Individual-Level and Group-Level Relationships Between Organizational Characteristics, Work Characteristics and Psychological Work Reactions in Nursing Work: A Multilevel Study.

The aim of the current study was to analyze individual- and group-level effects of organizational characteristics and work characteristics on psychological work reactions in nursing. Questionnaires were distributed to 1,721 nurses working In 15 general hospitals in the Netherlands. Several multilevel analyses, with individuals (i.e., nurses) at the 1st level, units at the 2nd level, and hospitals at the 3rd level, were performed on the authors' hierarchical data. Nurses' intrinsic work motivation was particularly predicted by individual-level social support and also by individual-level decision authority. Nurses' emotional exhaustion could mainly be explained by individual-level workload, individual-level social support, and group-level decision authority. The authors concluded that most of the group-level effects of organizational and work characteristics did not differ from the individual-level effects. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Safety and Insecurity: Exploring the Moderating Effect of Organizational Safety Climate.

This research reconciled disparate findings regarding the relationship between job insecurity and safety by examining organizational safety climate as a potential moderator. It was predicted that a strong organizational safety climate would attenuate the negative effects of job insecurity on self-reported safety outcomes such as safety knowledge, safety compliance, accidents, and injuries. Data collected from 136 manufacturing employees were consistent with these predictions. Results are discussed in light of escalating interest in how organizational factors can affect employee safety. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Safety climate as a mediator between foundation climates and occupational accidents: A group-level investigation.

Building on recent work in occupational safety and climate, the authors examined 2 organizational foundation climates thought to be antecedents of specific safety climate and the relationships among these climates and occupational accidents. It is believed that both foundation climates (i.e., management-employee relations and organizational support) will predict safety climate, which will in turn mediate the relationship between occupational accidents and these 2 distal foundation climates. Using a sample of 9,429 transportation workers in 253 work groups, the authors tested the proposed relationships at the group level. Results supported all hypotheses. Overall it appears that different climates have direct and indirect effects on occupational accidents. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Climate as a moderator of the relationship between leader-member exchange and content specific citizenship: Safety climate as an exemplar.

The present study integrates role theory, social exchange, organizational citizenship, and climate research to suggest that employees will reciprocate implied obligations of leadership-based social exchange (e.g., leader-member exchange [LMX]) by expanding their role and behaving in ways consistent with contextual behavioral expectations (e.g., work group climate). Using safety climate as an exemplar, the authors found that the relationship between LMX and subordinate safety citizenship role definitions was moderated by safety climate. In summary, high-quality LMX relationships resulted in expanded safety citizenship role definitions when there was a positive safety climate and there was no such expansion under less positive safety climates. The authors also found that safety citizenship role definitions were significantly related to safety citizenship behavior. Implications for both social exchange theory and safety research are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Safety climate and injuries: An examination of theoretical and empirical relationships.

Our purpose in this study was to meta-analytically address several theoretical and empirical issues regarding the relationships between safety climate and injuries. First, we distinguished between extant safety climate→injury and injury→safety climate relationships for both organizational and psychological safety climates. Second, we examined several potential moderators of these relationships. Meta-analyses revealed that injuries were more predictive of organizational safety climate than safety climate was predictive of injuries. Additionally, the injury→safety climate relationship was stronger for organizational climate than for psychological climate. Moderator analyses revealed that the degree of content contamination in safety climate measures inflated effects, whereas measurement deficiency attenuated effects. Additionally, moderator analyses showed that as the time period over which injuries were assessed lengthened, the safety climate→injury relationship was attenuated. Supplemental meta-analyses of specific safety climate dimensions also revealed that perceived management commitment to safety is the most robust predictor of occupational injuries. Contrary to expectations, the operationalization of injuries did not meaningfully moderate safety climate–injury relationships. Implications and recommendations for future research and practice are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Toward an Understanding of the Relationships Among Organizational Change, Individual Differences, and Changes in Person-Environment Fit: A Cross-Level Study.

Organizational behavior literature has not typically viewed person-environment (P-E) fit as an outcome of change. Whereas the study of antecedents to employees' fit with their work environment has largely been restricted to the selection and socialization of newcomers, this study examines individuals' perceptions of changes in P-E fit in relation to organizational changes occurring in 34 different organizational work units. Results suggest that the relationships between organizational change and perceived changes in fit are best understood as interactions between the characteristics of the change process, the extent of change, and individual differences. Both age and mastery orientation related to perceived changes in P-E fit through interactions with aspects of the change process. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The Impact of Justice Climate and Justice Orientation on Work Outcomes: A Cross-Level Multifoci Framework.

