Individual adaptive performance in organizations: A review

Modern work is frequently characterized by jobs where adaptive performance (AP) is crucial for employees to succeed in light of new or altered task demands. This recognition has fueled growing interest in AP as a dimension of workplace performance. To this point, however, research on AP has evolved from disparate perspectives and methods, resulting in fragmentation and a less than coherent knowledge base. This paper presents a comprehensive review of research studies regarding the nomological network of individual AP. In doing so, we synthesize the current knowledge base surrounding correlates of AP, elucidate current ambiguities, and suggest directions for future research efforts. We conclude that although the extant AP literature has amassed a critical body of studies linking various predictors to successful AP outcomes, much remains unknown, most critically regarding the implications of different methods of assessing AP, the effects of different types of changes in the task environment, the process of AP, and the steps organizations can take to foster AP among their employees. We hope that our synthesis and analysis paves the way for efforts to address these important questions. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The employee as a punching bag: The effect of multiple sources of incivility on employee withdrawal behavior and sales performance

The link between the interpersonal stressor of workplace mistreatment and objective measures of performance is often overlooked in organizational research. In order to fill this research gap, we examined the unique and combined effects of two sources of incivility (customer and coworker) on objective sales performance and withdrawal behaviors (absenteeism and tardiness). We hypothesized that coworker and customer incivility would interact to predict reduced performance and increased withdrawal, using the conservation of resources model to support our hypotheses. We surveyed 120 bank tellers regarding experienced incivility and obtained performance and withdrawal data spanning a period of several months following the survey. The data indicated that coworker and customer incivility did interact to predict decreased sales performance and increased absenteeism, supporting the majority of our proposed hypotheses. Theoretical and practical implications of the findings and future directions are discussed. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The effects of passive leadership on workplace incivility

In this article, we examine the effects of passive leadership on workplace incivility across two studies. Study 1 examines passive leadership–incivility relationships in a sample of employee–supervisor dyads, and Study 2 examines these relationships in a sample of employee–coworker dyads. Results from these studies suggest that passive leadership has a significant direct effect on behavioral incivility and an indirect effect through experienced incivility. Moreover, our results suggest that the relationship between experienced incivility and behavioral incivility is conditional on the level of passive leadership, such that the effect of experienced incivility on behavioral incivility is stronger at higher levels of passive leadership. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The spillover effects of coworker,supervisor, and outsider workplace incivility on work‐to‐family conflict: A weekly diary design

This study used an experience sampling design to examine the spillover effects of experienced workplace incivility from organizational insiders (coworkers and supervisors, respectively) and organizational outsiders (patients and their visitors) on targets' work‐to‐family conflict and to test the mediating effect of burnout and the moderating effect of display rules. Data collected over five consecutive weeks from 84 full‐time nurses showed that within individuals, weekly experiences of coworker incivility and outsider incivility were positively related to weekly experience of work‐to‐family conflict, and burnout mediated these relationships while controlling for initial level of burnout before participants started a week's work. In addition, display rules, defined as the extent to which individuals perceive they are expected to display desired positive emotions and suppress negative emotions at work, moderated the relationship between outsider incivility and burnout; specifically, the positive relationship between weekly outsider incivility and burnout was stronger for individuals who perceived a higher level of display rules. Our findings contribute to the literature by demonstrating the mediating effect of burnout and the moderating effect of perceived display rules in the relationship between workplace incivility from multiple sources and work‐to‐family conflict from a resource perspective.     

Targeted workplace incivility: The roles of belongingness,embarrassment, and power

Research to date has largely been unclear about whether a single perpetrator is sufficient to instigate the well‐documented negative consequences of workplace incivility. In the current research, we examine the extent to which perceived belongingness and embarrassment mediate the relationship between incivility from a single perpetrator and two important outcomes (job insecurity and somatic symptoms), and the extent to which the perpetrator's power moderates these relationships. Across two studies using different methods, we find that incidents of single perpetrator incivility are associated with target feelings of isolation and embarrassment, which in turn relate to targets' perceived job insecurity and somatic symptoms (Studies 1 and 2) both the same day and three days later (Study 2). Moreover, we find that perpetrator power moderates the relationship between incivility and embarrassment, such that targets are more embarrassed when the perpetrator is powerful. Implications for theory and practice are discussed. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Predicting retail shrink from performance pressure,ethical leader behavior,and store‐level incivility

Retail shrink, a form of inventory loss due primarily to employee theft and shoplifting, is a growing concern for retailers. Prior work on shrink has taken primarily an individual‐level focus to understanding this problem but has yet to really explore how the business context impacts shrink. The current study addresses this need by delineating and testing a unit‐level (i.e., between‐stores) conceptual model, wherein we examine the influence of performance pressure, ethical leader behavior, and store‐level incivility on shrink in a field study of 111 U.S. retail stores. Results demonstrate that performance pressure and ethical leadership interact to influence store‐level incivility. Further, stores with higher incivility also had higher levels of shrink. A focus on the contextual predictors of shrink provides timely insights into the role of performance pressure and leadership on store‐level incivility and consequently on retail shrink. In light of increasingly thin margins in the retail industry, the evidence on how pressure to perform and ethical leadership influences retail shrink may offer a solution to retailers looking to stem financial losses by promoting civility in the workplace.     

