Transformational leadership,relationship quality,and employee performance during continuous incremental organizational change

Although transformational leadership has been investigated in connection with change at higher levels of organizations, less is known about its “in‐the‐trenches” impact. We examined relations among transformational leadership, explicit change reactions (i.e., relationship quality), change frequency, and change consequences (i.e., task performance and organizational citizenship behavior (OCB)) during continuous incremental organizational change at lower hierarchical levels. In a sample of 251 employees and their 78 managers, analyses revealed that the quality of relationships between leaders and employees mediated the influence of transformational leadership on employee task performance and OCB. We also found that change frequency moderated the positive association of relationship quality with task performance and OCB, such that associations were stronger when change frequency was high. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The role of hindrance stressors in the job demand–control–support model of occupational stress: A proposed theory revision

Previous research on the job demand–control–support (JDCS) model of occupational stress has generally been inconsistent at best regarding a key issue: the interaction of demands, control, and support in predicting employee health and well‐being. However, the model continues to be tested in a variety of studies and academic journals owing to its intuitive appeal. By incorporating conservation of resources theory with knowledge from the challenge–hindrance stressor framework, we proposed that hindrance stressors, not the challenge stressors commonly assessed when testing JDCS theory, will provide validation for the model. A two‐wave panel study of 228 employees in a variety of occupations provided support for three‐way interactions between hindrance demands, control, and support predicting job‐related anxiety and physical symptoms. Three‐way interactions using a challenge demand (forms of workload) were not significant, consistent with our propositions. In summary, this study supports the buffering effect of control and support on the relationship between job demands and strain only when job demands reflect hindrance stressors, thereby proposing to alter the JDCS model by specifying that it applies primarily to hindrance stressors in a job hindrance–control–support model. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Statistical control in correlational studies: 10 essential recommendations for organizational researchers

Statistical control is widely used in correlational studies with the intent of providing more accurate estimates of relationships among variables, more conservative tests of hypotheses, or ruling out alternative explanations for empirical findings. However, the use of control variables can produce uninterpretable parameter estimates, erroneous inferences, irreplicable results, and other barriers to scientific progress. As a result, methodologists have provided a great deal of advice regarding the use of statistical control, to the point that researchers might have difficulties sifting through and prioritizing the available suggestions. We integrate and condense this literature into a set of 10 essential recommendations that are generally applicable and which, if followed, would substantially enhance the quality of published organizational research. We provide explanations, qualifications, and examples following each recommendation. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Reflecting on the past and looking to the future

This issue comprises the fourth IRIOP Annual Review Issue, following the incorporation of the International Review of Industrial and Organizational Psychology (IRIOP) into the Journal of Organizational Behavior (JOB). In this, the final editorial of our 12‐year period of office, we celebrate the achievements of our authors and anonymous peer reviewers, each of whom has played a major role in transforming the highly successful invitation only IRIOP book series into the leading peer reviewed outlet for the publication of critical state‐of‐the‐art overviews and commentary on established knowledge and developments at the forefront of the field that the IRIOP Annual Review Issue has become, exemplified by the six papers appearing in this issue.     

Justice and job engagement: The role of senior management trust

We examined whether job engagement mediated the effects of organizational justice dimensions on work behaviors and attitudes. Considering distributive and procedural justice from a motivational perspective, we proposed that job engagement would mediate these two dimensions' relations with the work outcomes of task performance, organizational citizenship behavior, and job satisfaction. We also expected this mediation effect would be magnified when senior management trust (SMT) was high. Our results showed that the simple mediation model was supported only for distributive justice. Alternatively, the indirect effect of procedural justice on work outcomes through job engagement was significant only when SMT was high. Implications of our findings and areas for future research are discussed. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Preliminary studies on the stability of arsenolipids: Implications for sample handling and analysis

Human health risk assessments concerning arsenic are now estimating exposure through food in addition to exposure through drinking water. Intrinsic to this assessment is sample handling and preparation that maintains the arsenic species in the form that they occur in foods. We investigated the stability of three arsenolipids(two arsenic fatty acids, As FA-362 and As FA-388, and one arsenic hydrocarbon As HC-332), common constituents of fish and algae, relevant to sample storage and transport, and to their preparation for quantitative measurements. The fate of the arsenolipids was followed by high performance liquid chromatography/electrospray triple quadruple mass spectrometry(HPLC/ESIMS) analyses.Storage of the compounds dry as pure compounds or mixed in fish oil at up to 60?C did not result in significant changes to the compounds, although losses were observed by apparent adsorption onto the plastic walls of the polypropylene tubes. No losses occurred when the experiment was repeated with glass tubes. When the compounds were stored in ethanol for up to 15 days under acidic, neutral, or alkaline conditions(each at room temperature), no significant decomposition was observed, although esterification of the fatty acids occurred at low p H. The compounds were also stable during a sample preparation step involving passage through a small silica column. The results indicate that these typical arsenolipids are stable when stored in glass at temperatures up to 60?C for at least 2 days, and that,consequently, samples of food or extracts thereof can be transported dry at ambient temperatures, i.e. without the need for cool conditions.     

