Man Chung Low, Sharmila Jayasingam, Raida Abu Bakar and Safiah Omar
Guided by the conservation of resources theory, this study aims to present a comprehensive framework examining leadership, Guanxi, work-family conflict and work engagement. It…
Abstract
Purpose
Guided by the conservation of resources theory, this study aims to present a comprehensive framework examining leadership, Guanxi, work-family conflict and work engagement. It specifically explores how group-level transformational leadership influences individual-level Guanxi and work-family conflict and how these factors, in turn, impact work engagement.
Design/methodology/approach
The study surveyed 473 teachers in the Klang Valley, Malaysia, and used hierarchical linear modelling.
Findings
The results reveal that transformational leadership directly enhances non-work relationships, reduces work-family conflict and indirectly predicts increased work engagement. This indirect influence occurs through the mediation of Guanxi and the work-family conflict. Notably, while stronger Guanxi is associated with greater work engagement in the professional sphere, it does not necessarily mitigate the work-family conflict in the personal domain.
Originality/value
These findings provide valuable insights into maintaining and enhancing work engagement by implementing transformational leadership through more effective channels, such as Guanxi and work-family conflict management.
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This paper aims to focus on the relationship between female leadership and the environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance of firms. Specifically, the study examines if…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to focus on the relationship between female leadership and the environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance of firms. Specifically, the study examines if firms with women as chief executive officers (CEOs) and/or board chairpersons have higher environmental and social scores.
Design/methodology/approach
The study uses data on publicly listed Nordic firms in a panel regression approach to establish the relationship between female leadership and the environmental and social performance of firms.
Findings
The result of this study shows that women have a leadership characteristic that increases the weighted average of environmental (E) and social (S) performance of a firm. In particular, pillar score results indicate a positive relationship between female CEOs and the social scores of a firm but no relationship between a female board chairperson and the environmental or social scores of a firm. This implies that gender-based differences affect the CEO’s success, especially in a firm’s social performance. Further analyses show a more significant impact on the E and S performance when a woman replaces a man as CEO of a firm.
Originality/value
While prior research has explored various aspects of gender diversity in corporate leadership and its potential impact, the focus on the Nordic context in this study provides a unique perspective, given the region’s distinct business environment and societal factors. In addition, by examining the collective influence of female leaders and both female CEOs and board chairpersons separately, this study provides a nuanced understanding of how different leadership roles may impact a firm’s ESG performance.
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Paula Andrea Nieto-Aleman, José-Miguel Berné-Martínez and Maria Arnal-Pastor
Work–life balance (WLB) is necessary to allow organisations to innovate and develop markets. WLB enables employee development and influences employee motivation and productivity…
Abstract
Purpose
Work–life balance (WLB) is necessary to allow organisations to innovate and develop markets. WLB enables employee development and influences employee motivation and productivity by helping retain employees and keeping them engaged. The aim of this study is to identify the causal configurations leading to employees’ perceived WLB.
Design/methodology/approach
Fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) is used to identify the causal patterns of necessary and sufficient conditions that lead to WLB. Two dimensions of WLB are considered: (1) context (socioeconomic level and distance to work) and (2) organisation (work flexibility, job security and teleworking). These dimensions are studied to determine whether they lead to WLB. The study focuses on the city of Vila-real (Spain). The study data are sourced from male and female parents aged 19–56 years.
Findings
There are gender differences in perceived WLB. The observation that no single strategy leads to WLB is especially true for women, who achieve WLB through nine combinations of factors. For men, having a full-time contract is conducive to WLB. In contrast, women’s perception towards teleworking affects their perceived WLB.
Originality/value
The framework developed in this paper can be used to identify necessary and sufficient pathways to WLB to support the development of WLB policies and practices. It provides managers and policymakers with a framework to promote employee-centred WLB policies and practices.
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Samantha A. Conroy and John W. Morton
Organizational scholars studying compensation often place an emphasis on certain employee groups (e.g., executives). Missing from this discussion is research on the compensation…
Abstract
Organizational scholars studying compensation often place an emphasis on certain employee groups (e.g., executives). Missing from this discussion is research on the compensation systems for low-wage jobs. In this review, the authors argue that workers in low-wage jobs represent a unique employment group in their understanding of rent allocation in organizations. The authors address the design of compensation strategies in organizations that lead to different outcomes for workers in low-wage jobs versus other workers. Drawing on and integrating human resource management (HRM), inequality, and worker literatures with compensation literature, the authors describe and explain compensation systems for low-wage work. The authors start by examining workers in low-wage work to identify aspects of these workers’ jobs and lives that can influence their health, performance, and other organizationally relevant outcomes. Next, the authors explore the compensation systems common for this type of work, building on the compensation literature, by identifying the low-wage work compensation designs, proposing the likely explanations for why organizations craft these designs, and describing the worker and organizational outcomes of these designs. The authors conclude with suggestions for future research in this growing field and explore how organizations may benefit by rethinking their approach to compensation for low-wage work. In sum, the authors hope that this review will be a foundational work for those interested in investigating organizational compensation issues at the intersection of inequality and worker and organizational outcomes.
