Gedrag & Organisatie - Volume 21, Issue 1, 2008

Gedrag & Organisatie gaat dit jaar haar eenentwintigste jaargang in, en is nu dus echt een 'volwassen' tijdschrift. Het gaat goed met G&O! Uitgeverij Lemma heeft de verzorging en druk van het tijdschrift uitstekend voor elkaar en de online beschikbaarheid van het tijdschrift is een grote vooruitgang. De samenwerking en coördinatie tussen redactie en uitgever verlopen soepel en er zijn plannen om G&O nog aantrekkelijker te maken voor abonnees. Mede om die plannen nader vorm te kunnen geven zal in de loop van dit jaar een onderzoek plaatsvinden onder de lezers van G&O. Ik hoop dat u allen te zijner tijd aan dit onderzoek zult willen meewerken.

Work characteristics, well-being and organizational performance: an organizational-level test of the happy-productive worker hypothesis

T.W. Taris, P.J.G. Schreurs, K.J.L. Eikmans & P. van Riet, Gedrag & Organisatie, volume 21, March 2008, pp. 3-18.

The present study examined the associations among job characteristics (demands and control), worker well-being (satisfaction and exhaustion) and indicators of organizational performance (efficiency, absence rates, and client satisfaction) among 66 Dutch home care organizations. Based on previous research, we expected that demands would relate negatively and control would relate positively to well-being, and that positive well-being would be positively related to performance. Covariance structure modeling revealed that the expected relationships among job characteristics and well-being were largely confirmed. Further, satisfaction was positively related to client satisfaction; exhaustion was negatively related to client satisfaction and positively to absence; and exhaustion was negatively related to organizational efficiency. We conclude that more theorizing and more longitudinal research on the association between worker well-being and organizational performance is imperative to add to our understanding of this relationship.

Emotional and helping responses among bystanders of victims of mobbing: the role of perceived responsibility and threat of contagion

R. Mulder, M. Pouwelse, H. Lodewijkx & C. Bolman, Gedrag & Organisatie, volume 21, March 2008, pp. 19-34

Building upon Weiner's (1995, 1996) attributional model of social behavior, we examined the effects of perceived responsibility and threat of contagion upon bystanders' emotional and helping responses towards the victim (an executive) in a mobbing situation. Hypotheses were examined in a 2 (perceived responsibility: weak/strong) x 2 (perceived threat of contagion): weak/strong) vignette study among government workers (N = 161). SEM path analyses (using Amos 5.0) revealed that weak (versus strong) perceived responsibility led to stronger pity and less anger, which both led to stronger helping intentions. Intriguingly, bystanders further showed stronger helping intentions, when the victim of mobbing was held more responsible for his situation. The perceived threat conditions did not directly influence helping intentions, but weak versus strong perceived threat was related to less anger and anxiety, and less anxiety, in turn, was associated with stronger helping intentions. Discussed are the potential consequences of the power differential between victims (as executives) and bystanders, and the validity of Weiner's model in explaining mobbing at work.

The effectiveness of solution-focused working in coaching and consultancy

C. Visser & R. Butter, Gedrag & Organisatie, volume 21, March 2008, pp. 35-55

Until now, little research has been done on the effectiveness of organizational consultancy and coaching. This study aims to make a contribution to the knowledge development in this area. A web-based questionnaire was administered with 158 clients of coaches and organizational consultants. Through this questionnaire, the relation was studied between, on the one hand, the way of contracting and the approach followed, and on the other hand the effectiveness of the project. One of the most striking conclusions is that a client-led way of working – which is one of the important characteristics of the solution-focused approach – in which the client directs the process while the advisor responds flexibly, is strongly associated with success. The article closes with some practical suggestions for advisors and for follow-up research.

Investing in employability: whose responsibility?

M. Verbruggen, A. Forrier, L. Sels & A. Bollen, Gedrag & Organisatie, volume 21, March 2008, pp. 56-73

Investing in employability is often regarded as a shared responsibility between employees and employers. In practice, however, not all employees and employers take up that responsibility. The Flemish government introduced an 'entitlement to external career guidance' to correct the observed deficiencies. In this article we investigate whether this entitlement can do so. In addition, we examine how employability-investment of employers affects employability-initiative of employees. We conduct a path analysis using data of 803 Flemish employees. Results indicate that employability-initiative of employers encourages employees to take on activities of their own accord, that especially proactive employees are willing to participate in external career guidance and that external career guidance can not totally compensate for a lack of employability-support of the employer.

Social and organizational psychological research on creativity and innovation in the Netherlands: an overview

E. Rietzschel & O. Janssen, Gedrag & Organisatie, volume 21, March 2008, pp. 74-87

This is the first article of a series about creative and innovative performance by individuals and teams. We aim to give an overview of social and organizational psychological research in the Netherlands, published between 2000 and 2006 in Behavior & Organization and in international journals. The selected articles are classified according to subject (creativity versus innovation) and level of analysis (individual versus group level), followed by a general review and discussion.