Potential of capillary electrophoresis mass spectrometry for the characterization and monitoring of amine-derivatized naphthenic acids from oil sands process-affected water

Capillary electrophoresis coupled to mass spectrometry(CE–MS) was used for the analysis of naphthenic acid fraction compounds(NAFCs) of oil sands process-affected water(OSPW). A standard mixture of amine-derivatized naphthenic acids is injected directly onto the CE column and analyzed by CE–MS in less than 15 min. Time of flight MS analysis(TOFMS), optimized for high molecular weight ions, showed NAFCs between 250 and 800 m/z. With a quadrupole mass analyzer, only low-molecular weight NAFCs(between 100 and 450 m/z) are visible under our experimental conditions. Derivatization of NAFCs consisted of two-step amidation reactions mediated by 1-ethyl-3-(3-dimethylaminopropyl)carbodiimide(EDC), or mediated by a mixture of EDC and N-hydroxysuccinimide, in dimethyl sulfoxide, dichloromethane or ethyl acetate. The optimum background electrolyte composition was determined to be 30%(V/V) methanol in water and 2%(V/V) formic acid. NAFCs extracted from OSPW in the Athabasca oil sands region were used to demonstrate the feasibility of CE–MS for the analysis of NAFCs in environmental samples, showing that the labeled naphthenic acids are in the mass range of 350 to 1500 m/z.     

Global genomic methylation levels in the liver and gonads of the three-spine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) after exposure to hexabromocyclododecane and 17-beta oestradiol

Alteration of DNA methylation is a major epigenetic mechanism associated with the effects of nongenotoxic carcinogens. We evaluated the effects of two environmental pollutants, hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD), 17-beta oestradiol (E(2)) as well as 5-aza 2' deoxycytidine (5AdC) on global DNA methylation levels (5-methyl 2' deoxycytidine) in the liver and gonads of the three-spine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus). HBCD at 30 and 300 ng/L of water did not produce statistically significant differences in global genomic methylation in liver of female stickleback. On the other hand, the methylation inhibitor, 5-aza-2'-deoxycytidine, significantly lowered hepatic global methylation levels in these fish by 14% (P<0.05). The naturally occurring oestrogen, 17-beta oestradiol (E(2)) at 100 ng/L also decreased global DNA methylation levels in female liver but this effect was not statistically significant. In contrast, both E(2) and 5AdC caused statistically significant (P<0.001 and P<0.01 respectively) global genomic hypermethylation in the gonads of male sticklebacks although the increase seen in the female gonads was not statistically significant. The male gonad effect though unexplained may potentially be an indirect response to hypomethylation in other tissues (such as the liver) and may have important implications regarding oestrogenic effects in fish. The contrasting effects of HBCD and E(2) on global DNA methylation in stickleback should contribute to the integrated risk assessment of these environmental chemicals.     

An integrated approach to modeling resource utilization for rural communities in developing countries

Resource consumption in developing countries has been the focus of a considerable amount of research. What has been understudied however, has been the feedback affects of resource consumption on resource availability to both households and communities. Heavy reliance on natural resources and intensive smallholder agriculture common to many rural communities in developing countries has forced people to fulfill short-term needs to the detriment of long-term ecological and livelihood sustainability. This paper introduces a conceptual framework to examine how individuals and households fulfill daily caloric needs and the aggregate effects on resource availability and consumption. Data were collected from a large number of published case studies of rural land-use dynamics, growth and yield models, and human livelihoods were reviewed from scientific journals, reports published by NGOs, and government reports. Using inputs defined by the user, the model tracks annual fuelwood and agricultural land use based on meeting individual energy demands. A case-study-based analysis was patterned after smallholder agriculturalists at the family and community level. Three scenarios are presented in this paper using data from Uganda to illustrate the application of this model.     

The Steubenville Comprehensive Air Monitoring Program (SCAMP): concentrations and solubilities of PM(2.5) trace elements and their implications for source apportionment and health research

The elemental compositions of the water-soluble and acid-digestible fractions of 24-hr integrated fine particulate matter (PM(2.5)) samples collected in Steubenville, OH, from 2000 to 2002 were determined using dynamic reaction cell inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry. The water-soluble elemental compositions of PM(2.5) samples collected at four satellite monitoring sites in the surrounding region were also determined. Fe was the most abundant but least water soluble of the elements determined at the Steubenville site, having a mean ambient concentration of 272 ng/m3 and a median fractional solubility of 6%. Fe solubility and its correlations with SO4(2-) and temperature varied significantly by season, consistent with the hypothesis that secondary sulfates may help to mobilize soluble Fe under suitable summertime photochemical conditions. Significantly higher ambient concentrations were observed at Steubenville than at each of the four satellite sites for 10 of the 18 elements (Al, As, Ca, Cd, Fe, Mg, Mn, Na, Pb, and Zn) determined in the water-soluble PM(2.5) fraction. Concentrations of Fe, Mn, and Zn at Steubenville were substantially higher than concentrations reported recently for larger U.S. cities. Receptor modeling identified seven sources affecting the Steubenville site. An (NH4)2SO4-dominated source, likely representing secondary PM(2.5) from coal-fired plants to the west and southwest of Steubenville, accounted for 42% of the PM(2.5) mass, and two sources likely dominated by emissions from motor vehicles and from iron and steel facilities in the immediate Steubenville vicinity accounted for 20% and 10%, respectively. Other sources included an NH4NO3 source (15%), a crustal source (6%), a mixed nonferrous metals and industrial source (3%), and a primary coal combustion source (3%). Results suggest the importance of very different regional and local source mechanisms in contributing to PM(2.5) mass at Steubenville and reinforce the need for further research to elucidate whether metals such as Fe, Mn, and Zn play a role in the PM(2.5) health effects observed previously there.