Carlos J. Torelli, Sharon Shavitt, Young Ik Cho, Allyson L. Holbrook, Timothy P. Johnson and Saul Weiner
The purpose of this paper is to investigate cultural variations in the qualities that White Americans and Hispanic Americans believe power-holders should embody, and the…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate cultural variations in the qualities that White Americans and Hispanic Americans believe power-holders should embody, and the situations in which these norms influence consumer satisfaction.
Design/methodology/approach
Two experimental studies (n1=130 and n2=121) and one field study (n=241) were conducted with White American and Hispanic participants. Results were analysed using ANOVA and regression.
Findings
White Americans are predisposed to apply to power-holders injunctive norms of treating others justly and equitably, whereas Hispanics are predisposed to apply injunctive norms of treating others compassionately. These cultural variations in the use of injunctive norms were more evident in business or service contexts in which power was made salient, and emerged in the norms more likely to be endorsed by White American and Hispanic participants (Study 1), their approval of hypothetical negotiators who treated suppliers equitably or compassionately (Study 2), and their evaluations of powerful service providers in a real-life, on-going and consequential interaction (Study 3).
Research limitations/implications
This research suggests key implications for our theoretical understanding of the role of social norms in carrying cultural patterns, as well as for cross-cultural theories of consumer satisfaction with service providers.
Practical implications
Marketers should pay attention to signals of fairness (compassion) in their services, as perceptions of fairness (compassion) by White American (Hispanic) consumers can boost satisfaction ratings. This is particularly important in service encounters that might be characterized by power differentials, such as those in health care and financial services.
Originality/value
As consumer markets grow more culturally diverse, it is important for marketers to understand how distinct notions of power impact the attitudes and behaviors of consumers from different cultures. This research investigates the implications of distinct power concepts for multi-cultural consumers’ evaluations of service providers, an important and under-researched area with implications for global service management.
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Kaitlyn DeGhetto, Zachary A. Russell and Gerald R. Ferris
Large-scale organizational change, such as seen through mergers and acquisitions, CEO succession, and corporate entrepreneurship, sometimes is necessary in order to allow firms to…
Abstract
Large-scale organizational change, such as seen through mergers and acquisitions, CEO succession, and corporate entrepreneurship, sometimes is necessary in order to allow firms to be competitive. However, such change can be unsettling to existing employees, producing considerable uncertainty, conflict, politics, and stress, and thus, must be managed very carefully. Unfortunately, to date, little research has examined the relationships among change efforts, perceptions of political environments, and employee stress reactions. We introduce a conceptual model that draws upon sensemaking theory and research to explain how employees perceive and interpret their uncertain environments, the politics in them, and the resulting work stress, after large-scale organizational change initiatives. Implications of our proposed conceptualization are discussed, as are directions for future research.
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Arwen H. DeCostanza, Katherine R. Gamble, Armando X. Estrada and Kara L. Orvis
Unobtrusive measurement methodologies are critical to implementing intelligent tutoring systems (ITS) for teams. Such methodologies allow for continuous measurement of team states…
Abstract
Unobtrusive measurement methodologies are critical to implementing intelligent tutoring systems (ITS) for teams. Such methodologies allow for continuous measurement of team states and processes while avoiding disruption of mission or training performance, and do not rely on post hoc feedback (including for the aggregation of data into measures or to develop insights from these real-time metrics). This chapter summarizes advances in unobtrusive measurement developed within Army research programs to illustrate the variety and potential that unobtrusive measurement approaches can provide for building ITS for teams. Challenges regarding the real-time aggregation of data and applications to current and future ITS for teams are also discussed.
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Andrew Lindridge, Sharon E. Beatty and William Magnus Northington
Gambling is increasingly a global phenomenon, derided by some as exploitative and viewed by others as entertainment. Despite extensive research into gambling motivations, previous…
Abstract
Purpose
Gambling is increasingly a global phenomenon, derided by some as exploitative and viewed by others as entertainment. Despite extensive research into gambling motivations, previous research has not assessed whether gaming choice is a function of one’s personal motivations or simply a desire to gamble in general, regardless of game choice among recreational gamblers. The purpose of this study is to explore this theme by considering “illusion of control” where luck and skill may moderate gambling motivation.
Design/methodology/approach
This study applies two motivation theories, hedonic consumption theory and motivation disposition theory, and examines heuristic perspectives related to gambling. Three stages of qualitative data collection were undertaken.
Findings
The findings indicate that for recreational gamblers, gaming choice is a function of personal motives. Hence, gamblers chose games that reflect their needs or motives, focusing on the game or games that best allow them to achieve their goals and desires.