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Much prior literature has discussed bioethics from a Confucian perspective in biomedical research, but little has applied Confucianism in examining ethics in social and behavioral…
Abstract
Purpose
Much prior literature has discussed bioethics from a Confucian perspective in biomedical research, but little has applied Confucianism in examining ethics in social and behavioral research involving human subjects. This paper aims to reexamine the Belmont principles in social and behavioral research from a Confucian perspective to discuss their applicability and limitations and propose implications for revising or extending them potentially in the future.
Design/methodology/approach
A comparison is conducted on bioethics and social and behavioral research ethics. Afterward, a critical analysis is conducted on the Belmont principles of respect for persons, beneficence and justice from a Confucian perspective regarding their application in social and behavioral research.
Findings
From a Confucian perspective, the Belmont principles are necessary but may not be sufficient to cover the width and depth of ethical issues in social and behavioral research, such as those in crowd work-based research. This paper proposes that ethical guidelines for social and behavioral research may need to be updated from the Belmont principles adopting or incorporating certain Confucian ethics.
Originality/value
Social and behavioral research ethics have been relatively marginal compared to the bioethics deliberation in the existing literature. Unlike Beauchamp and Childress’s continued efforts in refining ethical guidelines for biomedical research specifically, little similar work has been done in this area since the Belmont report’s publication in 1979. This paper sheds light on building more refined and specific ethical guidelines to navigate the ever-growing numbers and diversities of nonmedical research topics, methodologies and contexts.
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Berihun Bizuneh, Abrham Destaw, Fasika Hailu, Solomon Tsegaye and Bizuayehu Mamo
Sizing system is a fundamental topic in garment fitting. The purpose of this study was to assess the fit of existing police uniforms (shirt, jacket, overcoat and trousers) and…
Abstract
Purpose
Sizing system is a fundamental topic in garment fitting. The purpose of this study was to assess the fit of existing police uniforms (shirt, jacket, overcoat and trousers) and develop a sizing system for upper and lower body uniforms of Amhara policemen in Ethiopia.
Design/methodology/approach
In total, 35 body dimensions of 889 policemen were taken through a manual anthropometric survey following the procedures in ISO 8559:1989 after each subject was interviewed on issues related to garment fit. The anthropometric data were pre-processed, key body dimensions were identified by principal components analysis and body types were clustered by the agglomerative hierarchical clustering algorithm and verified by the XGBoost classifier in a Python programming environment. The developed size charts were validated statistically using aggregate loss and accommodation rate.
Findings
About 44% of the subjects encountered fit problems every time they own new readymade uniforms. Lengths and side seams of shirts, and lengths and waist girths of trousers are the most frequently altered garment sites. Analysis of the anthropometric measurements resulted in 13 and 15 sizes for the upper and lower bodies, respectively. Moreover, the comparison of the developed upper garment size chart with the existing size chart for a shirt showed a considerable difference. This indicates that inappropriate size charts create fit problems.
Originality/value
The study considers the analysis of fit problems and sizing system development in a less researched country. Moreover, the proposed data mining procedure and its application for size chart development is unique and workable.
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Wilson K.S. Leung, Sally P.M. Law, Man Lai Cheung, Man Kit Chang, Chung-Yin Lai and Na Liu
There are two main objectives in this study. First, we aim to develop a set of constructs for health task management support (HTMS) features to evaluate which health-related tasks…
Abstract
Purpose
There are two main objectives in this study. First, we aim to develop a set of constructs for health task management support (HTMS) features to evaluate which health-related tasks are supported by mobile health application (mHealth app) functions. Second, drawing on innovation resistance theory (IRT), we examine the impacts of the newly developed HTMS dimensions on perceived usefulness, alongside other barrier factors contributing to technology anxiety.
Design/methodology/approach
Using a mixed-method research design, this research seeks to develop new measurement scales that reflect how mHealth apps support older adults’ health-related needs based on interviews. Subsequently, data were collected from older adults and exploratory factor analysis was used to confirm the validity of the new scales. Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was used to analyze survey data from 602 older adults.
Findings
The PLS-SEM results indicated that medical management task support, dietary task support, and exercise task support were positively associated with perceived usefulness, while perceived complexity and dispositional resistance to change were identified as antecedents of technology anxiety. Perceived usefulness and technology anxiety were found to positively and negatively influence adoption intention, respectively.
Originality/value
This study enriches the information systems literature by developing a multidimensional construct that delineates how older adults’ health-related needs can be supported by features of mHealth apps. Drawing on IRT, we complement the existing literature on resistance to innovation by systematically examining the impact of five types of barriers on technology anxiety.
