunen, 2003;Tuten & Neidermeyer, 2004). ...
... Hence, we claim that incongruence in optimism between supervisor and subordinate triggers role conflict for subordinate, while similarity prevents role conflict. First, we hypothesize that role conflict is not likely to occur if subordinates share an equivalent optimism level with supervisor, since they also share the tendency to set ambitious objectives and engage in challenging tasks (Crosno, Rinaldo, Black, & Kelley, 2009;Tuten & Neidermeyer, 2004). In this context, subordinates will benefit from the supervisor's positive feedback and from goal congruence (Colbert, Kristof-Brown, Bradley, & Barrick, 2008). ...
The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of optimism similarity and dissimilarity between supervisors and subordinates on subordinates’ outcomes. Drawing on optimism literature and the expectancy-value theory, we tested hypotheses regarding the indirect effects of optimism dyadic (dis)similarity on subordinates’ objective job performance through role conflict and vigor at work. Polynomial regressions and response surface analyses were performed using a sample of 556 subordinates matched with 151 supervisors. Results reveal that while similarity tends to prevent role conflict, highly optimistic supervisors are likely to trigger role conflict for less optimistic subordinates, thus reducing their vigor at work and subsequent job performance. These findings provide important contributions to optimism literature, suggesting that supervisors’ optimism may lead to unfavorable outcomes for non-optimistic subordinates and that, in certain cases, non-optimism similarity may be preferable to dissimilarity.
... Employee satisfaction levels are always associated with their attitudes towards work, compensation and employers (Ko and Choi, 2019). This condition will determine whether to move to another workplace or reduce the desire to change jobs (Tuten and Neidermeyer, 2004). Employee satisfaction is also determined by their ability to adjust to organizational culture. ...
... Employee satisfaction is defined as an emotional state that arises from employees' assessments (Al-Sada et al., 2017;Chang et al., 2010). This condition will determine whether to move to another workplace or reduce the desire to change jobs (Tuten and Neidermeyer, 2004). One of the factors that determine employee satisfaction is leadership support. ...
Purpose
This research aims to test employee loyalty in the hotel industry, particularly during the Covid-19 pandemic. This study examines the relationship between leader support in building job satisfaction, trust and employee loyalty. Also, this research aims to test and explain the role of satisfaction and trust as mediator variables.
Design/methodology/approach
This research used a quantitative design by distributing questionnaires to 206 employees of the 97 hotels in Bali, Indonesia, particularly during pandemic Covid-19. The research data were then analyzed by using WarpPLS software.
Findings
The results revealed that leader support did not have a significant effect on loyalty. Satisfaction and trust act as double mediators in leaders’ support and loyalty relationships.
Research limitations/implications
Employees need leaders’ support to remain loyal to their organization in a slowdown situation due to the Covid-19 pandemic and its various challenges.
Originality/value
Research on the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on various sectors has been comprehensive. However, the research that invests in employee loyalty in the hospitality industry is still rare. This study analyzes the loyalty of hotel employees, particularly when the tourism sector is experiencing a slowdown. This study also examines the role of trust and satisfaction as mediating relationships between leaders’ support and loyalty, which have not been widely analyzed in previous studies.
... Vigoda (2002) suggests that job distress is experienced when an individual reacts to work-related environmental stressors. Empirical evidence indicates that a low to moderate amount of stress that provides positive reinforcement can benefit the employee and the organization (Boswell, Olson-Buchanan, & LePine., 2004;Cavanaugh, Boswell, Roehling, & Boudreau, 2000;Tuten & Neidermeyer, 2004). However, severe and chronic exposure to stressful conditions eventually wear down the employee, leading to job dissatisfaction, (Poon, 2003) anxiety, tension, anger and depression (Greenglass, Burke, & Moore, 2003) as well as aggressive behaviour (Vigoda, 2002). ...
... As stress is deleterious to employee relations in the workplace, managers might need to consider ways of keeping stress precipitating factors under tolerable levels in the workplace, since a minimal amount of stress is still beneficial to employees' attitudes and behavior (e.g. Boswell et al., 2004;Tuten & Neidermeyer, 2004). ...
This paper examined the effects of coworkers and supervisor interactional fairness on employees' job satisfaction, distress, and aggressive behavior. Surveys were employed to elicit data from 270 extension personnel from two Agricultural Development Programs in Nigeria. Hierarchical regression analyses indicated that fairness from both supervisors and coworkers were negatively related to job distress and aggressive behaviors and employees would respond with dissatisfaction to unfair treatments from their supervisors. The implications of findings are discussed.
... The relational dimension is therefore fundamental within a call centre, since many of the performance expectations are inherent in the communicative nature of this work (being courteous, good natured, empathetic, willing, patient, obliging and collaborative), and the relational dimension may well be as much a resource as it is a source of emotional pressure for CCRs. The generators of stress and dissatisfaction in the work of CCRs could, therefore, be attributable not to organisational factors or employment conditions but, in fact, to how they interact with operators' specific individual characteristics (Tuten & Neidermeyer, 2004). Indeed, interaction with customers can even be annoying, rather than rewarding, because their requests and expectations may become unreasonable and demand greater control of emotions, in turn affecting working well-being (Deery, Iverson, & Walsh, 2002). ...
... This creates a cumulative effect that confirms the negative image of call centres in current narratives. That, in any case, indicates how interpretations of job satisfaction in a psychological or subjective approach (Tuten & Neidermeyer, 2004) are entirely reductive and that it is more profitable to integrate analyses of job satisfaction with reasons related to the 'structuralist' approach. The perceptions and motivations of workers are socially constructed from the interactions between the expectations, resources and willingness of the workforce with organisational models, standards and conventions that regulate the labour market. ...
The article examines job satisfaction in 21 Italian call centres. The results of research carried out on 1715 handlers indicate how dissatisfaction prevails among call centre representatives (CCRs) and how it is influenced by aspects related to some organisational characteristics (service delivered, size and organisational typology), on one side, and to different aspects of working conditions (contract, wage and tenure) and participants’ biographical and working profiles of CCRs (gender, age, educational attainment), on the others. However, the most interesting finding emerges by distinguishing different dimensions of job satisfaction (extrinsic and intrinsic-relational). In particular, the relationship between type of contract and job satisfaction is rather interesting. For non-permanent workers, in fact, the probability of being dissatisfied is decidedly greater if we consider the extrinsic dimension of job satisfaction. Instead, when the intrinsic-relational dimension is taking into account, atypical workers are no more dissatisfied than the permanent ones. Job insecurity and limited perspectives in terms of work alternatives, safeguards and rewards, seem to be the source of greatest dissatisfaction for Italian CCRs. This certainly does not surprise considering the Italian development model and its dualistic labour market, highly segmented between insiders and outsiders.
... Örgütlerin işleyişindeki aksamaların en önemli işareti iş tatmininde gözlemlenen düşük seviyelerdir (Türk, 2007). Alanyazında iş tatmininin kaygı, stres, işe devam etmeme, işe geç kalma, örgüte ve işe bağlılığın azalması gibi çeşitli tutum ve davranışlarla da ilişkisinin bulunduğu açıklanmaktadır (Tuten ve Neidermeyer, 2004). İş tatmini, iş görenlerin örgütte kalma ve mevcut işlerine devam etme niyetlerini sürdürmesini, ayrıca daha verimli çalışarak daha kaliteli işler ortaya koymalarını sağlamaktadır (Acker, 2004). ...
Toplumda oluşan her toplumsal yapının kendisine has ölçüt, algı ve değerleri
mevcuttur. Söz konusu toplumsal yapılarda, var olan kişiler arasındaki ilişkiyi “kültür”
kavramı karşılamaktadır. Toplumlarda, çeşitli katmanlardan oluşan alt kültürler
bulunmaktadır. Örgütsel kültürler de yine içerisinde var oldukları toplumun bir alt
kültürüdür. İşletmelerde taklit edilmesi en zor ve en önemli sermaye, mevcut insan
kaynağıdır. Doğru bireyin, doğru işe yönlendirilmesi kaynağı sağlama ve kaynağın
seçimi aşaması neticesinde gerçekleşeceğinden, önem arz etmektedir. Bir diğer önemli
unsur da işe atanan personellerin uzun soluklu çalıştırılmasının sağlanmasıdır.
Personellerin örgüt kültürünü sahiplenmesi, ilişkinlik ve sadakat hissetmesi ise kişiyi
işinde uzun soluklu hale getirmektedir. Günümüzde örgüt yapısında bulunan bireylerin
iş tatminlerinin kültürel değerler çerçevesinde hangi oranda değişime uğradığı,
örgütlerin gelecekleri bakımından önemli bir unsur olarak göze çarpmaktadır.
Bu çalışmanın esas amacı, Türkiye’de varolan zincir yiyecek içecek
işletmelerinde çalışan bireylerin çalıştıkları kurumda hakim olan örgütsel kültürün, iş
tatminlerine etkilerini belirlemektir. Bununla birlikte söz konusu çalışma ile Türkiye’de
bulunan zincir yiyecek içecek işletmelerindeki örgütsel kültür yapılarının ve
personellerinin iş tatmini yapılarının hangi ölçüde olduğunun ve ölçünün personellerin
demografik özelliklerine göre değişiminin tespiti de amaçlanmaktadır. Araştıma 2022yılında Türkiye’de hizmet sunan zincir yiyecek içecek işletmelerinde çalışan
personellere uygulanan çevrimiçi anket sonuçlarına dayanmaktadır. Bu çalışma
kapsamında elde edilen veriler paket program kullanılarak (IBM SPSS) değerlendirilmiş
olup normallik, geçerlik, güvenirlik analizleri uygulandıktan sonra frekans, ANOVA ve
T-test ile araştırma için oluşturulan hipotezler test edilmiştir. Araştırmadan elde edilen
403 ankete göre güvenirlik ve geçerlik unsurlarını güçlü bir şekilde taşıyan veri seti
oluşmuştur. Elde edilen veri üzerinde yapılan analizler neticesinde organizasyon
kültürünün güçlü bir yapıya sahip olduğu görülen zincir restoran işletmelerinde bu
durumun personellerin iş tatminine büyük oranda etki ettiği sonucuna ulaşılmıştır.
