Gupta College of Business

Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14026/2072

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Sticks and Stones, When Words Do Hurt: The Impact of Responses, Involvement, and Partisan Identity on Brand Image in the Case of Negative Political Advertising
(2023-09) North-Gould, Leslie
Political advertising is an important tool used by campaigns to persuade voters to choose their candidate at the polls. Despite mixed results regarding its effectiveness, negative political advertising is the prominent choice of many campaigns and is on the rise. Given the prevalence and potential damage of negative advertising, it is crucial that we understand how certain types of advertising, especially negative and response advertising, affect voters’ perceptions of a candidate’s brand image. With a factorial experiment design, this study examined how candidates should respond when they become the target of negative political advertising by examining what type of response advertising is most effective at mitigating the damage done by negative advertising, as well as the impact that a voter’s political involvement and partisan identity has on this relationship. Results suggest that a civil response advertisement is more effective than an uncivil response. Furthermore, while involvement did not moderate the relationship between the different types of advertising and brand image, this study finds that partisan identity does. This study adds to the research by examining voting behavior through a consumer behavior lens, borrowing marketing concepts such as involvement. Practical implications include understanding how candidates can improve their brand image in the face of negative advertising in a way that will assist campaigns in choosing the most effective advertising strategy.
Enhancing the Learning Experience in Higher Education by Stimulating Student Engagement with Simulations
(2022-04) Randall, Gayle L.
Administrators and educators have been debating how to improve the student learning experience for decades. More recently, there has been widespread discussion on the effect of experiential learning in the classroom to help develop student comprehension. Current research emphasizes the link between the experiential learning process and student learning outcomes, with the premise that experiential learning is a holistic method that focuses on student engagement with respect to the student’s learning style. This study contributes to the community of experiential learning theory by examining its effect on multiple dimensions of engagement through business simulations in higher education, and the impact of each dimension on student performance and satisfaction. Results revealed a positive relationship between experiential learning and student satisfaction through the mediating influence of participation engagement, but were unable to confirm its relationship with all four dimensions of engagement. Further, analysis of the effect of experiential learning through simulation games in entry-level business courses suggested an improved learning experience through heightened performance. These findings are worthy as they could assist instructors in teaching methods that produce an enhanced educational experience resulting in more student engagement and satisfaction, as well as higher student performance.
Identifying the Propensity for Burnout in a Professional Setting: A Field Study of Accountants
(2024-04) Trotter, Rebecca Lea
The issue of burnout among accountants has been a significant concern in recent years, with both micro and macro-level implications. Accounting roles are characterized by demanding schedules, complex tasks, stringent time constraints, and a fundamental requirement for precision and detail-oriented work. These inherent characteristics increase the likelihood of feelings of burnout and turnover intentions. The situation has been even more pronounced after COVID-19. Yet, discussions on the subject matter are largely missing in accounting literature. This study is significant because it is one of the few studies in accounting literature to address this literature gap by seeking to empirically test how proactive coping strategies and personality traits can effectively mitigate burnout in accountants. Accountants who proactively utilize coping strategies are expected to be better equipped to navigate job demands and reduce burnout. This research discusses strategies for improving employee well-being and retention within the accounting field. The Job Demands-Resource (JDR) model, transactional stress model, and proactive coping strategy are the theoretical foundations of the study. Based on its findings, the study also recommends coping strategies to address the issue of turnover intentions in the accounting industry.
Understanding the Effects of Perceived Financial Benefits and Status on Customer-Company Identification and Its Effects on Positive Word-of-Mouth in a Loyalty Program Context
(2022-08) Slubowski, Henry F
Customer loyalty and its associated behavioral outcomes have become focal points for firms looking to drive a deeper, identity-based relationship with their customers. Yet, few studies have examined how loyalty program mechanics can be used to create these relationships and whether they can result in the outcomes firms seek, such as positive word-of-mouth (PWOM). The purpose of this research is to better understand whether the financial benefits of a loyalty program and the feelings of status a program can invoke lead to the formation of customer-company identification (CCI), defined as a “consumer’s psychological attachment to a company based on a substantial overlap between their perceptions of themselves and their perceptions of the company” (Du et al., 2007, p. 227). Further, most studies focused on CCI examine identification primarily from a cognitive perspective (Wolter & Cronin, 2016), however this study explored how both cognitive CCI and affective CCI are influenced by loyalty program mechanics and whether each of these types of CCI lead to PWOM behaviors. The findings support that perceptions of financial benefits and feelings of status are strongly related to affective CCI in loyalty program members, which in turn, is related strongly to PWOM. Feelings of status had a positive effect on cognitive CCI, and cognitive CCI had a significant, positive effect on PWOM. Perceptions of financial benefits had no significant effect on cognitive CCI. An additional discussion of these findings is provided that includes the theoretical and practical implications of the model for those who study and execute customer loyalty programs as well as study limitations and avenues for further research.
