Chapter 6 - Values, Attitudes, Job Satisfaction, and Counterproductive Work Behaviors

Organization Commitment Components

-Affective commitment refers to the employee's emotional attachment to, identification with, and involvement in the organization. Employees with a strong affective commitment continue employment with an organization because they want to do so. -Continuance commitment refers to an awareness of the costs associated with leaving the organization. Employees whose primary link to the organization is based on continuance commitment remain because they need to do so. -normative commitment reflects a feeling of obligation to continue employment. Employees with a high level of normative commitment feel that they ought to remain with the organization.

Schwartz's Theory 10 Values

-Power (social status) -Achievement (personal success) -Hedonism (pleasure) -Stimulation (excitement) -Self-direction (independent) -Universalism (broadminded) -Benevolance (helpful) -Tradion (customs) -Conformity (obedient) -Security (safety) In general, adjacent values like self-direction and universalism are positively related, whereas values that are further apart (e.g., self-direction and power) are less strongly related.

7. Identify and briefly describe five alternative causes of job satisfaction.

-need fulfillment (the degree to which one's own needs are met) -discrepancies (satisfaction depends on the extent to which one's expectations are met) -value attainment (satisfaction depends on the degree to which one's work values are fulfilled) -equity (perceived fairness of input/outcomes determines one's level of satisfaction) -dispositional/genetic (job satisfaction is dictated by one's personal traits and genetic makeup).

Intentions and Behavior Research Lessons and Implications

According to this model, changing behavior starts with the recognition that behavior is modified through intentions, which in turn are influenced by three different determinants. It is important to remember that employee beliefs can be influenced through the information management provides on a day-by-day basis, the organization's culture, the content of training programs, the behavior of key employees, and the rewards that are targeted to reinforce certain beliefs.

Antecedent

An antecedent is something that causes the component of commitment to occur. antecedents are anything that affects the costs and benefits of leaving. Examples are a lack of job/career alternatives and the amount of real and psychological investments a person has in a particular organization or community.

Psychological contracts

An individual's perception about the terms and conditions of a reciprocal exchange with another party. In a work environment, the psychological contract represents an employee's beliefs about what he or she is entitled to receive in return for what he or she provides to the organization.

Cognitive Dissonance

Cognitive dissonance represents the psychological discomfort an individual experiences when his or her attitudes or beliefs are incompatible with his or her behavior. (AIDs example) There are three main methods for reducing cognitive dissonance: -change an attitude or behavior -belittle the importance of the inconsistent behavior -find consonant elements that outweigh dissonant ones.

Value Conflict - Individual/organization

Conflict can occur when values espoused and enacted by the organization collide with employees' personal values. This is an important type of conflict to consider when accepting future jobs because positive outcomes such as satisfaction, commitment, performance, career success, reduced stress, and lower turnover intentions are realized when an individual's personal values are similar or aligned with organizational values.

9. Identify the causes of counterproductive work behaviors and the measures used to prevent them.

Counterproductive work behaviors (CWBs) may result from personal characteristics coupled with a lack of autonomy and job satisfaction. CWBs are more likely in situations where supervisors are abusive and responsible for many employees. Organizations can limit CWBs by hiring individuals with appropriate cognitive skills and personality traits. They can design jobs to promote satisfaction. They can develop managers to supervise effectively without abuse and should deliver immediate feedback and discipline if anyone engages in CWBs.

Values

Desired ways of behaving or desired end-states. Personal values essentially represent the things that have meaning to us in our lives. Values are important to your understanding of organizational behavior because they influence our behavior across different settings.

8. Identify eight important correlates/consequences of job satisfaction, and summarize how each one relates to job satisfaction.

Eight major correlates/consequences of job satisfaction are: -motivation (moderate positive relationship) -job involvement (moderate positive) -organizational citizenship behavior (moderate positive) -absenteeism (weak negative) -withdrawal cognitions (strong negative) -turnover (moderate negative) -perceived stress (strong negative) -job performance (moderate positive)

2. Describe the values model of work/family conflict, and specify at least three practical lessons from work/family conflict research.