... Çalışanların tatmin edilmesi turizm sektörünün yapısal özellikleri nedeniyle oldukça zor olmakla birlikte, tatmin edilmeleri durumunda müşteri tatmininin ve örgütsel başarının sağlanması kolaylaşacaktır. Yapılan araştırmalar da tatmin olmuş çalışanların iş performansının (Tuten ve Neidermeyer 2004; Ceylan ve Ulutürk 2006; Akkoç vd. 2012) ve gönüllü olarak örgütte kalma niyetlerinin arttığı (Gül vd. ...
Bu çalışmanın amacı iş tatmininin işten ayrılma niyeti üzerindeki azaltıcı etkisinde işgören avukatlığının moderatör etkisini belirlemektir. Bu kapsamda iş tatmini, işten ayrılma niyeti ve işgören avukatlığı ölçeklerini içeren bir anket formu hazırlanmıştır. Hazırlanan anket formu tesadüfi olmayan örnekleme yöntemlerinden kolayda örnekleme yöntemi ile Antal-ya, İstanbul ve Muğla'da faaliyet gösteren otel işletmelerinde çalışan işgörenlere 15 Hazi-ran-30 Ağustos 2015 tarihleri arasında yüz yüze anket toplama yöntemi ile uygulanmıştır. Anket uygulama dönemi sonunda geçerli 295 ankete ulaşılmıştır. Ölçeklerin geçerliliği ve güvenirliği doğrulayıcı faktör analizi ile belirlendikten sonra araştırma hipotezinin test edilmesi amacıyla hiyerarşik regresyon analizi yapılmıştır. Analiz sonucunda iş tatmininin iş-ten ayrılma niyeti üzerindeki negatif etkisinde işgören avukatlığının moderatör rolüne sahip olduğu belirlenmiştir. Buna bağlı olarak yöneticilerin işgören avukatlığı kapsamındaki uygu-larının hem çalışanların iş tatminini arttırdığını hem de iş tatmininin işten ayrılma niyeti üzerindeki negatif etkisini güçlendireceğini söylemek mümkündür. Anahtar sözcükler: İşgören avukatlığı, iş tatmini, işten ayrılma niyeti.
... Le secteur du télémarketing est caractérisé par un phénomène important de turn-over (Cihuelo, 2010 ;Aksin, Armony & Mehrotra, et al., 2007 ;Tuten & Neidermeyer, 2004 ;Batt, 1999). ...
La diversité est devenue, au cours des dernières décennies, une préoccupation majeure dans les discours politiques donnant lieu à une prolifération de normes de management. L'objectif de cette thèse est de décrypter le mécanisme de ces normes ainsi que ses effets sur le management de la diversité des origines. Sont abordés à la fois les enjeux organisationnels qui en découlent dans une approche multi-niveau : le siège de l’entreprise, le management de proximité et les employés. Cette recherche puise dans une littérature transdisciplinaire : l’anthropologie et la sociologie afin de saisir le construit de la diversité des origines ; la théorie néo-institutionnaliste sociologique pour comprendre le comportement des entreprises à l’égard des normes de diversité mais aussi la théorie de la coopération et de nombreuses références psychologiques pour découvrir le fonctionnement des équipes. Du point de vue empirique, la thèse offre une analyse comparée internationale. Elle investigue la dynamique organisationnelle de deux sous-unités d’analyse, l’une en France et l’autre au Canada, au sein d'une même entreprise impliquée dans la mise en œuvre de normes de diversité et le management de la diversité des origines.
... The working shift was divided into four groups: (i) from 6 a.m. to 12 p.m., (ii) from 12 to 6 p.m., (iii) from 6 p.m. to 12 a.m., and (iv) from 12 to 6 a.m. Due to the high turnover traditionally found in this type of service organization (Tuten & Neidermeyer, 2004), respondents' working experience in the contact centers was divided into less than 1 year and more than 1 year. We also asked them to indicate the type of contact center according to three main categories: (i) inbound contact center (e.g., customer service, technical support, and emergency response), (ii) nonvoice-based business process outsourcing (e.g., back-office support for data entry, chat support, and e-mail support), and (iii) web-enabled contact center (e.g., webchat, e-mail support, and quality analysis). ...
This paper examines the impact of Industry 4.0 (I4.0) technologies on employees workload in contact centers. For that, we adopted the NASA task load index (TLX) questionnaire to assess the workload of 100 employees from different contact centers in India that have been adopting I4.0 technologies. The collected data is analyzed through multivariate techniques. This research is grounded on concepts from the multiple resource theory. Our findings indicate positive and negative effects of I4.0 on employees workload, conditioned on the adopted technologies (i.e., Internet-of-Things, cloud computing, big data, machine learning/artificial intelligence, remote monitoring, and wireless sensors) and workload dimensions considered (i.e., mental demand, physical demand, temporal demand, overall performance, effort, and frustration level). Identifying I4.0's impacts on employees workload allows planning of managerial efforts to mitigate potential issues while setting clear expectations related to the digital transformation of contact centers' processes and services.
... " ( [22], p. 130). Optimism has been shown to help employees with their work, for example, by reducing job stress and conflicts as well as increasing job satisfaction and job performance [35]. The fourth and final facet of PsyCap, resilience, is described as one's ability to overcome, persevere and bounce back, as well as reach out to gain new knowledge and experiences, and improve relationships with others and find meaning throughout life [36]. ...
The Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has not only had negative effects on employees’ health, but also on their prospects to gain and maintain employment. Using a longitudinal research design with two measurement points, we investigated the ramifications of various psychological and organizational resources on employees’ careers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Specifically, in a sample of German employees (N = 305), we investigated the role of psychological capital (PsyCap) for four career-related outcomes: career satisfaction, career engagement, coping with changes in career due to COVID-19, and career-related COVID-19 worries. We also employed leader–member exchange (LMX) as a moderator and career adaptability as a mediating variable in these relationships. Results from path analyses revealed a positive association between PsyCap and career satisfaction and career coping. Furthermore, PsyCap was indirectly related to career engagement through career adaptability. However, moderation analysis showed no moderating role of LMX on the link between PsyCap and career adaptability. Our study contributes to the systematic research concerning the role of psychological and organizational resources for employees’ careers and well-being, especially for crisis contexts.
... At Time 3 which is about one month after the Time-2 survey, those who completed the Time-2 survey are contacted to complete a survey on their deviant behaviors at the new organization. To ensure a sizable sample and have enough participants who change their jobs within one year, researchers can conduct the research in industries with high turnover rates such as call centers (Tuten and Neidermeyer, 2004). ...
This study examines the role of psychological contract violation at a previous organization in explaining employees’ deviant behaviors in a new organization. Drawing on the social-cognitive model of transference, we hypothesize that past psychological contract violation is associated with employees’ present psychological ownership and job insecurity. These adverse transference effects can be buffered by institutionalized socialization tactics in the new organization. Furthermore, we hypothesize that past psychological contract violation is associated with employees’ present deviant behaviors through psychological ownership and job insecurity in the new organization. These indirect effects are weaker when the new organization uses more (vs. less) institutionalized socialization tactics. The results across two field studies provide consistent and robust support for our hypothesized model. We discuss the theoretical and practical implications of our findings on the transference effects of psychological contract violation and how to attenuate these harmful effects.
... First-call resolution ratio, operator turnover and streamlining of processes Lean Six Sigma methodology (Robinson and Morley, 2006) To investigate call center management from the perspective of managers Customer satisfaction index, level of service, staff turnover rate, abandonment rate, wrap-up time (post call work), call duration or average handling time, occupancy rate and number of calls per agent Survey of call center managers, followed by indepth interviews (Tuten and Neidermeyer, 2004) To investigate the role of optimism and its effect on stress in call centers Personal orientation towards optimism, perceptions of job stress, work/non-work conflict, absenteeism and intent to turnover Survey approach (Lewig and Dollard, 2003) To assess the relationship between the emotional demands associated with call center work and call centre worker well-being Emotional demands, psychosocial demands, rewards, autonomy, social support, emotional exhaustion, job satisfaction Survey of call center workers (Grebner et al., 2003) To analyze working conditions, well-being, and job-related attitudes among call center agents. ...
This paper proposes a methodology for modeling and controlling the performance of call centers. Most call centers use CRM (Customer Relationship Management) systems to record data of all contacts between agents and clients. These data may be autocorrelated. To model autocorrelated processes effectively, the proposed methodology integrates in a logical way ARIMA (Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average) modeling and SPC (Statistical Process Control) tools. ARIMA is used to model the process and identify the model that best fits the time series. The fitted model is used to compute residuals, predict future values for the quality variable(s) being monitored and determine the prediction errors. To achieve these goals, the Box-Jenkins methodology is employed. These outputs are then used to apply SPC , in this case the Shewhart control charts for autocorrelated data. First, the computed residuals are used to build the control charts in Phase I of SPC , verify the process stability and estimate the process parameters. Then, these parameters are used to establish the control limits of the charts used in Phase II of SPC to monitor and control the prediction errors. The proposed methodology is tested in a case study of a large call center in Portugal. The results of the case study suggest that ARIMA modeling and SPC , when properly integrated, provide a set of effective tools for monitoring call center performance when autocorrelated data are available. This paper has important implications for both theory and practice.
