Now showing 1 - 10 of 12
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    Morphological Analysis of general system–environment complexes: Representation and application
    (01-03-2022)
    Hariharan, Thangatur Sukumar
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    Sharma, Piyush
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    Potdar, Vidyasagar
    Systems and their environments must be understood in an integrated manner because any changes in the systems will affect their environments and vice versa in the ubiquitous open systems. Existing studies classify systems based on the diversity of their interactions and the systems' responses to changes in their environments. However, the uses of such classifications are limited. We attempt to address this limitation by using morphological analysis (MA) to identify, represent and characterise the general system–environment complex (SEC) and its components. The latter, called ‘dimensions’, and their respective manifestations, termed ‘variants’, are integrated into the MA representation to enable a holistic understanding of SECs in terms of six dimensions and 101 variants. The resultant representation and characterisation will help researchers identify potential research opportunities, demonstrated through the construction of a variants intersection matrix, and help develop practical principles for system design and evaluation.
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    Technostressors – a boon or bane? Toward an integrative conceptual model
    (30-06-2022)
    Ramesh, Rofia
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    Ananthram, Subramaniam
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    Sharma, Piyush
    Purpose: This paper aims to highlight the positive and negative effects of technostressors on employee attitudes using psychological need satisfaction as an explanatory mechanism and mindfulness as an individual resource, thereby developing an integrative conceptual model. Design/methodology/approach: A narrative literature review was performed in the technostress, job demands-resources and mindfulness literature to develop the propositions of the integrative conceptual model. Findings: This paper posits psychological need satisfaction as a mediator in the process by which technostressors impact important employee outcomes. It also proposes mindfulness as a personal resource that helps alleviate technostressor induced burnout and foster work engagement. Research limitations/implications: The proposed integrative conceptual framework provides some useful directions for future empirical research on this topic of growing importance. Practical implications: Based on the findings of this paper, managers can devise and implement a technostressor-specific mitigation strategy to cope with information and communication technology–induced work demands. They can also introduce mindfulness-based programs to support positive outcomes when technostressors are present. Originality/value: This paper is the first to theoretically delineate specific characteristics of technostressors as challenge and hindrance demands and makes interdisciplinary contributions by extending the role of psychological mechanisms such as psychological need satisfaction and personal resources such as mindfulness in work-related technology use research.
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    Emotional Contagion and its Relevance to Individual Behavior and Organizational Processes: A Position Paper
    (01-01-2012) ;
    Bhattacharyya, Sanghamitra
    Purpose: Emotions and emotional contagion are being increasingly recognized as crucial variables influencing individual behavior and organizational functioning. This position paper serves the function as a ready reckoner by reviewing and consolidating existing literature in the field of emotional contagion. The review is categorized into three broad headings: (a) individual, (b) interpersonal, and (c) contextual factors, based on their relationship with emotional contagion. Design/Methodology/Approach: The article focuses on analyzing and critiquing studies of emotional contagion conducted in several streams such as psychological processes, personality, organizational behavior, marketing, and consumer behavior. A conceptual framework of emotional contagion is presented, supplemented with research propositions. Findings: The phenomenon of emotional contagion in workplace and its effects on personal and group outcomes has emerged as a critical area of research. It has been firmly established in literature that spread of emotions, if not properly managed, is bound to influence work effectiveness. Implications: Importance of understanding the effects of transfer of emotions, for both academicians and practicing managers is one of the critical take-aways of this article. Suitable interventions are the need of the hour in order to ensure proper management of emotions. Originality/Value: The contribution of the article is expected to be fourfold, in terms of: (a) presenting a structured and comprehensive review of literature on emotional contagion, (b) identifying gaps in the existing literature, (c) proposing a conceptual framework, and (d) developing propositions for future research. © 2011 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC.
