Gedrag & Organisatie - Volume 24, Issue 2, 2011

Psychological resources for engaged employees:Psychological capital in the Job Demands-Resources model

This study focused on the role of personal resources, operationalized as ‘psychological capital’ (PsyCap), in the motivational process of the Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) model. PsyCap consists of self-efficacy, optimism, hope and resiliency. As a single construct, these four components have been linked to positive outcomes for organizations, but they have never been studied in relation to work engagement (as conceptualized by Schaufeli & Bakker, 2003). Academic and administrative staff of a Dutch university (N=301) filled in an online questionnaire. The study results showed that job resources, PsyCap, and work engagement are distinct constructs which are significantly related. Job resources were related to work engagement both directly and indirectly via PsyCap. This study confirms the theoretical importance of including personal resources in the JD-R model, as well as the practical relevance of the construct of PsyCap.

Evaluating the team leader: does teachers’ personality influence their perceptions?

Using data from 249 teachers belonging to 37 teams within 11 school communities, this study examines the extent to which the personality of teachers is related to their perceptions of transformational leadership of their team leader (assumed similarity). Furthermore the question if similarity between personality of the teacher and the team leader leads to a stronger perception of transformational leadership (similarity attraction) is tested with a part of this dataset (117 teachers, 15 team leaders and 11 school communities). Results revealed that there is a positive relationship between extraversion and perception of transformational leadership. Moreover similarity between teachers and team leaders in terms of extraversion leads to a stronger perception of transformational leadership.

Are Moroccans less employable than Dutch? Taking a closer look at hiring discrimination upon resume-screening

Anonymous resume screening is much debated in Dutch society. A policy capturing study among native, Dutch recruiters showed that Moroccan applicants suffered hiring discrimination on the basis of their ethic-sounding names as appearing on resumes. Moroccan males were discriminated more than Moroccan females and Dutch applicants, lending support for the subordinate male target-hypothesis. The amount of external client contact did not moderate findings but recruiters low in social dominance orientation discriminated less against Moroccans. Findings are discussed in the context of theories on social identity and impression formation. Implications for practice, like anonymous resume screening, are discussed.

The Self-versus Other-referenced Anxiety Questionnaire: Differences in test anxiety between Flemish and Walloon applicants in Belgium

The purpose of the present study was to validate a French version of the Self- versus Other-referenced Anxiety Questionnaire (SOAQ) and to study the difference in test anxiety between Flemish and French speaking applicants in Belgium. In a sample of 4229 applicants that applied for position at the Federal Government, adequate measurement invariance was found for the French version of the SOAQ. Flemish applicants were found to experience higher levels of both self- and other-referenced anxiety than Walloon applicants. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

Three is more than two: why coalition formation is not easy

In this short version of my inaugural address I describe how people form coalitions. I argue that people behave as if they are already a member of a coalition without realizing that they could also be excluded from the winning coalition. As a consequence people use specific tactics that have proven their success in dyadic interactions. Using examples of research on resources, power, distribution rules, emotions and deception, I show that the implementation of such tactics yield unexpected and potentially disastrous outcomes in triadic settings.