... Bu durum iş doyumunun verimlilik (Tütüncü, 2002) ile doğrudan ilişkisinin daha iyi anlaşılmasına katkı sağlamaktadır. İşletmelerin sahip oldukları kaynakları en etkili ve verimli şekilde kullanmaları açısından iş doyumunun sağlanması, işletme başarısının belirleyici faktörü ve en temel işletme amaçlarından biri haline gelmiştir (Bernal, Gargallo, Marzo & Rivera, 2005: 279-280 Yarmacı & Pelit /JRTR 2021, 8 (1), 1-24 6 İş doyumu ile ilgili yapılan araştırmalar incelendiğinde; stres, depresyon, tükenmişlik işe devamsızlık, işgücü devir hızı, etkinlik, verimlilik, örgütün büyüme hızı, performansı, işletmenin rekabet gücü, karlılık, hizmet kalitesi, müşteri memnuniyeti, işletme başarısı, müşteri sadakati, müşteri odaklı davranışlar, iş stresi, motivasyon, güven duygusu, örgütsel bağlılık, işi çekici bulma, yaşam doyumu, iş arkadaşlarının davranışları ve aile yaşamı gibi faktörler ile iş doyumunun doğrudan ya da dolaylı bir ilişkisi olduğunu belirtilmektedir (Tarlan & Tütüncü, 2001;Emir & Baytok, 2004;Çarıkçı & Oksay, 2004;Akçadağ & Özdemir, 2005: 191;Dönmez & Birdir, 2007;House, Shane & Herold, 1996;Fletcher & Williams, 1996;Scandura & Lankau, 1997;Shaw, 1999;Locke & Whiting, 1974;Lee & Wilbur, 1985;Khaleque & Rahman, 1987;Graham & Messner, 1998;Ulusal, 1998;Oshagbemi, 2000a;Oshagbemi, 2000b;Dole & Schroeder, 2001;Tütüncü, 2002;Tuten & Neidermeyer, 2004;Alpkan, Dilek & Bozlağan, 2005). İşgören tarafından sunulan hizmetin kalitesinin yükseltilmesinde iş doyumunun sağlanması (Örücü & Esenkal, 2005: 145) ya da artışı büyük önem taşımaktadır. ...
Bu araştırmanın amacı, işgörenlerin beş yıldızlı otel işletmelerindeki yöneticilerin iş etiği kapsamındaki uygulamalarına yönelik algılarının iş doyum düzeyleri üzerindeki etkisini belirlemektir. Bu kapsamda, araştırmada otel işletmeleri işgörenlerinin iş etiği ve iş doyumu düzeyleri ile işgörenlerin iş etiği algılarının iş doyumu düzeyleri üzerindeki etkisi belirlenmiştir. Ayrıca iş etiği ve iş doyumu düzeylerinin bazı kişisel ve demografik özelliklerine göre farklılıkları da incelenmiştir. Araştırmanın amacının gerçekleştirilmesine yönelik olarak otel işletmelerinde çalışanların iş etiği ve iş doyumu düzeylerinin belirlenmesinde anket tekniğinden faydalanılmıştır. Bu doğrultuda, iş etiği ve iş doyumuna ilişkin ölçekler araştırma kapsamındaki Afyonkarahisar’da faaliyet gösteren beş yıldızlı otel işletmeleri işgörenleri üzerinde uygulanmıştır. Anket tekniği ile elde edilen veriler SPSS programında analiz edilmiş olup, verilerin çözümlenmesinde betimsel istatistiklerin (yüzde, frekans, aritmetik ortalama, standart sapma) yanı sıra t testi, anova, korelasyon ve regresyon analizlerinden de faydalanılmıştır. Bu kapsamda araştırmaya katılan otel işletmeleri işgörenlerinin iş etiği algıları düşük düzeyde bulunmuş olup, işgörenlerin çalışma süresine göre iş etiği algılarının anlamlı farklılıklar gösterdiği tespit edilmiştir. İşgörenlerin departman ve çalışma süresine göre ise iş doyumu düzeylerinin anlamlı farklılık gösterdiği belirlenmiştir. İş etiğinin işgörenlerin iş doyumu düzeylerine etkisine yönelik sonuçlar değerlendirildiğinde orta düzeyin üzerinde etkisinin olduğu belirlenmiştir.
ABSTRACT
The aim of this study was to determine the impact of business ethics perceptions on job satisfaction levels of employees working in five-star hotels. Within this scope, the business ethics perceptions job satisfaction levels of the hotel employees were determined and the effect of the employees' business ethics perceptions on job satisfaction levels were determined. Also whether the business ethics perceptions, job satisfaction level of hotel employees change according to some demographic characteristics was identified. Survey technique was used for determining the business ethics perceptions job satisfaction of employees in the hotel establishments. In this respect, the business ethics and job satisfaction scale were implemented on employees of five-star hotels operating in Afyonkarahisar. The data obtained by the questionnaire was analysed in the SPSS program and descriptive statistics (percentage, frequency, arithmetic mean and standard deviation), the t test and variance analyses were used in analysing the data. According to the perceptions of participants about business ethics within this research have a significant relation with the seniority criterions for the participants. As the employers levels of job satisfaction have a significant relation among department and seniority. According to the results of basic linear regression analysis business ethics effects job satisfaction at the upper medium level.
... Some effective organizational measures to counter or prevent service agent stress identified in service management research include: providing display autonomy, such that agents do not have to suppress their true emotions (Goldberg and Grandey, 2007), adopting an empowered leadership style (De Ruyter et al., 2001) and ensuring fair supervisor treatment (van Jaarsveld et al., 2019). Another theoretically promising, yet practically challenging provision is hiring service agents with a high level of trait optimism (Tuten and Neidermeyer, 2004). Also service management practice has replied to the challenge of service agent stress using several technology-based innovations, including: adaptive hygiene factors (e.g. ...
Purpose
A vast body of literature has documented the negative consequences of stress on employee performance and well-being. These deleterious effects are particularly pronounced for service agents who need to constantly endure and manage customer emotions. The purpose of this paper is to introduce and describe a deep learning model to predict in real-time service agent stress from emotion patterns in voice-to-voice service interactions.
Design/methodology/approach
A deep learning model was developed to identify emotion patterns in call center interactions based on 363 recorded service interactions, subdivided in 27,889 manually expert-labeled three-second audio snippets. In a second step, the deep learning model was deployed in a call center for a period of one month to be further trained by the data collected from 40 service agents in another 4,672 service interactions.
Findings
The deep learning emotion classifier reached a balanced accuracy of 68% in predicting discrete emotions in service interactions. Integrating this model in a binary classification model, it was able to predict service agent stress with a balanced accuracy of 80%.
Practical implications
Service managers can benefit from employing the deep learning model to continuously and unobtrusively monitor the stress level of their service agents with numerous practical applications, including real-time early warning systems for service agents, customized training and automatically linking stress to customer-related outcomes.
Originality/value
The present study is the first to document an artificial intelligence (AI)-based model that is able to identify emotions in natural (i.e. nonstaged) interactions. It is further a pioneer in developing a smart emotion-based stress measure for service agents. Finally, the study contributes to the literature on the role of emotions in service interactions and employee stress.
... Literatürde yer alan çalışmalar bu düşünceleri desteklemektedir. İş doyumu ile ilgili yapılan araştırmalar incelendiğinde; stres, depresyon, tükenmişlik işe devamsızlık, işgücü devir hızı, etkinlik, verimlilik, örgütün büyüme hızı, performansı, işletmenin rekabet gücü, karlılık, hizmet kalitesi, müşteri memnuniyeti, işletme başarısı, müşteri sadakati, müşteri odaklı davranışlar, iş stresi, motivasyon, güven duygusu, örgütsel bağlılık, işi çekici bulma, yaşam doyumu, iş arkadaşlarının davranışları ve aile yaşamı gibi faktörler ile iş doyumunun doğrudan ya da dolaylı bir ilişkisi olduğunu belirtilmektedir (Tarlan & Tütüncü, 2001;Emir & Baytok, 2004;Çarıkçı & Oksay, 2004;Akçadağ & Özdemir, 2005: 191;Dönmez & Birdir, 2007;House, Shane & Herold, 1996;Fletcher & Williams, 1996;Scandura & Lankau, 1997;Shaw, 1999;Locke & Whiting, 1974;Lee & Wilbur, 1985;Khaleque & Rahman, 1987;Graham & Messner, 1998;Ulusal, 1998;Oshagbemi, 2000a;Oshagbemi, 2000b;Dole & Schroeder, 2001;Tütüncü, 2002;Tuten & Neidermeyer, 2004;Alpkan, Dilek & Bozlağan, 2005). İşgören tarafından sunulan hizmetin kalitesinin yükseltilmesinde iş doyumunun sağlanması (Örücü & Esenkal, 2005: 145) ya da artışı büyük önem taşımaktadır. ...
... To examine the effect of gamified work on FLEs' well-being and performance, we conducted three studies with a mixed-method approach, combining in-depth interviews (Study 1) with two field experiments (Studies 2 and 3). The studies were conducted in the telemarketing and retailing sectors (see Table 1), reflecting interesting contexts that are notorious for being stressful (Tuten & Neidermeyer, 2004) and reliant on a "sacrificial HR strategy" (Wallace, Eagleson, & Waldersee, 2000) that frequently and deliberately replaces employees to maintain enthusiastic levels of customer support. We conducted Studies 1 and 2 with two leading firms in Europe that specialize in call center activities/support. ...
