Gedrag & Organisatie - Volume 19, Issue 1, 2006

Het begin van dit jaar markeert een belangrijke verandering voor Gedrag & Organisatie. Wij zijn van uitgever veranderd, zoals u ongetwijfeld gemerkt zult hebben. Lemma, de nieuwe uitgever van het tijdschrift, heeft Gedrag & Organisatie met veel enthousiasme binnengehaald. Naast een aantal kleinere veranderingen en vernieuwingen in lay-out, omslag, en verschijningsfrequentie ziet het er nu ook naar uit dat onze al lang gekoesterde wens om het tijdschrift ook digitaal beschikbaar te stellen binnenkort in vervulling zal gaan.

Effectiveness of a communication training: A comparison between a tailor-made and a standard approach

Michael Rauner, Gerjo Kok & Toon Taris, Gedrag & Organisatie, Volume 19, Maart 2006, nr. 1, pp. 3-21

Long-term behavior change as a result of a training intervention is difficult to achieve. The present study assumes that a training will have a stronger impact when (1) a theory-based intervention program is used (in this case based on Ajzen's [1991] Theory of Planned Behaviour), and (2) if a structured approach is applied (Intervention Mapping, Bartholomew et al., 2001). Using a supervised control (N = 19) - experimental (N = 35) group design, the present study showed that the TPB-model can be used to frame desirable behaviour and to measure the outcome of the intervention. IM appeared an effective method to influence behaviour in the desired way. During the whole intervention the intervention group showed significantly more improvement on the TPB variables (attitude, subjective norm, perceived behavior and intention) than the control group.

Employees' learning orientation as a moderator in the relationship between transformational leadership and psychological empowerment

Niek Faber, Onne Janssen & Tjeerd Bartlema, Gedrag & Organisatie, Volume 19, Maart 2006, nr. 1, pp. 22-36

Employees' learning orientation was hypothesized to enhance the positive relationship between transformational leadership and empowerment experienced by employees. As expected, a survey among 191 attendants of organizational-psychological training courses showed a positive relationship between transformational leadership and psychological empowerment. However, a learning orientation was found to serve as a substitute rather than an enhancer of the empowering effect of transformational leadership. More specifically, transformational leadership was strongly related to psychological empowerment for employees with a weak learning orientation. For employees with a strong learning orientation, transformational leadership had only a marginal relationship with psychological empowerment because these employees had already relatively high levels of empowerment induced by their learning orientation.

Job satisfaction: result of job characteristics, work values, or both?

Marije Evers, Jan Fekke Ybema & Peter Smulders, Gedrag & Organisatie, Volume 19, Maart 2006, nr. 1, pp. 37-52

This paper explores how job characteristics and work values influence job satisfaction in a sample of the Dutch working population (N = 4009). In accordance with the Vitamin Model, we expected that the presence of a job characteristic would only lead to (increased) job satisfaction under certain circumstances. In this study, we hypothesised that a job characteristic would lead to increased job satisfaction especially in cases of a good fit between work value and job characteristic. Some studies showed that such a good fit contributed to job satisfaction, while other studies found little or no evidence. Our research showed that the hypothesis held true in three out of seven cases. In other words, a good fit between work value and job characteristic sometimes resulted in higher levels of job satisfaction. Our paper therefore concludes that not only are work characteristics important for job satisfaction, but also the extent to which work values and work characteristics coincide.

Employability and employee development at work

Karen van Dam, Beatrice I.J.M. van der Heijden en Birgit Schyns, Gedrag & Organisatie, Volume 19, Maart 2006, nr. 1, pp. 53-68

In the past decades, employability and employee development have received increased attention. Changes within and around organizations have emphasized the need for flexible firms and a multi-skilled work force, while, at the same time, employees have become responsible for their own careers and work security. The present article first reviews recent changes underlying the need for employability and employee development. Subsequently, attention is paid to the concepts of employability and workplace learning, factors affecting learning at work, and age-related influences. With this article, we aim to kick off a new series for Gedrag & Organisatie on employee development and employability in organizations.

Employee learning and task characteristics: An action-theoretical perspective

Toon Taris, Michiel Kompier & Etty Wielenga-Meijer, Gedrag & Organisatie, Volume 19, Maart 2006, nr. 1, pp. 69-89

This study examines employee learning behavior as a function of task characteristics. Karasek and Theorell's (1990) Demand-Control (DC) model proposes that high levels of learning will occur when both job demands and job control are high. We consider the evidence for this assumption, arguing that the conceptual foundations of the DC model regarding the processes accounting for learning behavior are weak, while interpersonal differences in the learning process are largely neglected. We then discuss the relationship between learning and task characteristics from the perspective of German Action Theory (AT). AT explicitly discusses the mechanisms accounting for the relationship between task characteristics and learning, also assigning a role to interpersonal differences. Finally, we present a model that integrates action-theoretical insights on learning with DC-based empirical results.