SKILL-BASED PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT AND ITS EFFECT ON EMPLOYEE ATTITUDES: A FIELD STUDY
(2023-12) Sandall, Raka
Significant research over the last 30 years has focused on the impact of traditional appraisal-driven performance management systems. However, research on novel performance management systems that incorporate a bundle of human resource management practices has been limited. This study fills this void by examining the impact of a bundle that emphasizes skills enrichment and managerial coaching, called skill-based performance management (SBPM). Its impact on the organization has been viewed as being akin to a black box, with researchers suggesting the existence of intervening variables. This study draws upon the abilities, motivation, and opportunities (AMO) framework to hypothesize that SBPM would have a positive impact on intervening variables around employees’ skill-seeking orientation, connectedness to goals, career satisfaction, and the organizational climate for performance. The research design consisted of a field experiment at a company where a group of employees were subject to an SBPM intervention while a second group (control) was not. A longitudinal survey of employee attitudinal sentiments was conducted for 360 employees over two years using custom survey scales that were verified for comparability to published scales. A MANOVA was conducted with time (before and after intervention) and group type (intervention vs. control) as the independent variables and the attitudinal variables as the dependent variables. The results provided evidence that employee attitudes toward skill-seeking behavior were enduringly impacted. This study provides a prescription for operationalizing a bundle of HRM practices utilizing the AMO framework to influence organizational outcomes. Moreover, it provides credence to the addition of skills-related human resource practices to achieve improved employee outcomes.
ENTREPRENEURIAL SELF-EFFICACY AND PERSISTENCE: THE ROLE OF SOCIAL SUPPORT AND GENDER
(2023-12) Fuller, Lauran
The topic of social support has held a steady place in entrepreneurship over the years. While the literature addresses social support in various facets, peer-to -peer social support has yet to garner significant attention. This study evaluates the role of entrepreneurial peer support, paying close attention to gender differences. Specifically, both emotional and instrumental social support are examined to determine their influence on entrepreneurial self-efficacy and persistence. Small business owners are surveyed to evaluate the role of peer to entrepreneurial persistence. In addition, this study investigates the role of gender in how support is realized. The results could revitalize a stream of entrepreneurial research that draws back to the value of personal connections , and point to new opportunities for research in self self-efficacy and persistence.
The Loyalty Metric: How Employee Satisfaction & Engagement Impacts Organization Loyalty
(2024-04) Marks, Marcie F.
Previous research has shown that there are complex dynamics that influence employee loyalty and its outcomes. This study evaluated whether job satisfaction directly influenced employee engagement and whether employee engagement directly influenced the outcomes of employee loyalty, employee net promoter score, and positive word of mouth. The study also examined whether managerial trustworthiness moderates the relationship between job satisfaction and employee engagement. A quantitative approach was used to analyze the data collected from 400 full-time employees working in various industries in the United States. The hypotheses were tested using partial least squares path modeling. The results found a direct relationship between job satisfaction and employee engagement, which was significantly related to the outcomes of employee loyalty, employee net promoter score, and positive word-of-mouth. The results also revealed that the main effect between job satisfaction and employee engagement was significant. The study also found that the managerial trustworthiness moderator did not support the hypothesis; however, the results found that managerial trustworthiness negatively moderated the relationship between job satisfaction and employee engagement. This study enhances the literature on employee loyalty by comprehensively examining knowledge workers' perceptions of the concept. This broader perspective could also enable organizations to implement targeted strategies that foster loyalty. Such insights could assist practitioners in advancing the use of employee net promoter scores by extending their assessment beyond employees who demonstrate loyal behavior.