Rethinking the workplace experience as a means for enhancing the well-being of frontline employees (FLEs) represents a key priority for services. The well-being of frontline employees leads to improved performance and better customer service, such that it enhances the firm's overall competitive advantage and revenue. Therefore, engagement-facilitating technologies that can increase FLEs' well-being, such as gamified work, hold promise in terms of their effects on job satisfaction and engagement. Using a mixed-method design, including in-depth interviews with FLEs and their managers, and two large field experiments, this research considers two key sectors in which FLEs are critical: retailing and telemarketing. The results highlight the negative impacts of gamified work on employee engagement and well-being, although the willingness of employees to participate in such gamified work moderates these negative impacts. By revealing how gamification affects FLEs' well-being, job engagement, and job satisfaction, this research provides actionable insights for managers.
... Stress, as introduced by Selye (1978) into the fields of psychology and medicine, was defined as the reaction of the organism to a threatening or oppressing situation. Various effects of stress, its related disorders, and its risk factors in call centers have continuously gained attention among researchers (Gumasing and Ilagan 2019;Montalbo 2016;Lin et al. 2009;Tuten and Neidermeyer 2004;De Ruyter et al. 2001). A vivid characterization of a call center work was given by Brown (1999) as "repetitive brain strain." ...
The business process outsourcing (BPO) industry in the Philippines is expanding rapidly, producing a high employment rate. However, it also causes concerns about the occurrence of work-related health problems among workers. This study was conducted to measure the prevalence of occupational health outcomes of call center workers from five companies in the Philippines and to determine the likelihood of their occurrence based on personal and work-related variables. We conducted an online survey answered by 227 call center workers. Descriptive statistics were expressed in percentages, arithmetic means, and standard deviations. Differences in symptoms in terms of sex and age-group were determined by chi-squared tests. Confounding effects of personal and occupational variables were computed through logistic and multiple regression analyses. The most prevalent forms of occupational health problems were back pain (96%), headache (96.5%), neck pain (93%), and insomnia (93%). We also found that among the personal and occupational variables, smoking and drinking predicted the occurrence of the symptoms for neck pain, headache, insomnia, and other health complaints. Our findings are crucial in strengthening policies and regulations, promoting a healthier working environment, and preventing fast-paced turnover of workers in the BPO industry in the Philippines.
... Jibeen (2013) in her studies revealed optimism moderated between neuroticism and distress and; neuroticism and satisfaction with life, among university employees. Tuten (2004) further established that optimists did perceive lower levels of job stress and lower work/no work conflict. Mäkikangas (2003) study revealed optimism levels among female employees moderated the relationship between their time pressure at work, job insecurity and organizational climate; and mental distress. ...
... Stress that occurs in the work environment is a well-known phenomenon that allows expressing itself differently in different jobs. In this case, the context is different according to work [3]. According to [4], stress is a reaction that occurs in the body that causes a change reaction that requires a physical, mental, emotional, or response itself. ...
This study aims to analyze the role of motivation moderation on the effect of work-family conflict on work stress and performance at Bank BTN Yogyakarta. The population of this study is employees of Bank BTN Yogyakarta. This research uses sampling with a purposive sampling technique. The number of samples in this study was 190 employees-data obtained through questionnaires distributed directly to employees of Bank BTN Yogyakarta. The data analysis technique used SEM with AMOS version 22 software. The results showed: (1) Work-family conflict had a positive and significant effect on employee work stress. (2) Work-family conflict does not affect performance. (3) Job stress significantly affects employee performance. (4) Motivation has a decisive mediating role in the effect of work stress on employee performance. (5) Motivation has a mediating role in the negative and significant influence of family work conflicts on employee performance.
... This approach was named as explanatory style optimism (Seligman, 1990). Finally, past studies (Luthans, Avolio, Walumbwa, & Li, 2005;Tuten & Neidermeyer, 2004) also confirmed positive influence of optimism on performance in the workplace. Hence, it has been established that PsyCap is an important personal resource that predicts various workplace and health-related outcomes for individuals (Avey, Wernsing, & Luthans, 2008;Christian, Garza, & Slaughter, 2011). ...
The present study was conducted to translate the Psychological Capital Questionnaire (PCQ-24; Luthans, Avolio, Avey, & Norman, 2007) Urdu language and to establish the construct validity of the translated version. The study was completed in two phases. In the first phase, Urdu version of PCQ-24 was obtained after the forward and back translations as per the guidelines suggested by Brislin (1970). In the second phase, the Urdu version of PCQ-24 was validated which measures the construct of psychological capital. The sample comprised of 380 small business entrepreneurs (Men = 270, women = 110), taken from Rawalpindi and Islamabad with age range of 18 to 50 years. For this instrument, two concurrent models were tested through confirmatory factor analysis; the first model analyzed was for a four-factor structure. In this model, four subscales of PCQ-24 including Self-efficacy, Hope, Resilience, and Optimism were taken as interrelated factors. While, the second model was a hierarchical model in which four subscales were loaded onto a latent factor of PsyCap. Results established that the four-factor structure of PsyCap showed better fit than the higher-order factor structure. Furthermore, PCQ-24 showed adequate construct validity and reliability after excluding three problematic items (i.e., no. 13, 20, & 23) which were found to cause poor model-fit and lower the reliabilities. Overall, the findings show that newly translated Urdu version of PCQ-24 is a reliable and a valid measure in Pakistani context.
... One of the main factors that reduce job satisfaction is stress in the workplace (Jain, Giga and Cooper, 2013;Karabatak and Alanoğlu, 2019;Meier and Spector, 2013;Tuten and Neidermeyer, 2004), which also affects a lower willingness to exhibit prosocial behaviours (Brief and Motowidlo, 1986;Ipsen and Jensen, 2010;Raza et al., 2015). Being under stress is associated with experiencing negative emotions such as fear or frustration (Hart and Cooper, 2001), which redirects energy from helping others or building relationships with colleagues to dealing with one's tension. ...
... Safety role ambiguity refers to cases where available information and resources concerning safety roles are unclear or inadequate (Jackson and Schuler, 1985;Rizzo et al., 1970). Safety role conflict reflects the presence of inconsistencies between safety performance expectations and evaluation criteria (Kahn et al., 1964;Tuten and Neidermeyer, 2004). Lastly, interpersonal safety conflict arises with safety issue disagreements between organization members, such as safety operations (Gittleman et al., 2010). ...
Purpose:
To find out whether psychological capital has a mediating role in the relationship between job satisfaction and turnover intention on nurses.
Design and methods:
This study is a cross-sectional descriptive study. 466 nurses participated in this study. Data were collected via paper-and-pencil format using Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire, Psychological Capital Questionnaire and Turnover Intention Scale.
Conclusions:
Our findings revealed effects of poor psychological capital among nurses. The effect of psychological capital was statistically significant and it partially mediated job satisfaction and turnover intention.
Practice implications:
Initiative sand training programs should be planned to improve nurses' attitudes towards psychological capital levels.
Araştırmanın amacı pozitif psikolojik sermaye ve pozitif psikolojik sermaye boyutlarının iş stresi üzerindeki etkisini belirlemektir. Pozitif psikolojik sermaye; özyeterlilik, umut, iyimserlik ve dayanıklılık boyutlarının bir araya gelmesiyle oluşan üst yapıdır. İş stresi, işgörenin iş yerinde yaşadığı, işgörenin biyolojik ve fizyolojik sistemini etkisiz hale getiren psikolojik sorunları ifade etmektedir. Araştırmada kullanılan pozitif psikolojik sermaye ölçeği Luthans ve arkadaşları tarafından 2007 yılında geliştirilen, 24 ifadeden, dört boyuttan oluşan ölçektir. İş stresi ölçeği House ve Rizzo tarafından 1972 yılında geliştirilen, yedi ifadeden, tek boyuttan oluşan ölçektir. Araştırmanın evrenini Kütahya Merkez’de bulunan liselerde görev yapan öğretmenler oluşturmaktadır. Yapısal eşitlik modellemesi ile yapılan regresyon analizleri sonucunda pozitif psikolojik sermayenin, iyimserliğin, dayanıklılığın iş stresi üzerinde negatif yönlü anlamlı etkisinin olduğu ortaya çıkmıştır.
The purpose of the study is to determine the effect of positive psychological capital and positive psychological capital dimensions on job stress. Positive psychological capital is superstructure formed by the combination of self-efficacy, hope, optimism, resilience dimensions. Job stress is defined as psychological problems that the worker lives at work, neutralize the worker’s biological and physiological system. The positive psychological capital scale used in the study is a scale composed of 4 dimensions and 24 expressions developed by Luthans et al.. The job stress scale was developed by House and Rizzo in 1972 and consists of 7 expressions, one dimension. The universe of the study consists of teachers serve in the high schools in the central district of Kütahya. As a result of the analysis it has been came out that positive psychological capital, optimism, resilience have a negative directional significant effect on job stress.