In this article, which takes a person-situation approach, the authors propose and test a cross-level multifoci model of workplace justice. They crossed 3 types of justice (procedural, informational, and interpersonal) with 2 foci (organization and supervisor) and aggregated to the group level to create 6 distinct justice climate variables. They then tested for the effects of these variables on either organization-directed or supervisor-directed commitment, satisfaction, and citizenship behavior. The authors also tested justice orientation as a moderator of these relationships. The results, based on 231 employees constituting 44 work groups representing multiple organizations and occupations, revealed that 4 forms of justice climate (organization-focused procedural and informational justice climate and supervisor-focused procedural and interpersonal justice climate) were significantly related to various work outcomes after controlling for corresponding individual-level justice perceptions. In addition, some moderation effects were found. Implications for organizations and future research are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Servant leadership, procedural justice climate, service climate, employee attitudes, and organizational citizenship behavior: A cross-level investigation.

This study tests the influence of servant leadership on 2 group climates, employee attitudes, and organizational citizenship behavior. Results from a sample of 815 employees and 123 immediate supervisors revealed that commitment to the supervisor, self-efficacy, procedural justice climate, and service climate partially mediated the relationship between servant leadership and organizational citizenship behavior. Cross-level interaction results revealed that procedural justice climate and positive service climate amplified the influence of commitment to the supervisor on organizational citizenship behavior. Implications of these results for theory and practice and directions for future research are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A study of the lagged relationships among safety climate, safety motivation, safety behavior, and accidents at the individual and group levels.

The authors measured perceptions of safety climate, motivation, and behavior at 2 time points and linked them to prior and subsequent levels of accidents over a 5-year period. A series of analyses examined the effects of top-down and bottom-up processes operating simultaneously over time. In terms of top-down effects, average levels of safety climate within groups at 1 point in time predicted subsequent changes in individual safety motivation. Individual safety motivation, in turn, was associated with subsequent changes in self-reported safety behavior. In terms of bottom-up effects, improvements in the average level of safety behavior within groups were associated with a subsequent reduction in accidents at the group level. The results contribute to an understanding of the factors influencing workplace safety and the levels and lags at which these effects operate. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A Dynamic Multilevel Model of Demographic Diversity and Misfit Effects.

In this study, the authors proposed and evaluated the linkages of a dynamic multilevel model of demographic diversity and misfit effects in a large sample of quick-service restaurants. Using a cross-level approach, the authors studied an employee's demographic misfit in relation to coworkers' demographics as a predictor of turnover risk over time. At the business-unit level, they studied changes in restaurant demographic diversity in relation to changes in profitability over time and unit turnover rates in relation to profitability. The authors also studied the impact of the match between the racial compositions of the restaurants and their communities on profitability. The results supported linkages between demographic misfit and turnover and partially supported a negative association between racial diversity and changes in profitability. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Relationships Between Organizational Justice and Burnout at the Work-Unit Level.

Relationships between organizational justice and well-being are traditionally investigated at the individual level. This article extends previous efforts by testing such relationships at the work-unit level. Three corridors of influence were examined. First, the level (work units' average scores) of justice is related to the level of burnout. Second, justice climate strength (level of agreement among work-unit members) moderates the predictability of the level of burnout. Third, justice strength is related to burnout strength. The authors interviewed 324 contact employees from 108 work units in 59 service organizations. Findings showed the predominance of interactional justice over distributive and procedural justice in all 3 corridors. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Organizational Citizenship Behavior in Work Groups: A Group Norms Approach.

Although the relationship between unit-level organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) and unit outcomes has been well established in recent years, the conceptual development of OCB at the unit level of analysis has not been adequately addressed. In an effort to fill this conceptual gap and to spur future research, the authors apply the literature on group norms to the concept of OCB. The resulting framework suggests a cyclical relationship between individual- and group-level processes and ultimately offers an explanation for how OCB norms are established and maintained in work groups. The authors demonstrate how this framework incorporates past research on the relationship between unit-level OCB and unit outcomes and how it extends previous research by suggesting multiple directions for future efforts related to unit-level OCB. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of Alcohol on Risk-Seeking Behavior: A Group-Level Analysis.

Although much drinking occurs in social settings, there has been little testing of alcohol in groups. The authors examined the effects of alcohol on performance on a group decision-making task. Fifty-four unacquainted male social drinkers were randomly assigned to 3-person groups that consumed either alcohol (0.82 g/kg) or a placebo. After drinking, participants decided whether to complete a 30-min questionnaire battery or toss a coin and, pending the outcome of that toss, complete either no questionnaires or a 60-min battery. Alcohol groups were significantly more likely than placebo groups to choose the coin toss. Results highlight the potent effects of alcohol on group decision making and suggest that application of social psychological theory and methods to the study of alcohol is warranted. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Group Climate, Cohesion, Alliance, and Empathy in Group Psychotherapy: Multilevel Structural Equation Models.