"I Craft So That I Can Flow": A Comparative Study of Neuro Type to Explore the Relationship Between Job Crafting and Flow and the Mediating Role of Meaningful Work
(2022-05-19) Bharwani, Shamsuddin S.
Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) face significant challenges entering and remaining in the workforce. Those with ASD possess unique attributes such as attention to detail, willingness for repetitive tasks, reliability, and intense focus. To fully engage and include individuals with ASD, a deeper understanding of the cognitive style and talents of individuals with ASD is needed. This comparative study aimed to examine the mediating role of meaningful work in the relationship between job crafting dimensions and flow and whether there are differences in the assessed mediated model by Neuro Type (autistic and non-autistic employees). Mediation analyses revealed that meaningful work mediated the relationship between cognitive crafting and flow. However, meaningful work did not mediate this relationship for task crafting or relational crafting. In addition, the results indicated that there are no differences in the assessed model by Neuro Type. These findings are worthy as they could encourage employers to hire and develop individuals with ASD as there are no significant differences between Neuro Type in how motivated and concentrated they are when performing their work. Theoretical and practical implications for these findings are discussed, and recommendations for future research are included.
THE MEDIATING ROLE OF RISK PERCEPTION IN THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN COVID-19 KNOWLEDGE AND STRATEGIC THINKING IN HEALTHCARE ORGANIZATION
(2023-12) Franklyn U. Echemah
The Covid-19 pandemic has caused significant disruptions across multiple sectors, particularly in healthcare, necessitating the implementation of effective crisis management strategies. This dissertation explores the intricate relationship between Covid-19 knowledge, risk perception, and strategic decision-making among mid-level to executive personnel within healthcare organizations. While existing research has delved into the connection between Covid-19 knowledge and strategic thinking, there is limited understanding of the mediating role of risk perception in the healthcare industry. Employing structural equation modeling (SEM) for data analysis, this study aims to bridge this research gap and offer practical insights for healthcare managers grappling with pandemic challenges. The results affirm the positive influence of Covid-19 knowledge on both strategic thinking and risk perception. Additionally, risk perception is identified as a partial mediator in the relationship between Covid-19 knowledge and strategic thinking. This research enriches the literature by shedding light on the significance of risk perception within the context of Covid-19 knowledge and strategic decision-making within healthcare organizations.
Playing Two Games at Once: The Roles of Absorptive Capacity and Organizational Trust in the Relationship Between Entrepreneurial Climate and Organizational Ambidexterity
(2023-09) Oyewo, Oyetunde
The ever-changing competitive and unpredictable nature of the business environment dictates that organizations must be as good at anticipating future trends as they are at profitably running their current operations. Thus, organizational ambidexterity is essential for long-term survival. The dynamic business environment calls for behaviors across an organization encouraged by organizational actors, especially the top management team that are tasked with the strategic direction of the organization. Fostering an entrepreneurial climate as perceived by employees in the organization is the first step in laying the foundation for learning and innovation. Supported by the upper echelons theory, the present study examined the relationship between entrepreneurial climate and organizational ambidexterity, with additional interest in the roles that organizational trust and absorptive capacity play in the relationship. Using a sample of full-time employees across several industries recruited on the professional network platform LinkedIn to test the hypothetical and alterative models, the study confirms a positive relationship between an entrepreneurial climate and organizational ambidexterity with the mediating effect of absorptive capacity. However, organizational trust did not have a significant effect. Opportunities for future research are discussed.
Work-Life Balance in the New Normal: A Study of Performance and Well-Being Post-Pandemic
(2023-08) Wilson, Jared R.
COVID-19 and the government shelter-in-place forced millions of traditional office employees to work outside their physical location, and instead, work as remote or work-from-home (WFH) employees. Even though the pandemic is over, this novel phenomenon has changed work characteristics and perceptions of employee outcomes moving forward. In addition, the mass exodus from office workers to remote workers has left a gap in the literature. The infrequency of remote workers before the pandemic is disproportionate to the many remote workers today, leaving the generalizability of WFH employee outcomes incomplete. The primary objective of this research is to examine the challenges associated with remote work, and their impact on the ability to balance professional obligations and family responsibilities. Examining the relationship between virtual work characteristics, autonomy and monitoring, and their effects on employee performance and well-being via work-home interference, we surveyed 381 full-time employees who work remotely at least one day a week. We found support for direct relationships between autonomy and performance and autonomy and work interference with family. In addition, we found direct relationships between work-home interference and performance and well-being. This study provides valuable insights into the experiences and perspectives of WFH employees.