Although research has thoroughly established that employees’ safety citizenship behaviors (SCBs) are critical to workplace safety, less is known about the patterns by which team-level safety stressors affect SCBs. Extending work stress theories to the team level, this study employs a multilevel model and aims to assess two unique mediating mechanisms, felt safety responsibility and affective commitment, through which team safety stressors influence proactive and prosocial safety behaviors respectively. Data were collected from 408 construction workers and their supervisors from 28 project teams in China. Results showed that team safety stressors significantly and negatively predicted both types of SCB. Moreover, felt safety responsibility mediated the relationship between team safety stressors and proactive safety behavior, and affective commitment mediated the relationship between team safety stressors and prosocial safety behavior. This study contributes to workplace safety research by highlighting the important role of team safety stressors in predicting SCBs and different mediating mechanisms for the two types of SCB. Based on our findings, practical interventions aiming at improving workplace safety could be targeted at training managers to provide a supportive work environment where safety roles are clearly and consistently communicated, as well as to attend to potential interpersonal conflicts within the work team. These strategies will encourage more SCBs by promoting workers’ understanding of their responsibilities and enhancing their commitment to the organization.
Demographic changes in the United States increased diversity among employees and sales agents. Hispanics, the largest minority group, are expected to account for the majority of employment growth over the next several years. Yet, little is known about how this group’s intrinsic and extrinsic sales motivation affects tenure. Using operational and earned incentive secondary data from 615 inside sales agents from a Fortune 100 financial service company with multiple locations throughout the United States, we examine the effect of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation on inside sales agent tenure, as well as the moderating cultural influence of Hispanic inside sales agents. Overall, inside sales agent retention is positively affected by increased intrinsic motivation and negatively affected by extrinsic motivation. Cultural differences among inside sales agents did not moderate either relationship, demonstrating the similarities of psychological needs for autonomous motivation that transcends cultures. We discuss the value of these new findings to both the literature and practice, along with implications and limitations.
This study explores the moderating role of psychological capital (PsyCap) in the curvilinear association between job autonomy and job performance in the financial services industry. The time lag technique was adopted to collect data from “five hundred and nine managers (N = 509)” of different financial services organizations within a time interval of 4 weeks. Job autonomy was observed as having a curvilinear association with job performance by emphasizing that psychological capital has a positive association with job performance. Psychological capital marginally moderated the curvilinear association between job autonomy and job performance and provided valuable insight vis‐à‐vis implications for business managers.
Perception of the future (PF) includes setting goals, establishing courses of action for achieving them, and assessing one’s personal abilities to do so. The present study was designed to examine the degree to which the research variables (personal characteristics, personal and social resources, and values) contribute to explaining the variance in measures of PF between at-risk adolescents and their normative peers regarding life roles in two realms – work and family. It was further designed to examine whether there are differences between the groups in the rate to which these variables contribute to variance. Participants were 323 Jewish Israeli adolescents (age 14–18) in two comparison groups – 139 at-risk adolescents who were treated in child and youth care (CYC) units, and 184 normative high-school students. The research tool was a questionnaire that examined personal characteristics, personal resources, values, and measures of PF work and family life roles. The conclusion was that the groups of variables examined have a relatively similar contribution to explaining the variance in perception of the importance of work and family in both groups. At the same time, self-efficacy, optimism, and values of openness to change, as well as the personal characteristics, contributed differently to each group. The variables’ contribution to PF in both groups was examined to identify those that predict the importance of perception of future in different areas in each group, which could enable education and welfare professionals establish means of helping at-risk adolescents form positive PF regarding various life roles and manage to integrate successfully into society.
GİRİŞ II.Dünya Savaşı sonrası ivme kazanan ve özellikle 1970'lerde Amerika Birleşik Devletleri ve Avrupa'da gelişmeye başlayan Pozitif Psikoloji ve Pozitif Örgütsel Davranış, örgütlerde çalışanların refahını, iyiliğini sağlamak ve sürdürmek ve çalışanların niteliklerini geliştirmek ve değer yaratabilmek amacıyla gelişim göstermiştir. 1960'ların ortalarında, endüstriyel-örgütsel psikolojinin önemli ölçüde farklı iki branşa ayrıldığı bilinmektedir (Örn., (Jamieson, 1974, Johnson ve Beehr, 2013; Tunç, 2018). Bunlardan biri, personel psikolojisi olarak da adlandırılabilen ve geleneksel alan konularına odaklanmaya devam eden 'bireysel farklılıklar endüstriyel psikolojisi'; diğeri ise, 'endüstriyel sosyal psikoloji', 'örgütsel psikoloji' ve 'örgütsel davranış' olarak nitelendirilmiştir. Daha eski bir alan olan endüstriyel-örgütsel psikoloji, yönetim ve sosyal bilimleri etkileyerek ve onlardan da etkilenerek, gittikçe daha yaygın kabul görmeye başlamış, bugünkü pozitif örgütsel davranış yaklaşımına zemin hazırlamıştır. Öyle ki, örgütsel psikoloji alanının bireysel ve örgütsel refahı arttırmadaki katkısının giderek anlaşılması, pozitif psikoloji araştırmacılarının dikkatlerini pozitif örgütsel davranış bağlamına yöneltmelerinde etkili olmuştur. Örgütsel davranış ise; örgütü içsel ve dışsal faktörler ile birlikte sistematik bir gözlemle analiz eden, örgüt-çevre ve birey-örgüt etkileşimlerini ve örgütsel ortamda insan davranışlarını, tutum ve duygusal süreçlerini bir arada inceleyen, psikoloji, sosyoloji, antropoloji, siyaset, politika ve ekonomi disiplinlerinden yararlanan, uygulamalı bir sosyal bilim (davranış bilimi) alanıdır. 20. yüzyılın başlarından itibaren yönetimde, örgütsel davranış disiplininin önemi ve etkisinin giderek arttığı gözlenmiştir. Pozitif psikoloji ekseninde pozitif örgütsel davranış yaklaşımının kaynağını teşkil eden psikoloji biliminin bir sosyal bilim olarak tarihsel süreçte yer alması ise modernizmin etkili olduğu dönemde gerçekleşmiştir. Tıpkı modernizmin temel varsayımları gibi, psikoloji bilimi de insanı objektif, genellenebilir ve ölçülebilir yöntemlerle anlamanın, analiz etmnin yollarını ortaya koymuştur. Objektif ve ölçülebilir şekilde insanı anlama gayreti geleneksel psikoloji yaklaşımlarının odak noktasını oluşturmuştur (Kvale, 1992). Geleneksel psikoloji yaklaşımları, insan doğasını, evrensel, durağan ve objektif özelliklere sahip bir yapı olarak değerlendirmiş ve
Purpose
This article evaluates the effect of technostress due to implementation of sales technologies on sales professionals in terms of changes in job satisfaction and role stress and potential mitigation strategies including technostress inhibitors and job commitment.
Design/methodology/approach
The study utilizes a survey data collection from sales professionals in B2B consultative roles selling to business customers from construction, industrial supply and business service firms, including items that explore before and after factors around a customer relationship management implementation.
Findings
Technostress results in a decrease in job satisfaction and an increase in role stress of sales professionals. Job commitment moderates the decrease in job satisfaction, i.e. the higher the job commitment the less significant the decrease in job satisfaction.
Practical implications
Sales forces need to implement technostress inhibitors to help mitigate the effects of technostress in exacerbating other sales professional stressors. These inhibitors should be contextualized to the unique situation of the sales organization.
Originality/value
The study examines the dark side of sales technologies. Our research expands current understanding by considering new relations among technostress-creating conditions and two work-related outcomes that are salient to sales professionals, namely role stress and job satisfaction. Further, we investigate the change in these outcomes before and after the implementation of sales technologies rather than only considering them at one point of time, after the fact.
How Much Are The Employees Who Work In The Call Center Exposed To Stress: A Research On The Call Center Staff
Stress, known as today's modern disease, is a phenomenon that we all face in social life and work life. Nowadays, organizations pay heavy costs due to the negative consequences of stress. For the enterprises to survive and to achieve success in a fierce competition. Call center employees often experience occupational stress due to a number of stress factors. environment, employers and managers need to take some precautions to keep stress at work at the optimal level. For this reason, in this research, the stress levels of the employees were tried to be determined in accordance with the answers to the survey questions given by 124 staff who work in call centers. In accordance with these data, job stress factors were analyzed according to the demographic characteristics of the employees by the program of SPSS statistics 25. The related study was carried out with call center personnel who work under two different corporate firms which located in Sivas city center. According to the results, it has been determined that organizational stress factors are highly effective in call center employees. While stress factors caused from the structure of the work, which is one of the sub-dimensions of organizational stress sources, were determined to be the highest level of stress factors, this was followed by stress factors resulting from interpersonal relations, organizational structure, institutional structure and physical conditions, respectively.
Stress, known as today's modern disease, is a concept that we all face in social life and work life. Today, organizations pay
heavy costs due to the negative consequences of stress. In order for businesses to survive and achieve success, employers and
managers need to take some precautions to keep workplace stress at an optimal level. Call center employees often experience
occupational stress due to a number of stress factors. Environment, employers and managers need to take some precautions to keep
stress at work at the optimal level. Accordingly, the stress level of call center employees, was determined through the answers
given by 124 call center personnel to the survey questions. According to the data collected, job stress factors were analyzed in
the SPSS program according to the demographic characteristics of the employees. The related study was carried out with call
center personnel who work under two different corporate firms which located in Sivas city center. As a result of the research, it was
determined that stress factors such as job structure, interpersonal relations, organizational structure, institutional structure and
physical conditions create high levels of stress in call center employees.
