Workplace Attitude

Attitudinal Variables

Organizational Commitment

  • The degree to which an employee identifies with a particular organization and its goals and wished to maintain membership in the organization
3 Components
  • An ^^acceptance^^ of the organization’s goals
  • A ^^willingness^^ to work hard for the organization
  • The ^^desire to stay^^ with the organization
Dimensions
  • Continuance Commitment
    • ^^Rational Calculation^^
    • Refers to employees’ assessment of whether the cost of leaving the organization are greater than the cost of staying
    • Employees who perceive that the costs of leaving the organization are greater than the costs of staying remain because they ^^need^^ to 

 

  • Normative Commitment
    • Refers to employee’s ^^feelings of obligation^^ to the organization
    • Employees with high levels of normative commitment stay with the organization because they feel they ^^ought^^ to 
    • ^^“Utang na loob”^^ to the organization

 

  • Affective Commitment
    • ^^“Genuine commitment”^^
    • Refers to employee’s emotional attachment, identification with, and involvement in the organization
    • Employees with a strong affective commitment stay with the organization because they ^^want^^ to

 

Measuring Organizational Commitment
  • Organizational Commitment Scale: self-scoring questionnaire

Job Satisfaction

  • A degree to which an individual feels positive or negative about a job overall as well as various aspects of them.
  • Is the extent to which people like or dislike their jobs
  • One of the most studied variables in organizational behavior
  • Argued as the cause of important employee organizational outcomes ranging from ^^job performance^^ to ^^health and longevity^^
Satisfied and Committed Employees
  • More likely to attend work
  • Stay with the organization
  • Arrive at work on time
  • Perform well
  • Engage in organizational citizenship behaviors
    • Go the extra mile
  • Do not behave in counterproductive ways
  • Engage in ethical behavior
Approaches to the Study of Job Satisfaction

  • Global Approach

    • Treats job satisfaction as a ^^single overall feeling^^ towards the job
    • “All things considered, how satisfied are you with your job?”

  • Facet/Dimension Approach

    • ^^Focuses on different aspects of the job^^, such as rewards (pay/fringe benefits), other people on the job (supervisors/co-workers), job conditions, and the nature of the work

  • 5 Facets of Job Satisfaction

    • One of the most popular measures of job satisfaction is the ^^Job Descriptive Index (JDI)^^. It measures 5 facets:
    • The Work Itself: responsibility, interest, and growth
    • Quality of Supervision: technical help and social support
    • Relationship with Co-Workers: social harmony and respect
    • Pay: adequacy of pay and perceived equity vis-a-vis others

  • Research Findings on Job Satisfaction

    • Job satisfaction leads to better performance when rewarded
    • The ^^fairness^^ with which pay is distributed or equity is more important determinant of pay satisfaction then the actual level of pay
    • Many studies have shown that ^^older workers are more satisfied^^ with their jobs than younger workers (lowest level at around 26-31 years old)
    • Identical twins have been found to have similar levels of job satisfaction despite being reared apart and despite work at dissimilar jobs. Inherited personality traits such as ^^negative affectivity^^ are related to our tendency to be satisfied with jobs.
    • Dissatisfied employees reported more ^^physical symptoms,^^ such as sleep problems and upset stomach

  • EVLN: Responses to Job Dissatisfaction

    • Exit: leaving the situation; quitting, transferring
    • Voice: changing the situation; problem solving, complaining
    • Loyalty: patiently waiting for the situation to improve; passive response
    • Neglect: reducing work effort/quality; increasing absenteeism; passive-aggressive response

  • Job Satisfaction and OCBs

    • Job satisfaction is also linked with ^^organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs).^^
    • OCB: discretionary behaviors that represent a willingness to ^^“go beyond the call of duty”^^ or ^^“go the extra mile”^^ in one’s work
    • A good organizational citizen
    • Interpersonal OCBs: Does things that although not required of them help others (i.e., altruism)
    • Organizational OCBs: Advance the performance of the organization as a whole
    • Job Satisfaction and CWBs
    • Job dissatisfaction is often associated with a variety of ^^counterproductive work behaviors (CWBs), behaviors intended to harm^^ the organization and other people at work, such as co-workers, supervisors, and customers
    • Personal Aggression: sexual harassment, verbal abuse, intimidation, humiliation
    • Production Deviance: wasting resources, avoiding work, disrupting workflow, making deliberate work errors
    • Political Deviance: spreading harmful rumors, gossiping, using bad language, lacking civility in relationships
    • Property Deviance: destroying or sabotaging facilities and equipment, stealing money, and other resources
    • Job Satisfaction and Customers
    • Job satisfaction increases customer satisfaction and profitability because
      • Job satisfaction ^^affects mood^^, leading to positive behaviors toward customers
      • Job satisfaction ^^reduces employee turnover,^^ resulting in more consistent and familiar service

Organizational Identification (OID)

  • The process whereby individuals derive ^^a feeling of pride and esteem^^ from their association with an organization. Individuals may also take pains to distance themselves from the org for which they work -- organizational disidentification.
  • Social Identity Theory consists of 3 propositions
    • People value and seek self-esteem
    • Group memberships lay a role in a person’s self-concept
    • Individuals seek to maintain a positive social identity by making ^^favorable distinctions^^ between their social in-group and other out-groups
  • 4 Variations of Identification
    • Identification: Individuals ^^defined themselves^^ in terms of the ^^attributes of the organization^^
    • Disidentification: Individuals define themselves as ^^not having the attributes of the organization^^
    • Ambivalent Identification: Individuals identify with ^^some attributed^^ of the organization but ^^reject other aspects^^
    • Neutral Identification: Individuals remain ^^aggressively neutral, neither identifying nor disidentifying^^ with the attributes of an organization

Employee Engagement

  • An individual’s ^^involvement^^ with, ^^satisfaction^^ with, and ^^enthusiasm^^ for the work he/she does
  • Overlaps positively with job satisfaction, organizational commitment, and job involvement
  • The ^^opposite of psychological burnout^^
  • Surveys indicate that few employees (between 17% to 29%) are highly engaged by their work.