Convergence and emergence in organizations: An integrative framework and review

In reaction to the growing attention to connecting individual‐level and unit‐level constructs, we first briefly review emergence terminology and theories that address the dynamic process by which a higher‐level phenomenon emerges from lower‐level elements. Next, we review the extant theory and research on emergence and convergence in organization science using an organizing framework that simultaneously considers the content area of lower‐level elements, the emergent factors, and the target of the emergent property. In addition to organizing and bridging current literature on emergence and convergence, gaps of existing research and new directions for future research, including compilation and divergence, are identified. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Linking workplace incivility to citizenship performance: The combined effects of affective commitment and conscientiousness

Although all human relationships are believed to generally adhere to the basic tenets of social exchange theory, recent research suggests that exchange processes may vary as a function of individual differences. We tested this possibility by examining whether the effects of uncivil workplace exchanges on employee attitudes and behavior were moderated by conscientiousness. Using matched data from 190 job incumbents and their supervisors, we found (i) the effect of workplace incivility on citizenship performance to be transmitted through affective commitment and (ii) the strength of this effect to depend on individual differences in conscientiousness. As such, the overall pattern of relationships supported moderated mediation, in that, the indirect effect of workplace incivility on citizenship performance through affective commitment was stronger for individuals high (as compared with those low) in conscientiousness. These findings broaden the focus of prior research by illustrating that, in addition to the mediating effects of cognitive and stress‐based factors, social exchange processes are important for understanding incivility's adverse effects on citizenship performance and that such exchanges are moderated by individual differences in conscientiousness. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Job stress,incivility, and counterproductive work behavior (CWB): the moderating role of negative affectivity

The current study was designed to replicate findings from previous research regarding the relationships between job stressors, negative affectivity, and counterproductive work behavior (CWB) using peer‐reported data and to assess the effects of workplace incivility on employee satisfaction and CWB. Results indicate that incivility, organizational constraints, and interpersonal conflict were negatively related to job satisfaction and positively related to CWB. Support was also found for the role of negative affectivity as a moderator of the relationship between job stressors and CWB, although only one significant moderator was found using peer‐reported CWB. In general, the relationships between job stressors and CWB were stronger for individuals high in negative affectivity than for individuals low in negative affectivity. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The relentless pursuit of perfectionism: A review of perfectionism in the workplace and an agenda for future research

The pursuit of perfectionism resonates with many individuals across workplaces resulting in a recent flurry of research on the topic. Although extant research has examined the costs and benefits of perfectionism at work, these efforts are scattered across multiple disciplines and utilize varying conceptualizations. As a result, we lack a coherent understanding of how perfectionism influences work behavior. To address this issue, we integrate the nascent but fragmented perfectionism at work literature, including both empirical findings and theoretical perspectives. We introduce and discuss a future research agenda that addresses not only the need to broaden understanding of perfectionism's antecedents, processes, and boundary conditions but also its multilevel applications and methodological limitations. Our review will enable organizational scholars to develop a deeper understanding of how perfectionism renders its influence in the workplace.     

You cannot leave it at the office: Spillover and crossover of coworker incivility

This study examines the spillover and crossover effects of a specific chronic stressor, coworker incivility, on target marital satisfaction, partner marital satisfaction, and partner family‐to‐work conflict and on how the transmission of stress from the workplace to the family domain (as perceived by the target's partner) mediates these relationships. Using a matched data set of 190 job incumbents and their partners, the findings reveal that coworker incivility demonstrates both spillover and crossover effects on these outcomes important to the family. Evidence indicates that incivility targets do not leave the stress of incivility at work but instead bring it home to the family domain where it influences relationships with and outcomes of their partners. Implications of these findings and avenues for future research are discussed. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Episodes of incivility between subordinates and supervisors: examining the role of self‐control and time with an interaction‐record diary study

Scholars have hypothesized that experiencing incivility not only negatively affects well‐being, but may even trigger further antisocial behavior. Previous research, however, has focused mainly on the relation between incivility and well‐being. Thus, little is known about the behavioral consequences of incivility. With this in mind, we conducted an interaction‐record diary study to examine whether supervisor incivility causes retaliatory incivility against the supervisor. Using the self‐control strength model as a framework, we further examined whether the target's trait (trait self‐control) and state (exhaustion) self‐regulatory capacities moderate this effect. In addition, we examined the role of time by testing the duration of the effect. When we analyzed the full data set, we found no support for our hypotheses. However, using a subset of the data in which the subsequent interaction happened on the same day as the prior interaction, our results showed that experiencing incivility predicted incivility in the subsequent interaction, but only when the time lag between the two interactions was short. Furthermore, in line with the assumption that self‐regulatory capacities are required to restrain a target from retaliatory responses, the effect was stronger when individuals were exhausted. In contrast to our assumption, trait self‐control had no effect on instigated incivility. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