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    Changing Definitions of Work and Play: Importance of Workplace Humour
    (01-03-2017)
    Mathew, Hima Elizabeth
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    World famous actor-comedian Charlie Chaplin once said that “A day without laughter is a day wasted”. But try applying the same quote in our work place, with fluctuating markets, unending competition and impossible deadlines; we may find more wasted days than the rest. All of us know what it feels to experience humour, but most of us think twice before having a hearty laugh at our workplace. What is the barrier which stops us from sharing humour at work? This paper attempts to answer this question and aims to understand the concept of humour at workplace and its importance in today’s context. It aims to review existing literature in this field and present the application of Workplace humour in an organizational context to achieve favourable work-related outcomes. In addition to this, the paper also enumerates the different workplace practices that are directly or indirectly related to humour and provide suggestions to organizations on how to use this powerful tool to bring about organizational effectiveness.
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    Understanding individual knowledge seeking behaviors in the context of Knowledge Management Systems
    (01-01-2018)
    Veeravalli, Suchitra
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    Unprecedented growth witnessed by knowledge economies have resulted in a need for workers who have a learning mindset and are adept at intellectual thinking and problem solving at work. Knowledge Management Systems (KMS) are introduced with the aim of providing knowledge workers opportunities to collaborate, share knowledge, and enhance the innovation capability of the enterprise. However, for organizations to garner competitive advantage there is a need for KMS to be patronized. For investments in KMS to be meaningful, optimizing both knowledge seeking and knowledge sharing behaviors is crucial. While on the one hand, experts need to be encouraged to share their knowledge, on the other hand, seeking behaviors need to be promoted. Extant literature seems to have focused on knowledge sharing behaviors; relatively fewer studies exist on knowledge seeking behaviors. This paper presents a model to understand factors that impact individual’s intention to seek knowledge on KMS. To gain a better understanding of the situational factors that influence knowledge seeking, answers to the following key research questions are sought: 1. Why and when do people seek knowledge at work? 2. Under what conditions does knowledge seeking thrive/happen the most? A quantitative study of the factors that motivate an individual to seek knowledge on KMS is undertaken with the objective of reviewing the effect of knowledge management (KM) and human resources (HR) practices on knowledge seeking behaviors of participants. Such a study is particularly vital post adoption of KMS. The decomposed theory of planned behavior (DTPB) is the underlying theoretical model on which our study is based. A preliminary questionnaire is discussed, and pilot data collected from 64 participants of a multinational company (MNC) are analyzed to arrive at a conceptual framework. Understanding knowledge seeking behaviors could lead to optimization of the share-seek process leading to better knowledge flow. Results of such an exercise could potentially provide significant insights on interventions that can be developed to enhance adoption of KMS for knowledge seeking.
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    Designing Dynamic Interventions to Improve Adherence in Pediatric Long-Term Treatment–The Role of Perceived Value of the Physician by Primary Caregivers
    (01-01-2021)
    Venkatraman, Krithika
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    Manoharan, Anand
    Primary Caregivers are the fulcrum in the physician-caregiver-child triad. Existing literature discusses static multi-component interventions in detail. In long-term treatments, dynamic intervention design is needed as the environment and situations of the families are dynamic. The objectives of this study are (a) to identify the components of the primary caregiver’s perception of the physician’s value with reference to the effectiveness of consultation and relationships with the former and with the child; (b) to establish the role of this perception in designing dynamic interventions, and (c) to describe the perception’s potential influence on adherence. A PRISMA, chronological, and morphological analysis of the literature is carried out about caregivers’ adherence in the pediatric long-term treatment context. We define communication and consultation as the functional, whereas relationship as the emotional component of the caregiver’s perception of the physician. We propose a theoretical model that incorporates intervention as an integral component of care. Adherence happens as a response to changing situations and hence fluctuates. Hence, a dynamic intervention design to benefit the child should be incorporated into care through the caregiver-physician bridge. Future research should explore how intervention needs change and the driving reasons for understanding the static and dynamic components of interventions.
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    Life values and subjective well-being among Indian university students: Scrutinizing the omnipresent North-South divide
    (01-07-2018)
    Cejkova, Eliska
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    Slezackova, Alena
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    Choubisa, Rajneesh
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    The objective of this study is to assess the level of subjective well-being among Indian students from North and South and explore the links between their life values and subjective well-being. The current attempt investigated the contrasting effects in a student sample of 168 North-Indian and 187 South-Indian university students. Standardized assessment tools namely, the Satisfaction with Life Scale (Diener, Emmons, Larsen, & Griffin, 1985); The Happiness Measure (Fordyce, 1988); and Valued Living Questionnaire (Wilson, Sandoz, Kitchens, & Roberts, 2010) were used for data collection in the present context. The results suggest that levels of life satisfaction differ across the samples and, peculiarly, North Indian students experience happiness more intensively as compared to their Southern counterparts. The correlations between life values and well-being point out the North-South divide in the manifestation of life values and well-being. In the end, the probable reasoning behind this stark contrast was provided to justify the omnipresent differences.