Connecting with Multi-Campus Systems in Higher Education: The Moderating Role of Proximity Between Perceived Organizational Support and Employee Commitment
(2023-08) Nabors, Ernie R.
This study examines how proximity influences the relationship between perceived organizational support and employee commitment in multi-campus organizational structures. Authors have underlined how geographical proximity is not the only measure of the closeness of an organization. Proximity can be further examined through cognitive, institutional, social, and organizational proximities. We hypothesized that not only does the closeness of an organization influence employee commitment, but it also influences the relational dynamics of an employee's perceived organizational support. The purpose of this paper is twofold: to provide a conceptual framework to measure an organization's closeness and assess how proximity influences the relationship between organizational support and employee commitment. A survey was sent to the faculty and staff at a regional community college (n=92). The regression results aligned with the direct effects of perceived organizational support and employee commitment; however, the hypothesized moderating effects of proximity were insignificant. This research has implications for higher-education institutions with multiple campuses and contributes to organization proximity and employee commitment literature.
The Social Antecedents of Password Sharing: Why Do People Share Passwords?
(2023-08) Murimi, Robert K.
Subscription-based services are widely used, and also widely shared, leading to significant revenue losses for providers. This research studied the role of social relationships in individuals' intentions to share passwords. Specifically, this research used social exchange theory to study how altruism, reciprocity, perceived status, and social connectedness affected individual intentions to share passwords, where trust was the mediating factor. The findings of this research indicated that perceived status was a significant predictor of password sharing intentions. Users with lower perceived social status intended to share their passwords with those of higher perceived social status. These findings indicate that password sharing intentions may be more of a power differential than an exchange mechanism. The primary finding of this study is that status was influential in the intention to share passwords, that is, two individuals at different levels of social status encouraged sharing intentions.
Chasing Realism: Consumption Science & Platform Performance Convergence in the Video Game Industry
(2023-08) Tedder, Robbie Jr
For decades, the video gaming community has passionately debated whether the best gaming experience can be found using a personal computer (PC) or a gaming console (Xbox, PlayStation, etc.) platform. While PCs have had superior performance (e.g., speed, graphics, etc.) for many years, some experts now believe that the gaming hardware industry is becoming isomorphic. That is, with advances in technology, “the playing field has been levelled,” and gamers should get the same experience whether they are using a PC or a console. If this truly is the case, have gamers noticed, and has it affected their perceptions of the different platforms? Using a cross-sectional survey of gamers, we examined if a gamer’s platform (i.e., hardware) expectations directly influenced their engagement, and if this relationship is mediated by perceived isomorphism by the gamer. Moreover, we posited that the relationship between gamer platform performance utility and perceived isomorphism will be moderated by how much importance a gamer places on hardware price. A survey measuring these constructs was sent to gamers resulting in a final sample of 512 respondents. Using PROCESS model 7 for moderated mediation, a direct relationship between performance utility and engagement was significant. In addition, we found that perceived isomorphism also directly influenced engagement. Yet, support for our moderated mediation model put forth was not found. Altogether, we believe that this research will enable gaming platform manufacturers to better position their products, and that our findings will extend the very limited consumer behavior gaming research in academia.
Repairing Legitimacy after Organizational Misconduct: Signaling Remediation via Corporate Governance Change Following Disclosures of Potential Criminal Liability
(2019-04) Bogie, Rebecca A.
Organizational misconduct, which suggests ineffective monitoring and oversight, focuses attention on top‐level management and may damage organizational legitimacy. Under the legal reforms following corporate scandals in the early 2000s, the board of directors and executives bear direct responsibility for monitoring and oversight. As such, it is reasonable to examine whether disclosures of potential misconduct result in increased board director and CEO turnover and whether such corporate governance changes are appropriate mechanisms for organizational legitimacy repair. This study, using a sample of U.S. publicly traded companies with matched controls, investigated organizational legitimacy damage and repair in the context of disclosures of potential, federal‐level criminal liability; such disclosures are mandated in the U.S. by generally accepted accounting principles. The study builds on the body of research known as ex post settling up, where limited empirical evidence exists around the presumed legitimacy repair benefits of board and executive turnover following organizational misconduct. Regarding practice, the findings may aid organizational management in planning for the consequences of these types of disclosures. Additionally, the findings lend support to issues previously identified by regulators in relation to credit agencies and the lack of influence of non‐financial factors such as misconduct and corporate governance in their ratings.