“Incivility,social undermining,bullying…oh my!”: A call to reconcile constructs within workplace aggression research

Research in the field of workplace aggression has rapidly developed in the last two decades, and with this growth has come an abundance of overlapping constructs that fall under the broad rubric of workplace aggression. While researchers have conceptually distinguished these constructs, it is unclear whether this proliferation of constructs is adding appreciably to our knowledge, or whether it is constraining the questions we ask. In this paper, I consider five example constructs (i.e., abusive supervision, bullying, incivility, social undermining, and interpersonal conflict) and argue that the manner in which we have differentiated these (and other) aggression constructs does not add appreciably to our knowledge of workplace aggression. I then provide supplementary meta‐analytic evidence to show that there is not a predictable pattern of outcomes from these constructs, and propose a restructuring of the manner in which we conceptualize workplace aggression. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The many benefits of employee well‐being in organizational research

We undertake three objectives in this Incubator. We begin with a discussion of how well‐being has been considered in organizational research. Second, we provide an overview of the relationship between employee well‐being and such workplace outcomes as job performance, employee retention, and cardiovascular health. Third, we introduce exciting research directions. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Moral emotions: A review and research agenda for management scholarship

By discussing “families” of moral emotions, we synthesize and review the moral emotions literature in an effort to advance organizational scholarship. First, we broadly discuss “what constitutes a moral emotion?” Second, we critically examine each family of moral emotions. We discuss key controversies and debates, particularly in terms of construct overlap, and provide recommendations. Third, we review scholarly work on each family of moral emotions in the workplace and offer ideas for future research. Finally, in our general future directions, we discuss a range of theoretical perspectives that can be used to advance the moral emotions literature in the management field.     

Self‐monitoring personality trait at work: An integrative narrative review and future research directions

In this narrative review, we provide an overview of the self‐monitoring literature as it applies to the workplace context. Our starting point to the review is a meta‐analysis of self‐monitoring literature published in 2002 by Day, Schleicher, Unckless, and Hiller. After providing an overview of the theoretical basis of self‐monitoring and its measurement, we present a summary of the broad literature on self‐monitoring to examine the implications of self‐monitoring for employees and organizations. Based on our review, we identify the main outcomes of self‐monitoring as well as findings of the literature treating self‐monitoring as a moderator. We provide evidence that self‐monitoring has potential downsides, which would benefit from further investigation. We conclude our review by identifying important potential future research directions.     

British directors perspectives on the impact of health and safety on corporate performance

Occupational health and safety is established as a factor in international competitiveness, but we question the relevance of this economic argument at the organisational level. On this basis we assess the place of health and safety in the senior management agenda, based on findings from recent market research. Out of this we take a brief perspective on the literature on performance assessment and corporate reputation, and their relationship with health and safety in the workplace. We then report original in-depth research on directors' attitudes to and practice in workplace health and safety. We conclude with a summary of the key issues and a discussion of directions for further work.     

Not if,but when we need resilience in the workplace

Workplace resilience is a necessity for organizations and employees given it assists them in overcoming adversity and ultimately succeeding. However, organizational scholars have largely overlooked this construct. In this Incubator, we briefly summarize extant research on workplace resilience to highlight opportunities for theory building and advancement of empirical research. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Micro‐break activities at work to recover from daily work demands

Recovery literature has focused predominantly on recovery processes outside the workplace during nonwork times. Considering a lack of research on momentary recovery at work, we examined four categories of micro‐break activities—relaxation, nutrition‐intake, social, and cognitive activities—as possible recovery mechanisms in the workplace. Using effort recovery and conservation of resources theories, we hypothesized that micro‐break activities attenuate the common stressor–strain relationship between work demands and negative affect. For 10 consecutive workdays, 86 South Korean office workers (842 data points) reported their specific daily work demands right after their lunch hour (Time 1) and then reported their engagement in micro‐break activities during the afternoon and negative affective state at the end of the workday (Time 2). As expected, relaxation and social activities reduced the effects of work demands on end‐of‐workday negative affect. Nutrition intake of beverages and snacks did not have a significant moderating effect. Post hoc analyses, however, revealed that only caffeinated beverages reduced work demands effects on negative affect. Unexpectedly, cognitive activities aggravated the effects of work demands on negative affect. The findings indicate not only the importance of taking micro‐breaks but also which types of break activities are beneficial for recovery. Implications, limitations, and future research directions are discussed. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.