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    Does Emotional Social Competence Foster Team Climate?
    (01-03-2019)
    Bhartia, Abha
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    People seldom leave an organisation, but they often leave because of the people in that organisation. Given the current context of multinational organisations and virtual teams, it is imperative to ensure a vibrant and positive team climate for employees that helps them thrive and deliver excellence. It is well established in the literature that among other factors, employees’ interpersonal skills, emotional intelligence and cultural competence significantly impact team climate. This study focuses on analysing the relationship between emotional social competence (ESC) and perceived team climate. The study draws from the self-determination theory which states individuals are responsible and intrinsically motivated. The development of a positive team climate has been looked upon primarily as a collective initiative. While it is important to focus on organisational aspects contributing to team climate, this study explores the individual competencies that contribute to the perception of a positive team climate. It employs structural equation modelling technique to study this relationship through data from a field study with 331 managers from manufacturing, banking and service industries. Results confirm that ESC clusters have a significant impact on the perceived team climate of the individuals. The practical implications of the study show that the organisations need to formulate developmental plans around individual competencies that have significant impact on building a positive team climate.
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    Why do people seek knowledge? Tracing factors that affect knowledge seeking intention
    (07-04-2020)
    Veeravalli, Suchitra
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    Hariharan, Manoj
    Purpose: The purpose of this study is to understand factors that motivate an individual to seek knowledge on knowledge management systems. Specifically, the work seeks to clarify the impact of organizational practices on an individual’s intention to seek knowledge. The overarching theme is to broaden the current understanding of factors that impact individual knowledge seeking behavior and narrow down factors for which interventions can be developed. Design/methodology/approach: In-depth interviews were conducted with the members of knowledge management (KM), human resources (HR) and learning and development teams of Robert Bosch Engineering and Business Solutions Private Limited (RBEI) to understand knowledge behaviors of employees. Subsequent to an exploratory analysis, the survey methodology was used to collect data from members of RBEI. A proposed theoretical model was then validated using partial least squares. Findings: Empirical findings suggest that to motivate participation, organizational KM practices need to be geared towards promoting curiosity and engaging learners. Results indicate that overt recognition of knowledge seeking behaviors by HR could be counterproductive. Research limitations/implications: This study was limited to an MNC engineering organization in one geographic location; one must be cautious when generalizing these results. Replicating this study in multiple organizations will help mitigate this limitation. Originality/value: Little is known on the effect of KM and HR practices on knowledge seeking behaviors. This work addresses this gap and presents a comprehensive model.
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    A morphological review of enterprise social media literature
    (03-04-2019)
    Veeravalli, Suchitra
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    Introduction of Enterprise Social Media (ESM) in organizations is driven by a need to improve communication and knowledge sharing within the enterprise. Studies show that soon after ESM adoption, there is some initial enthusiasm and subsequently there is a perceptible drop in usage. A review of ESM literature in a morphological framework, with the aim of demystifying the troubling trend, is presented here. Morphological analysis of literature helps exhibit relevant work on ESM in a framework consisting of dimensions and options from which insights can be derived. The framework developed depicts ESM literature through seven dimensions–organizational level factors influencing ESM, unit of analysis, business objectives of ESM adoption, individual level factors influencing ESM, theoretical framework used, outcomes of adoption, and context of ESM implementation. For each of the dimensions, relevant options were explored and listed. Preliminary observation indicates that at an individual level, themes such as absorptive capacity and lurking behavior of individuals need to be studied in the context of ESM. At an organizational level, the impact of human resources (HR) policies on ESM adoption, uses of ESM for internal crowdsourcing need to be evaluated. Practitioners can use these findings to assess and design their ESM strategies and for academicians, the morphological framework reveals the state of current research in the field and identifies gaps for further research in specific areas of ESM.