Research limitations/implications
These findings shed light on an important topic and include an in-depth examination of recreational gamblers’ motivations. Further quantitative examinations should be considered.
Practical implications
This research could be used by practitioners or researchers in better segmenting the casino recreational gambling market.
Originality/value
While many researchers have examined gambling motivations and even gambling motivations by venue (e.g. casino versus online), few researchers have focused on gamblers’ choice of games and even fewer have studied recreational gamblers’ motivations with a qualitatively rich approach, resulting in some useful perspectives on drivers of recreational gamblers by personal motives.
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In Zimbabwe, a curious set of events has occurred since early 2000. Land reform, usually taken to be in defence of rural democracy, is being employed by a government determined to…
Abstract
In Zimbabwe, a curious set of events has occurred since early 2000. Land reform, usually taken to be in defence of rural democracy, is being employed by a government determined to remain in power and veering increasingly toward violent authoritarianism.
Noel Scott, Brent Moyle, Ana Cláudia Campos, Liubov Skavronskaya and Biqiang Liu
Karl P. Benziger and Richard R. Weiner
The Hungarian Revolution of 1956 shook the Soviet Union to the core and provided the West with the iconic image of the freedom fighter willing to risk all for the cause of…
Abstract
The Hungarian Revolution of 1956 shook the Soviet Union to the core and provided the West with the iconic image of the freedom fighter willing to risk all for the cause of freedom. The pathos of the lost cause provided Hungarians with a new set of heroes akin to those of the failed 1848 Revolution, the best known being Prime Minister Imre Nagy who was executed for siding with the revolutionaries in their bid to establish a sovereign republic. His belated funeral on June 16, 1989 undermined the moral and political authority of the communist regime that had attempted to consign Nagy and his confederates to oblivion and seemed to mimic Emile Durkheim's analysis of piaculum and the conscience collective. But the spectacle of Nagy's funeral only temporarily shrouded significant differences between and within those factions demanding pluralist society, most recently revealed in the acrimonious celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Hungarian Revolution. These debates are rooted in Hungary's deeply troubled past that strongly questioned republican values in contrast to the authoritarian values of the Hapsburg monarchy, alliance with the Axis, genocide, and its relationship to communism in the wake of the disaster of World War II. Jacques Derrida tells us that it is not easy to exorcise our ghosts; instead, we are prompted to reconstruction. Memory studies, stimulated by studies of the Holocaust, transformed the sociological imagination (especially Friedlander, 1993; LaCapra, 1998a, 1998b, 1998c, 1998d). There has been what Michael Roth referred to as “a turning of oneself so as to be in relation to the past” as an act of witness. The traumatic memory of the 1956 Revolution provides yet another case in which a traumatic past is still salient to the political actors in the contemporary arena. This chapter immerses itself in the emergence of historical sociology and with it “memory studies,” that is: (1) the relationship between identity, memory, and embodiment; and (2) the relationship between historical circumstance and collective memory formation (described in diverse approaches such as Adorno, 1959; 1997; Nora, 1989; Postone, Martha, & Kobyashi 2009). In particular, there is in historical sociology an emergent interest in (1) commemorative practices, memorializing addresses, memento; and (2) the struggles over memory, remembering, and forgetting.
Are Russian workers satisfied with their jobs? If not, why does it matter and what can be done? Empirical evidence based on studies of US workers suggests that job satisfaction…
Abstract
Are Russian workers satisfied with their jobs? If not, why does it matter and what can be done? Empirical evidence based on studies of US workers suggests that job satisfaction tends to correlate positively with labor productivity and negatively with labor turnover, both of which influence firm performance. Improving firm performance without substantially increasing costs is uppermost in the minds of many Russian managers. This paper analyzes the nature and scope of job satisfaction among Russian workers, using survey data to: identify the level of job satisfaction expressed by 1,200 survey participants in response to questions about satisfaction with the job and satisfaction with the work that is done in the job; investigate the variation in job satisfaction explained by differences in worker characteristics – both objective characteristics (age, gender, education, work experience, supervisory responsibilities, unemployment experience, marital status, recent change in workplace, number of jobs held at the time of the interview, for example) and subjective characteristics (attitude toward work); ascertain the link between job satisfaction and select intrinsic and extrinsic job characteristics; and evaluate the extent to which job satisfaction is correlated with alternative measures of organizational commitment. While endogeneity and simultaneity preclude establishing causality, these cross section data do permit evaluation of factors highly correlated with job satisfaction. The specific aim of the paper is to identify factors that increase the probability that a worker will express a high level of job satisfaction. The results will prove useful in designing effective reward structures and/or reducing turnover, as well as establishing management‐training programs to promote more effective teamwork.