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Rakesh Belwal, Maryam Al Fazari and Shwaky Mansour
This study examines the condition of working women within Oman’s socioeconomic framework, emphasizing their underrepresentation in senior management, the effects of workplace…
Abstract
Purpose
This study examines the condition of working women within Oman’s socioeconomic framework, emphasizing their underrepresentation in senior management, the effects of workplace constraints on career progression and solutions to enhance opportunities for women in leadership roles.
Design/methodology/approach
The study used a mixed-methods approach, incorporating both quantitative and qualitative analyses. The quantitative phase involved a survey of 215 Omani professionals − 87 male and 128 female, with data analysed using IBM SPSS 28 and SmartPLS 4. Analyses included measures of central tendency and deviation as well as PLS SEM-based path analysis and multigroup analyses.
Findings
The inclusion of women positively influences their career advancement, while harassment and gender discrimination hinder progress. Gender discrimination has a more substantial effect at lower and middle levels but is less impactful at the top level. Harassment affects women over 40 more significantly, with little impact on younger women. Additionally, domestic gender roles particularly hinder the career advancement of women in the 31–40 age group.
Practical implications
The practical consequences encompass the establishment of mentorship programmes, the provision of networking opportunities and the promotion of gender equity awareness. These programmes promote an inclusive workplace, facilitating women’s professional growth. Mentorship and networking offer crucial assistance and connections, whereas growing awareness of gender biases fosters equity and equal treatment for all employees. These initiatives jointly foster a more equal work environment.
Social implications
By implementing sustainable measures and fostering a culture of equity and inclusivity, Oman can prevent gender discrimination and further solidify its commitment to gender equality. This will create an environment where everyone, regardless of gender, has equal opportunities to succeed and thrive.
Originality/value
This research is distinctive within the Omani setting, as no previous studies have explicitly examined women’s career progression from a socioeconomic perspective.
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Kenneth Rhee and Tracey Sigler
We examine how leaders can become more self-aware in one graduate program that helped students develop their leadership competencies and become more accurate in their…
Abstract
Purpose
We examine how leaders can become more self-aware in one graduate program that helped students develop their leadership competencies and become more accurate in their self-assessment of those competencies.
Design/methodology/approach
The Master of Science in Executive Leadership and Organizational Change program was created in response to the challenge of developing and accessing leaders in emotional and social intelligence competencies.
Findings
The analysis of student self-assessments and assessments by others at the beginning and end of the program provided the data for our research, showing empirical evidence of leadership development and improvement.
Research limitations/implications
The study examined students in one program at one university so the generalizability of results is not clear. We have no way to rule out other experiences students had during the two-year period. We chose a single approach to measuring accuracy of self-assessment, future research may compare the results from a variety of approaches to this measurement issue.
Practical implications
We describe the program that helped students develop leadership competencies, develop the self-awareness necessary to take action as a leader and calibrate a more accurate self-assessment of leadership competencies over a two-year period.
Originality/value
We demonstrate how one leadership development program can help all students become more accurate in their self-assessments. We do not need different development programs to help one group of leaders gain confidence and another for leaders who are overly confident. An educational curriculum can foster transformational learning that enables ongoing leader development (Petriglieri, Wood, & Petriglieri, 2011). Academic programs can create experiences that help students develop and increase their self-awareness so that they are confident enough to put their learning into action. Like effective leadership development programs (Van Velsor, McCauley, Ruderman, & Ruderman, 2010), management education programs can incorporate assessment, feedback and support so that students become the effective and outstanding leaders the world needs.
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Sabiha Afrin and Md. Khaled Saifullah
As women perform most household chores and other nonproductive work, gender-based division of labor in the home has now been identified as a barrier to gender equality. The…
Abstract
Purpose
As women perform most household chores and other nonproductive work, gender-based division of labor in the home has now been identified as a barrier to gender equality. The objective of this study is to assess the effects of gender distribution of housework especially for women and investigate the factors influencing the total hours spent on house chores in Bangladesh.
Design/methodology/approach
This study adopted a quantitative approach based on survey data obtained from 200 households in the Madaripur and Gopalganj districts of Bangladesh. To analyze the obtained data, the partial least squares (PLS) regression was used.
Findings
According to this study, demographic and socioeconomic factors of women, and gender are influencing the total hours spent in housework. Women were observed to have a positive relationship with empowerment but a negative relationship with social perception. Social perception was further observed to have a significant impact on the total number of hours expended by women on house chores.
Practical implications
The study suggests that the importance of sharing the burden of household work be taught in schools and community-based awareness programs so that it becomes ingrained as a social and cultural practice. Furthermore, the government should conduct a proper assessment that recognizes unpaid housework by women as an important factor in inclusive sustainable development.
Originality/value
Issues of inequality in the division of labor in household activities are barely recognized in Bangladesh. Therefore, this study collected primary data to assess the effects of gender on the distribution of housework. The findings of the study will help policymakers and academicians to better understand the gender-based division of household labor.
Peer review
The peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/IJSE-03-2023-0195.