The role of the perceived organizational support and leader-member exchange in developing the intention to engage in scholarly activities
(2022-08) Groves Brandon, Shelly
Academic medical centers maintain their competitive advantage by offering innovative clinical treatments to patients and by sustaining a high level of scientific productivity from faculty members at their affiliated medical schools. In such centers, scientific productivity is measured by the number and quality of scientific articles published, conference presentations given, research grants awarded, and patents granted. These contributions are important not only to the institution but also to the individual faculty members for career advancement and progression of the field of study in which they specialize. Given the importance of faculty members’ scholarly contributions, it is imperative to better understand what factors influence their scientific productivity. One such factor is the social exchange between employee, leadership, and the organization at large; therefore, this study reviewed how faculty members’ perception of organizational support (POS) and leader-member exchange (LMX) would influence their attitude about scientific productivity through the lens of the theory of planned behavior (TPB). I also examined perceived organizational support and leader-member exchange influence on the relationship between perceived behavioral control (PBC) and behavioral intention by surveying faculty members from academic medical centers across the US that host NCI-designated cancer centers The results indicated that the perception of high-quality LMX was positively related to greater PBC and stronger intention to engage in scholarly activities. On the other hand, POS did not influence faculty members' attitudes or intent to engage in scholarly activities. Lastly, neither POS nor LMX enhanced or diminished faculty members’ intention to engage in scholarly activities once their attitude had been formed.
Optimizing Enterprise Cybersecurity risk Management: A Business and IT Alignment Approach
(2022-08) Jarjoui, Samir
This dissertation outlines a holistic perspective for enterprise cybersecurity risk management and examines multiple interconnected dimensions for improving cyber resiliency within the organizational perspective.
THE INFLUENCE OF COGNITIVE ABILITY AND EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE ON ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE
(2022-08) Sargent, Matthew J.
A primary objective of higher education is to assist students in the area of cognitive development. When cognitive ability is developed and maintained at an optimal level, students can effectively manage and use pieces of information to solve complex problems. Research provides evidence that cognitive ability plays a critical role in predicting academic achievement. Research also notes that emotions play an essential role in cognitive ability, and cognitive ability may be easier or more difficult because of the emotional state. This study, one of the few to investigate the relationship between cognitive ability and academic performance within various outputs of upper-level accounting courses at a major US university, finds that students in accounting courses can leverage their cognitive ability to achieve higher performance in the classroom. This study found that cognitive ability is positively related to data analytics assignment grades and shows the importance of cognitive ability in helping to elevate one’s ability to use data analytics effectively. However, emotional intelligence (EI) was not found to moderate the relationship between a student’s cognitive ability and academic performance. This study is significant because it is one of the few studies on cognitive ability using a measurement that can separate the structure of a performance (indicative of a cognitive-developmental level) from the base content of a performance.
CSR and Employee Outcomes: The Role of Organizational Identification
(2022-09) Barland, Jeff
Does Transparency in Communication Matter? The Impact of Transparent Communication by Immediate Supervisors on Trust in Supervisors and Readiness to Change
(2022-11) Becker, Chris
Change is constant within organizations today, and transparency in communication is essential to ensure employees are ready to change. The aim of this research was to assess the impact of transparent communication by an immediate supervisor during strategic change on the perceived trust in the immediate supervisor and employees’ readiness to change. Transparent communication by immediate supervisors was hypothesized to positively impact trust in supervisors and employee readiness to change, and trust in supervisors was hypothesized to positively impact employee readiness to change, and partially mediate the relationship between transparent communication by immediate supervisors and employee readiness to change. Data was collected through a Qualtrics® panel using an online cross-sectional survey of respondents who worked full time in the U.S., were experiencing change at work, and reported to a supervisor in an organization. The hypothesized relationships between transparency,readiness to change, and trust were supported. This study was the first to assess the impact of transparency by immediate supervisors on the readiness to change of employees, and the hope is that this finding will spur additional research and practical conversations around the impact of transparent communication on employee outcomes.

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