High turnover of life insurance agents is a widespread problem faced by many life assurance companies and also leads to enormous problems within the industry. Insurance, as a rapidly growing sector in the context of Sri Lankan financial market, it brings new employment opportunities. Insurance companies are basically human demanding, and quality human resources and their retention act as a vital role in the development of the industry. Hence the study attempts to identify reasons for the high turnover of life insurance agents in the Sri Lankan insurance market. The objective of this paper is to enhance the understanding of the occurrence of high employee turnover in the insurance industry and its factors. The factors that have identified divided into three, as to company-related factors, job-related factors, and environmental factors. These were considered as independent variables. The survey was done on 50 employees (n=50) who belonged to the top market leaders of life insurance companies in Sri Lanka. The companies were picked randomly from all over the country. The result identified the most influential factors of high turnover as job insecurity and perceived alternative job opportunities which were fallen under company-related and environment rated factors respectively.
Nowadays job satisfaction and turnover intention are the most important and widely researched variables. Job satisfaction increases loyalty and professional commitment to the organization which leads to productivity. On the other hand, the turnover intention has serious negative consequences for effective organizational operations. The purpose of this exploratory study is to find out the relationship between job satisfaction and turnover intention of employees working in some selected sectors in Comilla, Bangladesh. The study considered a sample of 355 employees across various sectors to find out the different opinions about the levels of their satisfaction related factors and turnover intention. For the purpose of in-depth analysis, statistical tools, inter-correlation matrix, and multiple regression techniques had been used. The results indicate that there were a significant inverse relationship between job security-turnover intention, pay-turnover intention, and promotion-turnover intention. The results will help organizations understand how to address employees’ demands and concerns toward their jobs and discover successful ways of retaining them. This in turn will reduce the turnover rate and the associated costs.
Purpose
The companies are struggling to collect invoices due to the decrease in the economic growth. This global trend does not only affect undeveloped countries, but it also has a strong impact on the developed countries. Improving the debt collection process become a significant element to maintain financial stability. The institutions that are specialized on collecting payments, debt collection agencies and their call centers, with their expertise in the field can improve the payment process. Yet, managing evaluating the performance of debt collection agencies is a very hard process that involves uncertainty and imprecision. Performance measurement (PM) is a combination of numerically expressed characteristics which give insight about the success or degree of accomplishment of an activity. PM can be handled in various levels such as individual, team, department or company. The aim of this study is to present a systematic and objective PM method for call centers.
Design/methodology/approach
In this study, first an exploratory approach is used to understand the call center measurement problem. Several meetings are done with the representatives of both call center firms and the parent firms that outsource debt collection process. Simultaneously, a broad literature review is conducted. An iterative approach is selected to reach deeper knowledge on the process. New meetings are planned and scope of the literature review has changed based on this iterative approach. After these steps, the problem has been considered as the multi-criteria decision-making problem since more than one criteria should be considered for evaluating the performances of call centers. The result of the literature review and the meetings with experts show that defining the weights for the criteria is very crucial for evaluating the performances accurately. Collecting human judgment for defining the weights of call center criteria necessitates dealing with vagueness and uncertainty. The intuitionistic fuzzy sets excellent tools for representing uncertainty. Interval valued intuitionistic fuzzy sets can easily represent the human judgments. Thus, in this study, an intuitionistic fuzzy multi-criteria decision making approach is used to design the proposed methodology. Incomplete interval-valued intuitionistic preference relations are used to determine the weights of the indicators aggregating linguistic evaluations of the decision makers.
Findings
The proposed approach provides an objective calculation of performance measurement. In order to provide objectivity, indicator performance functions are proposed for the first time in this study. Nine different functions and related parameters are defined to objectively measure indicator performances.
Originality/value
The paper proposes an objective and easy-to-modify approach for call-center PM, which can be used by call center managers. It presents a new fuzzy multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) method for call center performance evaluation, which can consider the multi-experts' judgments under vagueness and impreciseness, which may be conflicting and incomplete interval-valued intuitionistic fuzzy preference relations. Also nine new functions are defined for indicator performance.
In this study we investigate retail entrepreneurs' exit intentions by focusing on their job satisfaction, job-related stress, customer orientation, and dispositional optimism. We develop and test four hypotheses with structural equation modelling on a sample of 365 retail entrepreneurs. Our results indicate that dispositional optimism is a substantial driver of retail entrepreneurs’ customer orientation and job satisfaction. Dispositional optimism also decreases their job-related stress. We also find that both customer orientation and job-related stress mediate the relationship between dispositional optimism and job satisfaction prior to exit intentions. Finally, we found that job satisfaction has a mediating effect on the relationship between job-related stress and exit intentions.
Compared the validity of individual's self-assessments with other assessment procedures commonly used in psychological evaluation. Comparisons are made in the prediction of all criteria investigated: intellectual achievement, vocational choice, job performance, therapy outcome, adjustment following hospitalization, and peer ratings. Self-assessments were at least as predictive of these criteria as were other assessment methods against which they have been pitted. Limitations of this conclusion and its implications for current psychological evaluation procedures are examined. It is argued that greater attention should be given to self-assessments and to the evaluation procedures that may enhance their predictive validity. Steps are outlined for deciding when self-assessment should be used, and suggestions are offered as to how the validity of self-judgments might be maximized. (129 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Tested the prediction of the reformulated learned helplessness model, which claims that the tendency to explain bad events by internal, stable, and global causes potentiates quitting when bad events are encountered. Two studies were conducted, using a total of 197 life insurance agents as Ss. Explanatory style, as measured by the Attributional Style Questionnaire (ASQ), correlated with and predicted the performance of the Ss. In a cross-sectional study, Ss scoring in the top half of the ASQ sold 37% more insurance in their 1st 2 yrs of service than those scoring in the bottom half. In a prospective 1-yr study of newly hired agents, Ss who scored in the top half of the ASQ when hired remained in their job at twice the rate and sold more insurance than those scoring in the bottom half of the ASQ. These 2 studies support the claim that a pessimistic explanatory style leads to poor productivity and quitting when bad events are experienced, and they extend the usefulness of the ASQ to the workplace. (9 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Tested the hypothesis that (1) self-appraisals conducted under a grading purpose are more lenient than those conducted under a research purpose and (2) self-appraisals obtained under conditions with high expectation of validation are less lenient than those obtained under conditions with low expectation of validation with 62 undergraduates. Ss completed self-reports of the classroom participation; the questionnaires varied in the purpose of appraisal and the expectation of validation. Both hypotheses were strongly supported. (8 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Reviews 55 studies in which self-evaluations of ability were compared with measures of performance to show a low mean validity coefficient (mean
r = .29) with high variability (
SD = .25). A meta-analysis by the procedures of J. E. Hunter et al (1982) calculated sample-size weighted estimates of
–- r and
SDr and estimated the appropriate adjustments of these values for sampling error and unreliability. Among person variables, high intelligence, high achievement status, and internal locus of control were associated with more accurate evaluations. Much of the variability in the validity coefficients (
R = .64) could be accounted for by 9 specific conditions of measurement, notably (a) the rater's expectation that the self-evaluation would be compared with criterion measures, (b) the rater's previous experience with self-evaluation, (c) instructions guaranteeing anonymity of the self-evaluation, and (d) self-evaluation instructions emphasizing comparison with others. It is hypothesized that conditions increasing self-awareness would increase the validity of self-evaluation. (84 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
This article reviews and summarizes two decades of empirical literature concerned with both direct and moderating variable-based analyses of the relationship of organizational stress with job satisfaction and job performance. Moderating influences of various constructs operationalized at the individual, group and organizational level of analysis are classified and then reviewed systematically. An evaluative summary of this research suggests that although there have been significant improvements in the analytical methods employed to investigate such phenomena, much of this research still does not consider the role of reciprocal relationships that evolve over time. We provide four guidelines for improving the quality of both theoretical rigor and methodological robustness in this important area of organizational inquiry.
The primary purpose of this paper is to review recent research examining the beneficial effects of optimism on psychological and physical well-being. The review focuses on research that is longitudinal or prospective in design. Potential mechanisms are also identified whereby the beneficial effects of optimism are produced, focusing in particular on how optimism may lead a person to cope more adaptively with stress. The paper closes with a brief consideration of the similarities and differences between our own theoretical approach and several related approaches that have been taken by others.
This research offers a new theory predicting the effects of three exchange variables, job satisfaction, investment size, and quality of alternatives, on four general responses to dissatisfaction-exit, voice, loyalty, and neglect. Three studies designed to test model predictions received good support. High satisfaction and investment encouraged voice and loyalty and discouraged exit and neglect. Satisfaction and investment interacted, with variations in investment most strongly promoting voice given high satisfaction. Better alternatives encouraged exit and voice and discouraged loyalty. However, there was no link between alternatives and neglect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Academy of Management Journal is the property of Academy of Management and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
The author presents a model designed to explain the performance, job satisfaction, and other behavioral outcomes experienced by salespeople. By building on the model of man proposed by Lewin and modern interactionist and social learning theories of personality, the behavior of salespeople is shown to be a function of the person, the interactions the person has with significant others in his or her role set, and forces in the situation. Hypotheses are tested on data gathered on industrial salespeople.
The authors develop and test a model of service employee management that examines constructs simultaneously across three interfaces of the service delivery process: manager-employee, employee-role, and employee-customer. The authors examine the attitudinal and behavioral responses of customer-contact employees that can influence customers’ perceptions of service quality, the relationships among these responses, and three formal managerial control mechanisms (empowerment, behavior-based employee evaluation, and management commitment to service quality). The findings indicate that managers who are committed to service quality are more likely to empower their employees and use behavior-based evaluation. However, the use of empowerment has both positive and negative consequences in the management of contact employees. Some of the negative consequences are mitigated by the positive effects of behavior-based employee evaluation. To increase customers’ perceptions of service quality, managers must increase employees’ self-efficacy and job satisfaction, and reduce employees’ role conflict and ambiguity. Implications for the management of customer-contact service employees and directions for further research are discussed.