This study examined the definitional and statistical overlap among 4 key group therapeutic relationship constructs--group climate, cohesion, alliance, and empathy--across member-member, member-group, and member-leader relationships. Three multilevel structural equation models were tested using self-report measures completed by 662 participants from 111 counseling center and personal growth groups. As hypothesized, almost all measures of therapeutic relationship were significantly correlated. Hypothesized 1-factor, 2-factor (Working and Bonding factors), and 3-factor (Member, Leader, and Group factors) models did not fit the data adequately. An exploratory model with Bonding, Working, and Negative factors provided the best fit to the data. Group members distinguished among relationships primarily according to relationship quality rather than the status or role of others (i.e., leader, member, or whole group). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A Multiple-Goal, Multilevel Model of Feedback Effects on the Regulation of Individual and Team Performance.

When working as a member of a team, individuals must make decisions concerning the allocation of resources (e.g., effort) toward individual goals and team goals. As a result, individual and team goals, and feedback related to progress toward these goals, should be potent levers for affecting resource allocation decisions. This research develops a multilevel, multiple-goal model of individual and team regulatory processes that affect the allocation of resources across individual and team goals resulting in individual and team performance. On the basis of this model, predictions concerning the impact of individual and team performance feedback are examined empirically to evaluate the model and to understand the influence of feedback on regulatory processes and resource allocation. Two hundred thirty-seven participants were randomly formed into 79 teams of 3 that performed a simulated radar task that required teamwork. Results support the model and the predicted role of feedback in affecting the allocation of resources when individuals strive to accomplish both individual and team goals. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Understanding the Emergence of State Goal Orientation in Organizational Work Groups: The Role of Leadership and Multilevel Climate Perceptions.

This article attends to a broad range of practically significant employee motivations and provides insight into how to enhance individual-level performance by examining individual-level state goal orientation emergence in organizational work groups. Leadership and multilevel climate processes are theorized to parallel each dimension of state goal orientation to cue and ultimately induce the corresponding achievement focus among individual work group members. It is argued that the patterns of leader behavior, which elucidate the leader's achievement priority, shape group members' psychological and work group climate to embody this priority. Resulting multilevel climate perceptions signal and compel group members to adopt the ascribed form of state goal orientation. The quality of the leader-member exchange relationship is viewed as a means to clarify leader messages in the formation of group members' psychological climate and internalize these cues in the emergence of state goal orientation. Considerations for future research and practice are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The Multilevel Effects of Occupational Stressors on Soldiers' Well-Being, Organizational Attachment, and Readiness.

The U.S. Army typifies the stressful nature of many contemporary work settings, as soldiers face a climate of increasing work demands coupled with declining resources. The authors used social identity theory to propose hypotheses regarding contextual and cross-level effects of shared stressors on individual outcomes critical to the functioning of military units (well-being, attachment, readiness). Although the authors found weak support for direct effects of shared stressors on individual outcomes, they found several compelling moderating effects for shared stressors on person-level stressor-outcome relationships. For most effects, shared stressors intensified the effects of person-level stressors on morale, commitment, and depression. However, some shared stressors exerted counterintuitive effects on stressor-outcome relationships. Implications for research and military personnel management are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Speaking up in groups: A cross-level study of group voice climate and voice.

Despite a growing body of research on employee voice—defined as the discretionary communication of ideas, suggestions, or opinions intended to improve organizational or unit functioning—the effects of shared or collective-level cognitions have received scant attention. There has also been relatively little research on voice within work groups. Our goal in this study was to address these important gaps by focusing on the effects of group-level beliefs about voice (i.e., group voice climate) on individual voice behavior within work groups. We conducted a cross-level investigation of voice behavior within 42 groups of engineers from a large chemical company. Consistent with our hypotheses, group voice climate was highly predictive of voice and explained variance beyond the effects of individual-level identification and satisfaction, and procedural justice climate. Also consistent with predictions, the effect of identification on voice was stronger in groups with favorable voice climates. These findings provide evidence that voice is shaped not just by individual attitudes and perceptions of the work context, as past research has shown, but also by group-level beliefs. The results also highlight the importance of broadening our conceptual models of voice to include shared cognitions and of conducting additional cross-level research on voice. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A Relational Model of Workplace Victimization: Social Roles and Patterns of Victimization in Dyadic Relationships.

This article proposes a model of the ways in which dyadic interactions between employees who occupy 1 of 4 archetypal social roles in organizations can lead to either episodic or institutionalized patterns of victimization. The model shows how the occurrence of victimization involving these 4 role types is influenced by organizational variables such as power differences, culture, and access to social capital. The model integrates behavioral and social structural antecedents of victimization to develop a relational perspective on the dynamics of harmful behavior in the workplace. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)