General life values determine one's values about family and work. Work/family conflict can occur when there is a lack of value similarity with family members. Likewise, work/family conflict can occur when one's own work values are not congruent with the company's values. When someone does not attain his or her values because of work/family conflicts, job or life satisfaction, or both, can suffer. Six practical lessons from work/family conflict research are (1) work/family balance begins at home (2) an employer's family-supportive philosophy is more important than specific programs (3) informal flexibility in work hours and in allowing people to work at home is essential to promoting work/family balance (4) mentors can help (5) individuals should take a proactive approach to managing work/family conflict (6) self-employment has its rewards, but it is associated with higher work/family conflict and lower family satisfaction.

4. Explain how attitudes affect behavior in terms of Ajzen's theory of planned behavior.

Intentions are the key link between attitudes and behavior in Ajzen's model. Three determinants of the strength of an intention are: -one's attitude toward the behavior -subjective norm (social expectations and role models) -the perceived degree of one's control over the behavior. Intentions, in turn, are powerful determinants of behavior.

Value congruence

Involves the amount of value agreement between employee and employer. If, for example, refusing to go on a business trip to stay home for a child's birthday is viewed as disloyalty to the company, lack of value congruence can trigger work/family conflict.

6. Define the work attitudes of job involvement/employee engagement and job satisfaction.

Job involvement is the extent to which a person is preoccupied with, immersed in, and concerned with his/her job. Employee engagement is similar to job involvement and represents an individual's satisfaction, involvement, and enthusiasm for his/her work. Job satisfaction reflects how much people like or dislike their jobs. Job Descriptive Index (JDI) to assess one's satisfaction with the following job dimensions: work, pay, promotions, coworkers, and supervision.

Attitude

Learned predisposition toward a given object. Attitudes propel us to act in a specific way in a specific context. That is, attitudes affect behavior at a different level than do values. While values represent global beliefs that influence behavior across all situations, attitudes relate only to behavior directed toward specific objects, persons, or situations.

5. Describe the model of organizational commitment.

Organizational commitment reflects how strongly a person identifies with an organization and is committed to its goals. Organizational commitment is composed of three related components: -affective commitment -continuance commitment -normative commitment In turn, each of these components is influenced by a separate set of antecedents.

Organizational Response to Work/Family Issues

Organizations have implemented a variety of family-friendly programs and services aimed at helping employees to balance the interplay between their work and personal lives. Our work and personal lives should be a well-integrated whole.

Value Conflict - Intrapersonal

People are likely to experience inner conflict and stress when personal values conflict with each other. Therapists suggest that this type of value conflict can be reduced by "taking pride in characteristics that can't be stripped away—virtue, integrity, honesty, generosity. They also recommend investing more time and pride in relationships with family, friends, and community."

Value similarity

Relates to the degree of consensus among family members about family values. When a housewife launches a business venture despite her husband's desire to be the sole bread winner, lack of family value similarity causes work/family conflict.

1. Explain Schwartz's value theory, and describe three types of value conflict.

Schwartz proposed that 10 core values guide our behavior across contexts and time (see Table 6-1). Each value possesses motivational mechanisms that drive behavior.The relationships among the ten values are consistent and positively related, whereas others are inconsistent and conflict with each other. Three types of value conflict are intrapersonal, interpersonal, and individual-organization.

Value congruence or person-culture fit

The similarity between personal values and organizational values.

3. Identify the three components of attitudes

The three components of attitudes are (1)affective (2)cognitive (3)behavioral. The affective component represents the feelings or emotions one has about a given object or situation. The cognitive component reflects the beliefs or ideas one has about an object or situation. The behavioral component refers to how one intends or expects to act toward someone or something.

Value Conflict - Interpersonal

This type of value conflict often is at the core of personality conflicts, and such conflicts can negatively affect one's career. It is important to evaluate the pros and cons of handling interpersonal value conflicts with our superiors.

Organization Commitment Research and Practical Applications

• Affective commitment is enhanced by hiring people whose personal values are consistent with the organization's values. A positive, satisfying work environment also should increase employees' desire to stay. • Continuance commitment is enhanced by offering employees a variety of progressive benefits and human resource programs. • Normative commitment can be increased by making sure that management does not breach its psychological contracts and by trying to enhance the level of trust throughout the organization.