This paper examined the locus of control beliefs and optimism as predictors of control appraisals and coping associated with three different anticipatory stressful situations (employment decisions, teacher bias, and natural disaster). The 118 undergraduate participants completed measures of locus of control (Rotter I-E), optimism (Life Orientation Test) and control appraisals (Stress Appraisal Measure) 2 weeks prior to completing the Inventory of Coping Schemas to report their coping strategies used in dealing with each stressor. Regression analyses indicated that optimism and locus of control were relatively independent predictors of control appraisals and that control appraisals were generally better predictors of coping than either locus of control or optimism. As expected, somewhat different patterns of significant predictors were obtained for the three stressors. Results are discussed in terms of the congruence model of effective coping, which predicts relations among control appraisals and coping for various types of stressful situations.
This study investigates the effectiveness of a self-appraisal based performance evaluation system (SABPE). SABPE incorporates self-appraisals into traditional supervisory evaluation procedures. The study's sample consisted of 88 faculty members and their chairpersons at a land-grant state university. The results indicate: (a) there is high congruency between self- and chairperson ratings, (b) both ratings had moderate to high levels of criterion-related validity, and (c) both faculty members and chairpersons reported high SABPE acceptance.
We conducted a metal-analysis of correlations between role ambiguity and job performance and role conflict and job performance. Previous meta-analyses of these role constructs and performance relationships (e.g., Jackson & Schuler; 1985) were limited by small sample sizes and sparse reporting of reliability estimates in primary studies. The present study used a comprehensive database with a larger sample size and a distribution of interrater reliabilities to extend the previous findings. We also tested moderator hypotheses proposed but not conducted by Jackson ann Schuler: Results revealed a negative relationship (rho = -.21) between role ambiguity and job performance with moderating influences due to job type and rating source. A negligible relationship (rho = -.07) was observed for role conflict and job performance, a finding consistent across job types and rating sources. Conclusions were that role ambiguity ought not to Dr dismissed as an unimportant variable ill the job performance domain.
This study explored prospectively the effects of dispositional and situational optimism on mood (N = 90) and immune changes (N = 50) among law students in their first semester of study. Optimism was associated with better mood, higher numbers of helper T cells, and higher natural killer cell cytotoxicity. Avoidance coping partially accounted for the relationship between optimism and mood. Among the immune parameters, mood partially accounted for the optimism-helper T cell relationship, and perceived stress partially accounted for the optimism-cytotoxicity relationship. Individual differences in expectancies, appraisals, and mood may be important in understanding psychological and immune responses to stress.
The rapid growth of research on organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs) has resulted in some conceptual confusion about the nature of the construct, and made it difficult for all but the most avid readers to keep up with developments in this domain. This paper critically examines the literature on organizational citizenship behavior and other, related constructs. More specifically, it: (a) explores the conceptual similarities and differences between the various forms of "citizenship" behavior constructs identified in the literature; (b) summarizes the empirical findings of both the antecedents and consequences of OCBs; and (c) identifies several interesting directions for future research.
This study provides a preliminary test of a model proposed by Sutton and Kahn (1986). In the model, the ability to understand, predict, and control events in the work environment can reduce the potential adverse effects generally associated with certain work conditions. Using a sample of physicians, dentists, and nurses (N = 206) from a large naval medical hospital, the present study examined the moderating effects of understandable, predictable, and controllable work situations on the relationship between perceived role stress, satisfaction, and psychological well-being. Under- standing and control were found to have moderating effects on the relationship between perceived stress and satisfaction. Understanding, prediction, and control were found to have direct relation- ships with perceived stress, but only control had a significant direct relationship with satisfaction. None of these variables were found to have significant direct relationships with psychological well-being.
The author presents a model designed to explain the performance, job satisfaction, and other behavioral outcomes experienced by salespeople. By building on the model of man proposed by Lewin and modern interactionist and social learning theories of personality, the behavior of salespeople is shown to be a function of the person, the interactions the person has with significant others in his or her role set, and forces in the situation. Hypotheses are tested on data gathered on industrial salespeople.
The authors examine the attitudes and behaviors of employees who provide frontline service and address the extent to which relationships vary among male and female employees. The overall model predicts effects of role stress and work/nonwork conflict on customer-contact employees' job performance, job and life satisfaction, and quitting intent. Results of structural equations modeling suggest an important role for work/nonwork conflict overall as well as two areas of interesting variation across gender. Specifically, multisample structural equations analyses suggest that role stress affects female service providers' job performance more negatively than it does males', and that job satisfaction is related more highly to quitting intent among males. Overall, results suggest interesting similarities and differences across gender.
The authors develop and test a model of service employee management that examines constructs simultaneously across three interfaces of the service delivery process: manager-employee, employee-role, and employee-customer. The authors examine the attitudinal and behavioral responses of customer-contact employees that can influence customers' perceptions of service quality, the relationships among these responses, and three formal managerial control mechanisms (empowerment, behavior-based employee evaluation, and management commitment to service quality). The findings indicate that managers who are committed to service quality are more likely to empower their employees and use behavior-based evaluation. However, the use of empowerment has both positive and negative consequences in the management of contact employees. Some of the negative consequences are mitigated by the positive effects of behavior-based employee evaluation. To increase customers' perceptions of service quality, managers must increase employees' self-efficacy and job satisfaction, and reduce employees' role conflict and ambiguity. Implications for the management of customer-contact service employees and directions for further research are discussed.
In an effort to clarify the literature on work exhaustion (or job burnout), I integrate causal attribution research and the burnout and exhaustion literature to develop an attributional model of work exhaustion consequences. With this model I suggest that individuals experiencing work exhaustion will not exhibit all of the job attitudes and behaviors found to correlate with exhaustion. Rather, individuals are likely to experience a subset of these, depending on their perceptions regarding the cause of exhaustion. I also discuss implications and directions for future research.
The rapid growth of research on organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs) has resulted in some conceptual confusion about the nature of the construct, and made it difficult for all but the most avid readers to keep up with developments in this domain. This paper critically examines the literature on organizational citizenship behavior and other, related constructs. More specifically, it: (a) explores the conceptual similarities and differences between the various forms of “citizenship” behavior constructs identified in the literature; (b) summarizes the empirical findings of both the antecedents and consequences of OCBs; and (c) identifies several interesting directions for future research.
The rapid growth of research on organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs) has resulted in some conceptual confusion about the nature of the construct, and made it difficult for all but the most avid readers to keep up with developments in this domain. This paper critically examines the literature on organizational citizenship behavior and other, related constructs. More specifically, it: (a) explores the conceptual similarities and differences between the various forms of “citizenship” behavior constructs identified in the literature; (b) summarizes the empirical findings of both the antecedents and consequences of OCBs; and (c) identifies several interesting directions for future research.
The relationships among facets of role conflict and role-specific performance were investigated over three organizational levels of one occupation. The responses of a sample of 102 full-time faculty members were analyzed via the use of correlational and multiple regression techniques. The results support treating role conflict as a multifaceted construct, examining role conflict with respect to role-specific performance measures, and considering the moderating effect of organizational level on role conflict-performance relationships in future research. Implications of the results are discussed in regard to the population sampled.
Common methods variance that can result when two or more constructs are measured by a single rater or source was examined using Within and Between Analysis (WABA). Levels of analysis effects were assessed for single-source leadership and outcome ratings obtained using surveys completed by the followers of managers employed by a multidivisional Fortune 500 high technology organization. The alignment of singleand multiple-source effects with the analytic procedures, a critique of recommended procedures for addressing problems with single-source variance, an alternative conceptual framework, and strategies to address problems with research involving questionnaire! survey self-report measures are discussed.
We review and summarize the literature on work stress with particular emphasis on those studies that examined the effects of work characteristics on employee health. Although there is not convincing evidence that job stressors cause health effects, the indirect evidence is strongly suggestive of a work stress effect. This evidence comes from occupational studies that show differences in health and mortality that are not easily explained by other factors and within-subject studies that demonstrate a causal effect of work experiences on physiological and emotional responses. We argue that studies relying on self-reports of working conditions and outcomes, whether cross-sectional or longitudinal, are unlikely to add significantly to the accumulated evidence. Finally, we make recommendations for how organizational researchers are most likely to contribute to this knowledge.
The literature indicates that dysfunctional individual and organizational consequences result from the existence of role conflict and role ambiguity in complex organizations. Yet, systematic measurement and empirical testing of these role constructs is lacking. This study describes the development and testing of questionnaire measures of role conflict and ambiguity. Analyses of responses of managers show these two constructs to be factorially identifiable and independent. Derived measures of role conflict and ambiguity tend to correlate in two samples in expected directions with measures of organizational and managerial practices and leader behavior, and with member satisfaction, anxiety, and propensity to leave the organization.
This study looked at factors contributing to a favor- able adjustment and sense of well being among a non-clinical popu- lation of divorcing parents. Subjects responded to a survey of demo- graphic and divorce data and self perceptions about stress coping abilities. The results suggest that higher levels of coping resources are connected with greater optimism about the future, fewer finan- cial problems, more confidence in parenting ability, and a more satisfactory relationship with the former spouse. Coping resources may also be affected by a person's race or a combination of race and gender.
Two hundred and forty one undergraduate students from a mid-sized southeastern university participated in this study. The relationships among optimism and reported physical symptoms and daily hassles were explored. As hypothesized, optimism correlated with low physical symptom scores and low daily hassles scores. Secondary analyses revealed that females reported significantly more physical symptoms than males. Freshman and fifth year seniors reported significantly more symptoms than students from the three remaining academic years. Levels of reported emotional support from both friends and families of the participants were significantly related to dispositional optimism. Implications and limitations of the findings are discussed.
100 45–64 yr olds completed a hassles scale, an uplifts scale, a recent life events schedule, and a health status questionnaire. Analysis showed that hassles—the repeated or chronic strains of everyday life—were more strongly associated with somatic health than were life events. Hassles shared most of the variance in health that could be accounted for by life events, and when the effects of life events were statistically removed, hassles and health remained significantly related. Daily uplifts made little contribution to health that was independent of hassles. The assessment of daily hassles appears to be a useful approach to the study of life stress and could be an important supplement to the life events approach that, alone, is insufficient for full understanding and practical prediction of health outcomes. (36 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
An investigation into organizational conditions and situations conducive to satisfaction as well as the nature and prevalence of pressures arising from opposing and incompatible institutional demands. By means of the case-study method, interviews, and a nationwide survey the effects of these demands upon roles are examined. These effects are related to individual personality characteristics and interpersonal relations. (140-item bibliogr.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
The interactive effect of role conflict and role ambiguity on job performance was examined in a sample of 359 employees from an Israeli industrial organization. The results support the hypothesis that simultaneous increases in both role conflict and role ambiguity are associated with lower levels of job performance. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Increasingly, inbound call centers are being employed to manage customer complaints and maintain customer loyalty. The purpose of this research is to identify the customer relationship management and oral communication competencies of inbound call center agents that have a significant influence on callers' repurchase intentions. Previous research has typically obtained customers' retrospective evaluations of their experience with customer service employees. Unfortunately, a caller's memory for specific agent behaviors is likely to fade with delay. As a result, retrospective ratings of behaviors are likely to be inferred from the caller's overall perceptions of the service experience. Therefore, an expert supervisor's on-line observational measures of agent competencies were used for the present study. Callers' repurchase intentions were determined by a mail survey. Results showed that several specific agent competencies were related to callers' repurchase intentions. For example, results showed that personalization of the call, the offer of additional services, an optimal rate of speech, and the absence of vocalized pauses were all significantly related to higher caller repurchase intentions. These results add to the literature on the effects of employee behaviors on customer loyalty and show that the behavior of inbound call center agents can have a significant influence on customers' relationships with the firm. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. and Direct Marketing Educational Foundation, Inc.
Much of the research on the work-strain relationship utilizes models which are narrowly focused on only a few job characteristics. These models are often global in their approach, failing to account for specific situations. Addressing these two issues, the present study investigated the influence of seven job characteristics; namely work control and six sources of work pressure, across a range of occupations, on mental and physical ill-health. Pooled within-group correlations were performed on data from 7099 employees from 13 occupations to clarify which of the seven job characteristics were significantly associated with both mental and physical ill-health. Results indicated all seven variables were significantly important. Mean score and correlational analyses for each occupation revealed many differences between the groups, with some job characteristics significantly associated with mental and physical ill-health in one occupation but not in another. It was concluded that to understand fully the work-strain relationship, research should incorporate a greater range of variables which are specific to a particular workplace. Using more job-specific models, encompassing a range of identified job and organizational stressors would also be more effective, practically, for interventions in the workplace to improve worker health and well-being.
Several studies have found an inverted U-shaped relationship between stress and performance levels for individuals. The present study determined whether such a relationship exists between stress and the perceived effectiveness of formal organization groups. Analysis of data from four firms provided no support for the existence of such a relationship. Instead, a negative relationship between stress and perceived organizational effectiveness was found. The results suggest that the type of stress moderates the stress and effectiveness relationship. Dysfunctional stress was the dominant type of stress in all four firms. Further, the level of dysfunctional stress provided a better explanation of variations in effectiveness levels than total stress levels.
This study investigated the effectiveness of a self-appraisal-based performance evaluation system (SABPE) that incorporates self-assessment into traditional supervisory evaluation procedures. Its subject sample consisted of 88 faculty members and their chairpersons at a land-grant state university. Results indicated that (1) there was high congruency between self- and chairperson ratings, (2) both ratings had moderate to high levels of criterion-related validity, and (3) both faculty members and chairpersons reported high SABPE acceptance. The implications of these results for future self-appraisal research are discussed.
Early adolescence is a period of the life course involving high levels of challenge that are stressful for some, perhaps resulting in depressive symptoms. In this study, adolescents were divided into four groups based on indices of depression and negative life events. Group differences in coping style, mastery, optimism, and social resources as well as group differences in patterns of change were investigated. Participants were 458 adolescents in sixth and seventh grade from a rural working class community. Subjects were assessed twice over a one-year period. Analyses revealed that the four groups were characterized by different levels of coping and social resources. Asymptomatic youth reported higher levels of optimism, mastery, active coping, and more positive relationships with parents and peers than did symptomatic adolescents. These same characteristics distinguished the resilient adolescents from the vulnerable adolescents, suggesting potential stress-buffering effects. One year later, the adolescents who were low on both depressive symptoms and negative life events continued to report more individual and contextual resources than the adolescents in the other groups.
Emotional exhaustion is a potentially important construct in examining sales force behavior and attitude relationships. A
conceptual model and hypotheses are developed to study the antecedents and consequences of the emotional exhaustion construct.
The hypotheses are tested using LISREL 7 to analyze data from a sample of field salespeople from a large international services
organization. The empirical results offer strong support for relationships involving role ambiguity and conflict antecedents
and organizational commitment, job satisfaction, performance, and intention-to-leave consequences of emotional exhaustion.
Previous marketing research examines role stress (role conflict and role ambiguity) as an antecedent of job satisfaction across a range of professional marketing contexts. Recently, research has begun to address the impact of nonwork factors on employee job satisfaction. For the most part, however, this research ignores the front line service providers who, given their key role in building customer satisfaction and relationships, are immensely important in many business settings. In this study, a model is developed and tested that posits work-family conflict as a partial mediator of the role stress-job satisfaction relationship. Empirical results suggest that increased role conflict and role ambiguity diminish job satisfaction both directly and indirectly, such that the true effect of these important role constructs may not be understood without a consideration of work/family conflict. Results are contrasted with those from other work domains, and implications for marketing managers are discussed.
In 1985 Scheier and Carver set out to begin to explore the possibility that optimism, construed as a stable personality characteristic, has implications for the manner by which people regulate their actions. They developed a scale to measure optimism, the Life Orientation Test (LOT), that has been used in several studies over the years. In this meta-analysis 56 studies were included adding up to a total number of 98 effect size estimates. Three combined estimates were obtained for measures of coping (+ 0.27), symptom reporting (− 0.23) and negative affect (− 0.43). The results from combined estimates of significance were highly significant as well as homogeneous. High fail-safe n's were also found. Combined estimates of effect sizes were, however, heterogeneous in all three estimates. Analyses were therefore repeated using the Ways of Coping Checklist for coping (+ 0.20) and the Beck Depression Inventory for negative affect (− 0.46). The effect size estimate for coping did, however, remain significantly heterogeneous. Although optimism is highly significantly associated with measures of coping, symptom reporting and negative affect, it is concluded that the most reliable association is between optimism and negative affect.
The article presents information on a study which investigated the consequences of role conflict and ambiguity for job tension, job satisfaction, and propensity to leave an organization through the use of path analysis. The authors investigated the relationship between role perceptions and work-related attitudes and behavior. A study was conducted in a Veterans Administration Medical Center, of which 202 staff members submitted usable questionnaires. The results found that role perceptions are important in understanding job-related attitudes. They also found that the importance of job satisfaction is important on the perceived desirability of leaving or staying in an organization.
The work environment is often stressful; however, the specific coping strategies used by individuals to deal with such stress have received limited attention. While the benefits associated with optimism have long been touted, little insight has been developed regarding the mechanism(s) that may contribute to optimists' superior job performance. It is possible that optimism is associated with higher performance because it influences the coping strategies used by salespeople. This possibility was addressed in a cross-sectional study of 101 salespeople. Dispositionally optimistic salespersons were observed to rely more on problem-focused coping strategies, while pessimists engaged in emotion-focused coping. But the specific coping tactics that emerged and the extent to which these tactics were used differed substantially from those which research conducted in other, nonsales settings would have predicted.
Correlated pessimistic explanatory style--the belief that negative events are caused by internal, stable, and global factors--with lowered immunocompetence in a sample of 26 older adults. Two measures of cell-mediated immunity--T-helper cell/T-suppressor cell ratio and T-lymphocyte response to mitogen challenge--were lower in individuals with a pessimistic style, controlling for the influence of current health, depression, medication, recent weight change, sleep, and alcohol use. A relative increase in the percentage of T-suppressor cells seemed to underlie this immunosuppression. Although the mechanism by which explanatory style might influence immune function remains unknown, we speculate that a pessimistic style might be an important psychological risk factor--at least among older people--in the early course of certain immune-mediated diseases.
Explanatory style, the habitual ways in which individuals explain bad events, was extracted from open-ended questionnaires filled out by 99 graduates of the Harvard University classes of 1942-1944 at age 25. Physical health from ages 30 to 60 as measured by physician examination was related to earlier explanatory style. Pessimistic explanatory style (the belief that bad events are caused by stable, global, and internal factors) predicted poor health at ages 45 through 60, even when physical and mental health at age 25 were controlled. Pessimism in early adulthood appears to be a risk factor for poor health in middle and late adulthood.